If a picture can tell a thousand words, then Sean Murphy, Skye Bailey, and Tyler Trant could fill volumes with their art. Impressively, intricate tattoos canvas their bodies—creative works they are proud to share.

“Storytelling is most important,” Murphy says. “We can have all the latest technology and use all the best tools, but what really brings us together as a team and sets us apart in the industry is finding a special angle to our storytelling.”

The Gannet Creative House origin story began when all three worked together at BOTE, a Florida-based company specializing in innovative, high-quality stand-up paddleboards, kayaks, and outdoor water gear. Traveling the world together, working on extensive projects for BOTE, they realized how compatible they were as a team.

Ideas flowed freely, mutual respect was shared, creativity flourished, and work they were proud of came to fruition. Starting out as a side business with just a few clients, they sought to ride that momentum as far as the journey would take them.

By January of 2025, their “fun side project” became a full venture when they agreed to commit more time and talent to becoming a business. July brought their official company launch and an influx of clients, keeping their calendars packed and passports stamped.

Gannet Creative House specializes in high-end photo and cinematography storytelling. This could be a one-day, few-hour photo shoot capturing the essence of a local company in distilled frames. Or, it could include scouting, casting, scheduling, and logistics, all handled by their team for a month-long international production to make a major ad campaign.

When asked to define their roles, they say Bailey is the producer, Murphy is the photographer, and Trant is the cinematographer, but they all agree that each person contributes much more than just these roles.

“Every client is asking for something different, and you have to treat every project differently,” Bailey says. “As a producer, I’ve become a fixer, a problem solver, seeing us through to the end goal and vision.”

“I think Skye’s role is the most interesting and inspiring, especially to young people,” Murphy says. “Her career started in graphic design then transitioned to marketing before fully embracing her role as producer. She’s always learning, adapting, and gaining new skills.”

They work together to make client decisions, to conceptualize shot lists, to write scripts, and more. While they are a core team of three, they have others on staff and have the capabilities to bring on a large production team for high-end projects.

While Northwest Florida boasts the studio location, the team is ready and willing to travel wherever their clientele needs them to go, be it by sea with their access to underwater equipment or by sky with the use of drones.

“This is a great home base for us,” Murphy says. “We don’t have to live in a big city to have access to nearby airports and a wealth of local talent.”

While they have worked on campaigns for national and international clients, including BOTE, Lululemon, Kona Bikes, and Bajio Sunglasses, they delight in getting to shine the spotlight locally.

An upcoming campaign they are proud to contribute to is the B.E. A S.H.E.R.O. Foundation, a grassroots organization founded with the mission of addressing the urgent needs of those affected by sex trafficking.

“The campaign, titled ‘Girlhood,’ shines light on what young girls would miss out on if they experienced sex trafficking,” Bailey says. “It’s very moving and really rewarding to have worked on this. We were able to cast local women to share these stories. It’s really special for a campaign this large to be done in a small town.”

All three call the Panhandle home now, but Murphy was raised on the Emerald Coast. He spent much of his 30-plus-year career working in Los Angeles on global campaigns with an affinity for the music scene.

“We are lucky to have many of the clients we have because of Sean’s reputation, alongside the reputation we built working together at BOTE,” Bailey says. “For those reasons, we haven’t had too much fight for creative control. That stems from having clients that trust us and come to us knowing they like what they’ve seen.”

They all reflect fondly on their time working for BOTE, desiring that type of long-term, build-from-the-beginning-to-the-end relationship. All agree that it’s fulfilling to be a key part of building a brand.

Be it a one-time client, a yearly project, or a retainer client that lasts more than a decade, the thrill and the challenge are to craft something unique.

“I think clients like that while we stay true to us, we never repeat the same idea from job to job,” Trant says. “Not having egos and really listening to our clients gets us a long way.”

Gannet Creative House has embraced the use of AI in some aspects of its work. It’s utilized as a tool for expediting processes such as building treatments, generating script ideas, and organizing shot lists.

With the latest and greatest in camera and video equipment, and as business-minded creatives, they keep with the cutting edge while knowing their minds are their greatest assets.

“No matter how good technology gets,” Trant says, “it will never replace the human element of being on set and creating with a client.” ▪

The Cultural Arts Alliance (CAA) of Walton County, proudly announces Gerard Frank as the Featured Artist for the 37th Annual ArtsQuest Fine Arts Festival. Frank’s custom artworks—Clarence and Alabama, Great Minds, and One Man Show will be showcased on all ArtsQuest marketing materials. The festival, a beloved May tradition, will take place May 3-4, 2025, at Grand Boulevard Town Center’s North Park.

