Video by Daniel Fortune
The attention given to a region’s creative output often goes hand in hand with an influx of people and assets, and, occasionally, a fresh interpretation of the place in question. Florida has historically been among the fastest-growing states in the country. Whether you’ve been here for decades or you’re still unpacking, it’s tempting to think you could own a piece of art closely linked to where you live—but where to start?
Recent auction results for the work of the Florida Highwaymen may give the impression that beginning a collection now will require a significant financial investment. This group of African American landscape artists prodigiously painted and sold colorful scenes along Florida’s roadways, most actively in the 1950s and 1960s. Their historical importance is entangled in the segregation they faced and the perseverance they exhibited to pursue their art. In December 2023, a work by Alfonso “Poncho” Moran (one of the original 26 Florida Highwaymen) sold at auction for $40,000. But don’t let this discourage you: the state’s aesthetic signature exists across a breadth of fine and decorative arts, eras, mediums, and price points.
Born in 1926 and raised in Jupiter, Doris “Dodie” Thayer taught herself how to mold clay using lettuce and cabbage leaves, never with the intention of mass-producing her wares. Thayer was inspired by eighteenth- and nineteenth-century majolica, specifically a kind of apple-green “lettuce ware” known as “Napoli ware,” as well as the leafy stoneware of Portuguese artist Raphael Bordallo Pinheiro. But Thayer’s work was all her own, with each piece reportedly taking her two weeks to handcraft.
Dubbed the “Pottery Queen of Palm Beach,” Thayer and her tableware caught the attention of such tastemakers as Jackie Kennedy and C.Z. Guest. Today, Thayer’s creations fetch a pretty penny at auction, as evidenced by a service of some 141 pieces that recently sold for $137,500. However, small Thayer cups and saucers can be affordable, around $200. In 2017, after years of working with Thayer and her family, fashion designer Tory Burch started her Dodie Thayer for Tory Burch line, comprising tableware priced between $75 and $400.
Shell art has also found a substantive place in coastal homes along nearly every seaboard—including in Florida. Artist Christa Wilm, owner of Christa’s South Seashells in West Palm Beach, works with shells to make a variety of household objects. The Gasparilla Inn in Boca Grande even commissioned her to complete a shell-studded fireplace surround.
Fine and decorative arts stand side by side, equally representing regional roots. Zeroing in on the cultural and artistic significance of what you are collecting and why it matters in the greater context of your area is the most important step toward starting a regional art collection.
