St Lucie Black Art Exhibit

In partnership with the St. Lucie Cultural Alliance, St. Lucie County’s Parks, Recreation and Facilities Department will host a month-long art exhibit at the Havert L. Fenn Center, running Feb. 1 through Feb. 28 daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

The “Roots of Resilience: Celebrating Black History, Culture, and Legacy” exhibition is a community-focused initiative designed to honor and celebrate the rich history, culture and enduring legacy of the Black community. This art exhibit, hosted during Black History Month, seeks to inspire and educate by showcasing diverse works that highlight themes of resilience, creativity and cultural pride. Local artists include:

• Edwidg Constant (known as EJC Arts)
• Lisa Jill Allison
• Maricel Ruiz
• Marie Marrow
• Tina Pfeiffer

THE REMARKABLE ZORA

Zora Neale Hurston, the great Harlem Renaissance author lived an amazing and colorful life and spent her last years in Fort Pierce. Best known for her novels; Their Eyes Were Watching God and Mules and Men, Hurston grew up in Eatonville, Florida the first community in the United States where African Americans were given the right to govern themselves. Hurston then traveled to New York as the Harlem Renaissance was in full swing.

Toward the end of her life, Hurston settled in Fort Pierce. The Zora Neale Hurston Dust Tracks Heritage Trail was established to commemorate her time here in Fort Pierce. The driving trail takes you to her home, the library that carries her name (and a collection of writings and photos), and her gravesite which was unmarked until 1973, when Alice Walker, author of The Color Purple donated her gravestone describing Zora as ‘A genius of the south.’ Take the self guided Zora Neale Hurston Dust Tracks Heritage Trail through Fort Pierce to discover their fascinating journey how she embraced writing to overcome adversity.

“Sometimes, I feel discriminated against, but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It’s beyond me.”

Check out www.thedowntownexperience.net for more upcoming art exhibitions and more!