Frank, a professional artist for 26 years, holds the distinction of being the first living artist included in the permanent collection of the Anna Lamar Switzer Center for the Visual Arts. His work is also featured in The Lofts Gallery in Pensacola, FL, and a prestigious Central Park West lobby in New York City. His collectors span the U.S., from Miami to NYC’s SoHo district to Long Beach, CA, and internationally in Germany. In addition to his fine art career, Frank has dedicated over two decades to tattoo artistry, owning and operating his own shop while exhibiting in multiple galleries across the country.

A self-taught painter with a background in commercial screen printing, Frank has worked with clients such as Hewlett-Packard, Boeing, and Lucent Technologies. His expertise in printing on diverse materials—including plastics, metals, wood, and glass—helped shape his abstract style. Encouraged by his wife, Teri, he continues to explore creative boundaries, blending fine art and tattoo artistry.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU TO BE THE FEATURED ARTIST AT ARTQUEST 2025?
“As humans we have a desire to belong to something. As artists, we exist in a paradox—trusting our process even when it separates us from the group,” says Frank. “When people connect with your work as deeply as you connect with creating it, you’ve achieved a fundamental human desire: belonging. Being named the Featured Artist for ArtsQuest 2025 is an incredible honor, reinforcing my passion and obligation to keep creating.”

The tattoo industry has long thrived in Pensacola where a perfect combination of military members, locals, and tourists have kept books full at shops throughout town for decades. 

“I think it’s just a really good, supportive community,” says Carrie Daniels, Fortune Tattoo shop owner. “Not only for tattooers but just artists in general.”

But the industry has seen much change since the days when the sounds of coil machines drowned out drunken walk-in requests and Sailor Jerry and Ed Hardy designs flooded the walls of every shop in town. 

“The days are gone of picking something off the wall,” says Gabe Smith, better known in Pensacola as Famous Gabe, owner of Electric Robot tattoo shop.

“Tattooing had this family tree,” he says. “And then the internet came out, and now the industry is diluted. People don’t know their lineage anymore; they don’t respect that lineage.”

Smith has been tattooing in Pensacola for 30 years. His long gray beard, shaved head, and fully tatted arms tell the story of an old-school tattooer. But even he has been forced to accept the change and pivot.

“You have to embrace the technology,” he says. “You can do that and still adhere to tradition.”

Too, he says, the internet has provided a more level playing field as trends, innovations, and technological advancements are shared instantly via online articles and social media platforms.

“It used to be you had to look at a magazine for something, and that’s your reference,” says Carrie Daniels, owner of Fortune Tattoo. “Now, you can just pull it up on your phone and automatically find whatever you want.”

New tattoo pen technology has taken over for many tattooers. At Fortune, Daniels says she’s the last artist yet to make the switch. Like Smith, she holds onto aspects of simpler tattooing times. 

“You still have people who stay tried and true to original equipment,” she says, “and that’s pretty cool.” 

Still, Daniels notes, there are plenty of industry norms worth leaving in the past.

When I apprenticed, it seemed like no one wanted to give me any information,” she recalls of her time as a young mentee in Jacksonville. “You had to figure it out on your own. But you had to put in all the physical work just to be there.”

A woman entering the industry in the early 2000s and working in all-male shops, Daniels ran into challenges. 

“At the time, it was not welcoming for women; it was very hard to get into,” she says. “You definitely had to find your place. You put your head down and grind.”  

Today she owns a shop with a majority of women tattooers.   

“I just wanted a comfortable and fun place for artists and clientele,” she says of opening Fortune Tattoo. “Because I think, a lot of times, people are intimidated and scared to come into a tattoo shop.”

The Western Rose tattoo shop entered the scene in 2021 with similar intentions of breaking cycles.

“We avoid a lot of the negative side, the toxic side of tattooing, because of this space that we’ve built together,” says Victoria Higgins, one of four Western Rose artists. 

The shop is run as a cooperative, made up of Higgins, Ali Roudabush, Reagan Mauldin, and Dave Ham. The four artists split costs evenly based on occupied square footage. 

“As opposed to someone else being in charge of everyone else’s artwork and making a profit off of other artists, no artist is profiting off of another one here,” Ham explains. 

A growing industry shift, the cooperative approach helps prevent an imbalance in power structures and overhead expenses. 

“I think the toxicity of tattoo culture is changing, which is awesome,” Mauldin says. 

Mauldin, Higgins, Ham, and Roudabush found each other at a time when they were all ready for change within the industry after working at other shops and in other career fields that proved unhealthy environments. 

“When I first started, it was very male-dominated with very toxic male egos, and you were just kind of told what to do,” says Mauldin, who’s been tattooing for over seven years. “You were supposed to be seen and not heard, and you work your a– off for a percentage that you deserved more of. And now, I work in a co-op with my best friends, where they respect me and they listen to me, and with clients that are the same.”

The Western Rose team has curated a safe, welcoming environment for clients. 

“It’s completely shifted into the healthiest work environment I’ve ever been in,” Mauldin says. 

The unassuming cottage on South De Villiers Street greets patrons with its plant-filled porch, and inclusive signage welcomes with phrases like “The future is queer.” Inside, beyond the equipment, tools, and safety features, there’s nothing medical or transactional about the space. The air is calm, the music is chill, the greenery is abundant, and the walls and shelves are adorned with eclectic decor. 

Despite negative past experiences, the group says Pensacola has given them a space they belong in as creatives. 

“The creative scene here is very community based,” Higgins says.

“Pensacola is a good place to be a tattooer just because of the military base, and the downtown crowd is very ‘locals support locals,’” Ham says. 

The local market scene thrives in Pensacola where creatives of all walks come out in droves. In August 2024, The Western Rose hosted a vendor market and tattooing convention called Mystic Rodeo. 

The event was organized as a fundraiser for Roudabush who was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2023. With 20 vendors and 10 tattoo artists, the market welcomed the community to enjoy a day of art, live music, and flash tattooing in an effort to support Roudabush on her treatment journey. 

“It was just a really good example of Pensacola showing up for a local person,” says Ham. “Also, the art there was really incredible.”

Mystic Rodeo raised $11,000 for Roudabush. The group hopes to make Mystic Rodeo an annual fundraiser event to benefit area organizations and nonprofits. 

While many are shifting industry culture to focus on community, decades of bad habits still linger for some. And apprenticeships, as Daniels and Mauldin noted, can prove difficult for new tattooers entering the scene.  

“Because there is no curriculum or system, you can get abused real quick, and you can be taken advantage of,” says Mauldin. “And I think that happens more often than not until the mentor decides, ‘Okay, you’re worth your salt; now I’ll give you real information.’”

“There’s a responsibility for someone who wants to get in the tattoo industry to find the mentor who they think is going to teach them correctly and not abuse their time or them,” says Ham. “It’s really important to have a good relationship with your mentor.”

“And nobody should ever pay for their apprenticeship,” Higgins adds.

The group at The Western Rose hopes to instill a new era of tattoo culture in the community. 

“We all came from kind of messed up situations,” Mauldin says, “and now we’re in this environment that is healthy, and we’re open to learning, growing, and communicating.”

Many parents use the phrase “starving artist” to warn their children away from the arts. The corner of every major city houses a singer-songwriter trying to make it big. Street performers earn an average of $21.70/hour in the United States, but that figure can vary greatly based on the artist’s skill and location. 

The trades business can be even more challenging, since art can take hundreds of hours to craft a single item. Booths at trade shows and farmers markets are filled with people of passion trying to find their fan base. After paying the fee to attend, the average haul at an event is approximately $350. At that rate, one event per week would earn $18,200 per year, barely above the poverty line. 

However, success stories prevail on social media feeds across the globe. These platforms have created a larger stage for artists, but the market is still saturated and can be expensive to advertise. Marketing on them requires substantial investment and significant time. Creativity can be lucrative, but the statistics are clear that generating a successful business in the arts requires dedication beyond one’s craft.

For four artist-entrepreneurs in Tallahassee, success is far more than earning a living. Their drive to succeed comes down to one crucial factor: passion. 

Dr. Valerie Arsenault and the Bach Parley

The sanctuary of St. John’s Episcopal Church is packed on a Sunday afternoon, but instead of priests and acolytes on the altar, there are musicians—a cellist, violinists and violists, a bassist, a pianist, each of them to play a replica period instrument from nearly 300 years ago. This is the Tallahassee Bach Parley, an ensemble committed to Baroque-era music, newly animated and accessible to modern listeners. 

Violinist Valerie Arsenault, a Tallahassee Symphony member, “rebirthed” the group in 2008 from its original choral beginnings. “I had absolutely no business plan,” she says honestly. Presenting St. John’s Church with her instrumental musical concept, she only hoped to provide musicians with an honorarium, which might one day become commensurate with what the symphony paid. Support was swift. Concerts were standing room only. Memberships were offered at $250, $500, and $1,000, and with donations and grant funding from the State of Florida and the Council on Culture & Arts, soon, Arsenault was presenting three to four standing room only concerts a year, often with national guest artists, and dozens of “luncheon concerts.” As her vision grew, the community seemed to want more. 

With a steady source of funding, Arsenault has developed the Bach Parley String Academy, separate from the instrumental group, which has provided musical scholarships to hundreds of committed students from the public schools. 

The dynamic and voluble Arsenault, performer and teacher, engages her audiences with Baroque tidbits and insights before each concert and says she is delighted that her own love of ancient music has resonated so deeply with Tallahassee.

 Terry Galloway of Mickee Faust Club

Terry Galloway is the cofounder of The Mickee Faust Club, the 25-year-old “weird and wacky” theater company whose arms are open to persons of all ages, including LGBTQ and the disabled, who love to act, write, and simply perform “over the top” theater. Galloway, its prime mover, promotes volunteer actors and writers to engage in Faust’s mix of political and socio-sexual satire, literary and cinematic parodies, original songs, and some fully staged bad jokes.

Galloway, who was hearing-handicapped prior to a cochlear implant, has seen the thrill ofperformers who “never thought they could perform” and audiences who filled the offbeat Railroad Square theater in Tallahassee year after year, all financed through donations and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, COCA, the City of Tallahassee, and the Christopher and Dana Reeves Foundation. “The monies we receive go into the equipment, lighting, and working components of the theater,” she says. Volunteers handle the costumes, sets, writing, directing, and acting.

Following a devastating tornado that tore apart the theater in May 2024, The Mickee Faust Club has been offered temporary space for their productions at Tallahassee’s House of Music. The ever-positive Galloway says, “For now, we’re a ‘mobile’ company, but our supporters have signed five- and 10-year pledges to find us a new permanent home and grow Faust again!”

Dr. Celeste Hart and the Anderson Brickler Gallery

“It was in the ’70s when I was at Howard University that I first fell in love with art,” says Dr. Celeste Hart, a Tallahassee endocrinologist. Born into a famous African American medical family, she says Washington, D.C. galleries and museums provided her with an “arts education” that led to her passionate avocation—owning an art gallery of her own. “I had frank discussions with two gallery owners in New York City and in Washington, D.C. They urged caution about the prospects of a small gallery, but one of them, Lewis Hudnell, was both a mentor and a pathfinder in the early years,” Hart explains. Hudnell had introduced her to important contacts and provided invaluable advice, paving a way for her to be successful. 

Hart was optimistic that Tallahassee could support her art. In 2016, when her gallery opened, Tallahassee was named the No. 1 art-buying city in the U.S. by Artfinder magazine. 

“The city boasts a robust community of artists affiliated with our three universities or that working independently,” Hart says. “We collaborate actively with other arts and cultural organizations in the city to reinforce the sense of the city as a place where art thrives. By offering works by nationally recognized as well as emerging artists, we can offer the community original art that fits most budgets.”

Hart supplements art sales by offering gallery memberships and by sales of smaller items through on-site and online stores. Hart’s unrealized goal is to package some of their

exhibits for lease to other regional galleries. The Anderson Brickler’s three spacious rooms feature exhibitions of national and local artists whose work focuses on African themes. “Working with collectors and businesses,” Hart says, “I’ve developed a loyal cadre of art lovers and find the gallery space expanding to include other arts—like jazz groups or Cuban drummers, and arts discussion groups and workshops as well.”

Hart says that prospering solely on sales of paintings is not always easy, but she loves sharing the joy with college students, families, and those new to art. “I show work I love, and I want others to experience it, too!”

Carrie Hamby (Hepzibah Jones) of the Blue Tavern

Carrie Hamby, also known by her “nom de choix,” Hepzibah Jones, has been a musical fixture at Florida folk and blues venues for years. With Belmont and Jones, she sings and plays a dizzying number of folk and homemade instruments. She also became busy with booking and promotion at a popular music spot, the Blue Tavern. Three years ago, Hamby got her chance to buy the business and bring the café/bar/music venue to the next level. 

Expanding the vision of the original owner, Maggie McKeown, who ran the club as a café and bar, Hamby wanted to keep her favorite music alive for her patrons.  

“People wanted and needed a ‘third space’ to go, to be with friends, to hear music they loved,” Hamby says, so she aims to book two or three musical groups each night. She notes that unlike many venues, the Blue Tavern offers a guaranteed fee rather than 80% of the house, which may be only $30.

Interspersed are jam sessions, poetry readings, or old-time movie nights. She expanded the menu, offering vegan specialties, saying, “That’s our key—food, atmosphere, and music. There’s a whole tribe of people who’ve found their home here and keep on coming back.”

From a business standpoint, Hamby adds that she needs every seat filled each night and that many of the patrons are friends with the performers. 

Recently, a music/performance space, the Req Room, opened next door. Hamby and its owner Chris Seepersaud will collaborate on the expanded space potential, while aiming to keep the intimacy and artist-to-audience contact that is so treasured at the Blue Tavern. 

“Everything in business is a risk,” she says. “But keeping the music flowing is worth it!”

With its temperate weather, flora and fauna erupting into bloom, and the city waking from winter with a stacked calendar of events, spring in Tallahassee is a business in itself. On the roster of headlining events, Word of South, a festival of literature and music, takes a top spot.

For 11 years, hundreds of attendees have headed to Tallahassee’s city center of Cascades Park for a weekend that celebrates writers and musicians, exploring the special ways in which these two disciplines merge and mingle through the festival’s signature “mu-aushups.”

Word of South was created by founder and president, Mark Mustian. An author himself, Mustian attended literary festivals throughout the United States and abroad. Inspired and realizing the Northwest Florida region had nothing comparable, he set out to bring a literary and music festival to the Capital City.

Throughout the weekend, everyone from notable to little-known writers and musicians takes to stages to share their stories and songs. Others, as vendors, sell their merchandise while making meaningful connections with and people that are sure to become new fans. 

Ask any artist why they create art, and it can almost be guaranteed they don’t say it’s for the money. Where a paycheck may not be the muse, artists deserve to be paid for the products and services they provide to the public through their art.  

Word of South is uniquely situated as a festival that provides the opportunity for both artist promotion and artist payment. In turn, the community is stimulated by art while the local economy is stimulated by each visitor who stays in Tallahassee and then purchases a band’s merchandise or an author’s self-published novel.

“Word of South is heavy on foot traffic, which provides the opportunity for that face-to-face connection that’s missing with a writer or musician when you shop online or even in a store,” says Sara Marchessault, director of Word of South. “This not only generates sales for the artist but often results in a new following, which is also highly valuable.”

The meet method is particularly beneficial for self-published authors who may not have the backing or funding of a marketing team to promote their work. The same goes for local musicians who may not have the platform to sell their merchandise, but a connection leads to a purchased T-shirt and a follow on a music streaming platform.

Aside from the artist or performer themselves, Marchessault states that the main criterion for vendors is that they pertain to books, music, or the promotion of community arts culture. 

Repeat vendors that consistently generate sizable crowds at their booths include: My Favorite Books, Midtown Reader, Olde Fields Clothing, University Press of Florida, and Florida Humanities. Unlike some festivals, Word of South withholds no portion of the profit of a vendor’s sales. Only a small fee for the rental of the tent, table, chairs, and setup is asked.

On average, there are over 30 spots available to vendors each year. A handful are granted to sponsors. From there, Marchessault provides spaces to repeat vendors while mixing in new applicants.

“There’s stability to it, with vendors who attend every year that we are happy to reunite with again, and there’s also excitement to the newness—seeing what kind of interest new vendors generate,”
says Marchessault.  

Midtown Reader, Tallahassee’s only New York Times reporting bookstore, has been a sponsor of and the festival’s bookseller for five years. Their tent is centrally located, selling the books of every author in attendance at the festival. Additionally, they host a stage where Florida authors have a panel conversation.  

“Being [one of] the only bookstore at the festival, it does generate a lot of commerce for us over the two-day span,” says Sally Bradshaw, owner of Midtown Reader. “But, even more valuable, this is how many people discover us, especially those who come to the festival from out of town. It often creates new loyal patrons to our store.”

Marchessault noted that what began as a local festival, in recent years has become an event, attracting attendees throughout Northwest Florida as well as travelers from South Florida. With this popularity, Word of South has brought in authors and musicians such as Lauren Groff, The Flaming Lips, Joy Harjo, Allison Russell, and Tommy Prine.

Much of the success can be attributed to the Word of South board who strive to continuously build on the festival. In the early years, it was recognized that the festival gravitated toward Americana music and nonfiction and children’s authors. Realizing this, the board has worked to incorporate hip-hop, pop, rap, and country acts alongside various subgenres.  

Marchessault and Bradshaw commented on the opportunities the festival brings, especially for aspiring authors with the presence of published authors, Florida State University’s creative writing program, Florida A&M University’s journalism program, and organizations like Florida Humanities.

Where commerce is valuable, to many businesses or organizations, making connections with attendees is invaluable. This is how many get their names out, their purposes shared, and their missions recognized.

Repeat vendors, such as Olde Fields Clothing and Sangha Press, often have items for sale that promote both an appreciation for the arts and for Tallahassee. Additionally, all food and beverage vendors are locally sourced.

The prime location at Cascades Park makes the festival walkable from most downtown hotels, restaurants, and businesses without the worry of crossing busy streets. During an already bustling spring season, Word of South furthers the city’s tourism for Tallahassee.

For a weekend in April, Word of South puts artists on stages to showcase their talents and helps art-centric businesses display their products and services. For days and years after, this exposure creates a ripple effect of support.

Take in the wonders of art from a unique underwater perspective. The Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County and South Walton Artificial Reef Association are set to unveil seven new sculptures that will become a part of the Underwater Museum of Art.

The Underwater Museum of Art (UMA) was created six years ago to cultivate marine habitats while providing creative and cultural opportunities that educate South Walton residents and visitors.

The 2024 sculptures will be deployed one mile off the coast of Grayton Beach State Park to join the 40 sculptures from previous years. Throughout the year, the exhibit is a dive site to be viewed by certified divers.

The 2024 UMA installation will include the following pieces of sculpture: “Reef Goddess” by Raine Bedsole (Santa Rosa Beach, Florida), “Deep Sea Three” by Matthew Gemmell and David Showalter (Baltimore, Maryland), “Sea How We Flow” by Elise Gilbert (Santa Rosa Beach, Florida), “Poseidon’s Throne” by Nathan Hoffman (Highlandville, Missouri), “Bubbly Barnacles” by Donna Conklin King (East Orange, New Jersey), “Sunken Spores” by Ashley Rivers (Gulfport, Florida) and “Ring My Bell” by Bradley Touchstone (Santa Rosa Beach, Florida).

There will be two opportunities to see the art before it is submerged: The 36^th Annual ArtsQuest Fine Arts Festival on May 4 and 5 and the Dine + Dive Fundraiser on May 1. Both events will occur at Grand Boulevard’s Town Center. The Dine + Dive Fundraiser will kick off Walton County’s month-long celebration of the arts.

This immersive event fuses fine art, culinary delights, luxury wines and marine conservation awareness. Attendees will be able to marvel over a few of the pieces for the 2024 installation and will have the opportunity to meet UMA artists from current and previous installations.

While taking in the art, partygoers can sip fine wines, craft beers and handcrafted cocktails while sampling food from over a dozen of South Walton’s most celebrated chefs. Live music will be presented by Cousin Curtiss, whose music merges rock, Americana and bluegrass.

For tickets to the Dine + Dive event and to learn more about UMA, visit https://www.culturalartsalliance.com/.

It is easier to tap into compassion than fuel passion.

So it is that Jennifer Steele’s job as a promoter and fundraiser for the arts presents challenges not faced by people who work to benefit hungry children, abused women, neglected animals or lonely seniors.

“Some causes you don’t have to explain,” said Steele, the executive director since 2008 of the Walton County Cultural Arts Alliance (CAA). “But a lot of people don’t understand that the arts are a part of their lives every single day. They may view them as a nonessential luxury, but they are critical to education, even social justice.

“Bottom line, any society that is healthy has a thriving arts community.”

Often, Steele encounters people or businesses for the first time when asking for sponsorships. When things go well, the ask may lead to a dialogue.

The most gratifying part of her job, Steele said, is growing relationships to the point where she can see that “people really get it, and they understand that the arts are capable of changing lives and bettering communities.”

After devoting the bulk of her career to educating people about the importance of the arts, Steele is satisfied that, in Walton County, “We are beginning to turn the corner, and we are seeing that in growing business investment and interest in the arts.”

She points to the Howard Group, the developer of premier shopping and dining destinations including Grand Boulevard at Sandestin, as a business that has been “getting it” for a long time, and she is pleased to see other businesses following its lead.

“Very early in my career, they let me know that they appreciated the importance of bringing arts and culture into a community to make it successful,” Steele said of the Howard Group.

The arts in Walton County and elsewhere in Northwest Florida are big business and getting bigger.

A study conducted in 2019 found that the local economic impact that year of just the CAA’s signature event, the 30A Songwriters Festival, was $7 million. Four years later and adding in the impact of the CAA’s other events, Steele believes the figure is probably $12 million.

A more precise calculation is in the works. The CAA is among 400 organizations participating in a nationwide arts and economic impact study that is being coordinated by a nonprofit organization, Americans for the Arts. As of April, the CAA had collected more than 800 intercept surveys from people attending its events and other cultural events in the county. At this writing, the CAA is getting other Walton County arts organizations to complete their own surveys.

The results of the study are expected to be available in November, and Steele is hopeful that her own $12 million estimate proves conservative.

Steele’s relationship with Walton County dates to her childhood when her family from outside Atlanta vacationed in Grayton Beach. Always, Walton County was a place that she wanted to get back to.

She put herself through college as a single mother, earning a bachelor of fine arts degree in theater and arts management from Valdosta State University in Georgia.

“I never wanted to be an actor,” Steele said. “I knew that I wasn’t going to go to New York or Los Angeles and even to try to act. Instead, I quickly became involved in the box office and business management side of our theater.”

Steele found the theater to be a collegial nurturing environment, exactly what she needed to stay inspired and encouraged and begin to find her tribe. She was discovering on a personal level the transformative power of art.

She completed an internship at the Lowndes County Art Commission, but still she couldn’t articulate what she wanted to do until a Valdosta State professor told her,  “You want to be a producer.”

Steele liked the sounds of that.

Following graduation, she moved to Atlanta to be close to her family and worked for a year as a special events coordinator and development assistant at the Center for Puppetry Arts, whose work she found to be fascinating.

Still, Walton County beckoned. She just needed a reason in addition to the area’s appeal to make the move.

Craig Hoover, who harbored a desire to start a theater in Seaside, provided that. He and Steele would found the Seaside Repertory Theatre with Hoover as the artistic director and she as the managing director.

Steele was with the theater for seven years before landing a job at the CAA as an events producer. Six months later,  she was promoted to executive director of what was then a small organization that relied heavily on volunteers. She would serve the CAA as a catalyst who enlarged the alliance’s vision.   

“There were some growing pains for sure,” Steele said. “The board allowed me to make some necessary changes, and they trusted me to increase the budget and take some risks so that we could grow the organization. They ultimately paid off.”

A year after she was made executive director, Steele launched the 30A Songwriters Festival with the Indigo Girls as the headline act. It went well, and Steele was satisfied that it could be a “nice little fundraiser for the CAA and a good community builder.” She had no idea as to the scale and scope the festival would achieve as an event that annually attracts 6,500 people.

Indeed, it has become a takeover weekend — in the best of ways. Planning for the festival is continuous. In April, Russell Carter, an entertainment lawyer who handles artist relations for the festival, was working to finalize contracts with the performers who will headline the 2024 event.

At present, the CAA has seven full-time and two part-time employees whom Steele describes as caring, highly competent, engaged and hardworking.

In addition to the Songwriters Festival, the team promotes and produces events including ArstQuest, which will turn 35 in 2024; the Flutterby Festival, an homage to monarchs; and varied programming throughout its Art Month each May. The CAA administers grant programs for artists and teachers; conducts a prison art program; extends art instruction to students and adults; and curates public art, most of which is accessible to all. A few pieces each year are deployed at the Underwater Museum of Art and reserved for scuba divers.

Steele will say that Walton County has gained a reputation regionally as a home for the arts but isn’t about to rest.

“There is a lot of room to grow,” she said. “People who are artists are prone to visit our area because of its natural beauty and welcoming vibe. (Almost like regular people.) We embrace artists and the arts.”

Providing ways for art to unite Walton County’s Gulf-front communities is difficult, however.

“Seaside, Alys Beach, Rosemary Beach, they are all lovely communities, but their main purpose is to attract people and create programming that keeps them there,” Steele said while conceding the appeal of a park-and-stay vacation. “The CAA’s vision and mission are much bigger than that. Songwriters may be the only event that brings all of those communities together. In addition to it, I feel like we need a community space for everyone — for the people who live here, for the people who work here, for students.”

Strategically, the CAA has established priorities including targeting new residents as a source of support and becoming more active and visible in Walton County north of Choctawhatchee Bay.

As a consumer and lover of art, Steele’s tastes are far from narrow.

“I feel like I am so sentimental and emotional about art that I am not a very good art critic,” she said. “I either feel something or I don’t.”

That criterion admits art of many sorts, but 20th-century American realist painter Edward Hopper is a favorite. It pains Steele that she was unable to get to the “Edward Hopper’s New York” exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

“People ask me why Hopper is my favorite artist, and I don’t even know how to describe it,” Steele said. “Art is just so intuitive.”

There are folks who cannot pass by a magazine rack without buying something. Steele never leaves an art festival empty-handed.

“I buy more art than I can place in my home because I am so drawn to it.”

The Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County will bring together art and water, two things that Emerald Coast residents are passionate about, at the fifth annual “Under The Sea” Underwater Museum of Art Gala.

On Thursday, May 11, from 6-9 p.m. at Grand Boulevard’s Town Center, attendees will dive into a night of fundraising while celebrating the kick-off of Art Month Walton County and the unveiling of two of the Underwater Museum of Art’s latest additions.

The Underwater Museum of Art is the first permanent underwater sculpture garden in the United States and is located in the Gulf of Mexico a little less than a mile off the Walton County shoreline. Sculptures lie in 58 feet of water. The museum is a project of the CAA’s Art in Public Spaces program created in partnership with the South Walton Artificial Reef Association.

“Not only are the art structures stunning to view underwater, but they have made a huge impact on the marine ecosystem,” said Allie Anderson, events director for the Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County. “The museum is fortunate to have a village of talented people in our community behind it, between the artists, logistical team specializing in deployment, the county, our staff and volunteers – it’s truly incredible what we all have done to make it happen.”

Commissioned sculptures are added to the garden each year. The sculptures not only attract art lovers, but also morph into a living reef, providing habitat for marine life.

The 2023 sculptures are: “Cetacean Remains” by Pat Mclain, “Madam Nature” by Andrew Luy, “One Tree” by Ann Moeller Steverson, “Opus” by Allison Wickey, “Quantum Reef” by Chris Chubb, “Space Nest” by Frank Henderson and “Welcome Home” by Zachary Long.

“We have beautiful new sculptures by two artists, Allison Wickey and Zachary Long, that will be on site for viewing at Under the Sea,”  Anderson said. “Each sculpture weighs over 1,800 pounds, is about six feet high and will be placed in the Underwater Museum of Art this year. This is your chance to see these sculptures on land before they are immersed offshore.”

Those attending the gala will be treated to art, live music, great food and unique cocktails. An opening act, Stormfolk, will give way to The Cleverys, who provide a blend of comedy and music. The Cleverlys have performed at some of the nation’s largest festivals including Stagecoach, Telluride and the CMA Music Fest.

Some of the area’s favorite chefs will be preparing food for the evening. Cocktails will be available throughout the event at cash bars.

Event proceeds will be used for next year’s Underwater Art Museum installation. Tickets are on sale at CulturalArtsAlliance.com/upcoming-events for $60. Day-of-the-event tickets, if available, will sell for $75.

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We are giving away two tickets to this year’s Under the Sea fundraiser as well as a one-night stay at the Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort and Spa! Enter to win here.

 

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Art lovers, nature lovers and underwater museum enthusiasts gathered under twinkling lights in Grand Boulevard Town Center in Miramar Beach on a balmy spring evening to support all three.

The Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County kicked off Art Month Walton County on May 4 by hosting the 4th annual Under the Sea fundraiser. The festive affair celebrated the Underwater Museum of Art’s (UMA) fourth installation with a night of art, music, cocktails, food and fun.

Upon entry guests were welcomed by a gleaming stand up paddleboard handcrafted by the Big Bend Maritime Center and beautiful, large-scale artwork by local artists Allison Wickey (who concepted the UMA) and Justin Gaffrey on display along with dozens of other travel trips, spa experiences and packages for the Art & More silent and live auction.

Continuing around the corner was a foodie’s thrill — a delicious bite served up by the “who’s who” of local chefs. Just some of the incredible tastes were Chef Phil McDonald’s (Black Bear Bread Company) Smoked Cobia Rillette with calabrian chili cioli on a house bagel chip; Chef Brannon Janca’s (Down Island) spicy Louisiana Crawfish Maque Choux with creamy Delta Rice Grits; Chef Blake Bohannon’s (Grayton Beach Catering) succulent Shrimp & Gouda Cheese Grits bites with bacon, crema and chives; and Chef Paul DiGiacomo’s (Grayton Corner Cafe) Best Fried Chicken was just that.

Dotting Grand Park was still spectacular sculptures to savor. French artist Davide Galbiati’s The Seed and The Sea and Santa Rosa Beach artist Brit Deslonde’s Bloom Baby Bloom gave art lovers the special treat of viewing the large-scale sculptures before they are plunged 58 feet into depths of the Gulf (off Grayton Beach). When they are submerged (later this summer) they will become a part of 34 original artworks on exhibit in the nation’s first Underwater Museum of Art.

In addition to these two works of art, the 2022 installation will include: Currents and Tafoni by Joe Adams (Ventura, CA), Pirate Shipwreck by Sean Coffey (Pittsburgh, PA), Fibonacci Conchousness by Anthony Heinz May (Eugene, OR), New Homes by Janetta Napp (Honolulu, HI), Arc of Nexus by Tina Piracci (Richmond, CA), We All Live Here by Marisol Rendón (San Diego, CA), and Common Chord by Vince Tatum (Santa Rosa Beach, FL).

After dutiful remarks of gratitude by CAA executive director Jennifer Steele, the artful evening culminated with a heartful performance by Georgia blues singer Jontavious Willis who took the stage with fellow guitarist Jay Hawke just before 8 p.m. The 24-year-old multi-instrumentalist — nominated for a Grammy in 2020 thanks to his latest album, Spectacular Class — delivered dynamic vocals on a range of blues from Delta, Piedmont and Texas. Willis’ charming stories and stand-out fingerpicking, flat-picking, and slide prowess were on full display.

Under the Sea guests captured the memory of the evening by purchasing colorful UMA-logoed merchandise and posing for keepsake photos with fun underwater-themed props.

Helping to toast the special evening was award-winning celebrity mixologist Michael Jones of the Craft Bar. The recent winner of the South Walton Beaches Wine & Food Festival’s inaugural Golden Shaker Award, honored sponsors and cooled off guests with refreshing cocktails like Latitude Margaritaville Spicy Margarita, Strawberry Splash and Work of Art.

The event brought out artists, locals and business and art industry leaders alike, including Demetrius Fuller, CEO of Mattie Kelly Arts Foundation and musical director of Sinfonia Gulf Coast.

“The arts are important to every community and the CAA has been a stalwart in our community for nearly 30 years,” Fuller said. “With ArtsQuest, 30A Songwriters and all the incredible programs they do to support teachers in schools; artists and art organizations in our community, the Underwater Museum is a testament to their creativity and innovative stature, and I’m happy to be here to support it.”

Proceeds from the evening will benefit the Underwater Museum of Art, an exciting example of the Cultural Arts Alliance’s Art in Public Spaces program. Named in 2018 by Time Magazine as one of 100 “World’s Greatest Places,” the UMA augments South Walton Artificial Reef Association’s mission of creating marine habitat and expanding fishery populations while providing enhanced creative, cultural, economic and educational opportunities for the benefit, education and enjoyment of residents, students and visitors in South Walton.

For more information, visit culturalartsalliance.com/uma.