Black History Month
In honor of Black History Month, The Museum features these events and artwork by Black artists.
Danielle Scott: Ancestral Call
Sunday, February 22, 2-4pm
Free Talk & Film
In celebration of Black History Month, join us for a free, special screening of Danielle Scott: Ancestral Call from the award-winning PBS documentary shorts series In the Making, followed by a discussion with the artist. Danielle Scott is a mixed-media assemblage artist of Afro-Cuban, Polish-Jewish and Asian heritage who draws on her multifaceted identity to explore deep themes of ancestry, memory, diaspora and resilience. Her installations invite viewers into a contemplative space where art becomes a vessel for ancestral dialogue.
Florida Highwaymen Painters
On view through May 17, 2026
This exhibition features 26 self-taught Black artists who overcame systemic barriers to paint and sell Florida landscapes from the 1950s to the 1980s. Their story bridges art history and social history, revealing how creative practice can become both an act of resistance and a pathway to self-determination. Long known collectively as the “Highwaymen,” they painted quickly and prolifically, often completing a dozen canvases a day. Denied access to traditional galleries, they built an entrepreneurial network, selling their still-wet paintings door-to-door, in offices and hotels, and along Florida’s newly built highways for about $25 each. Their art became a thriving business that captured the imagination of tourists, new homeowners, and locals during Florida’s postwar population and tourism boom. In doing so, they democratized access to art, reaching audiences far beyond the confines of traditional institutions.
Works by Black Artists
In addition to the 26 Black artists featured in Florida Highwaymen Painters, The Westmoreland is proud to have a selection of artworks by Black artists in these exhibitions:
Steel Valley Visions: An American Legacy (on view through Jan. 18, 2027)
Stephen Towns’s The Pioneer (2020)
Charles H. “Teenie” Harris’s Coal Miner, Library, PA, 1947 (2001)
Treasures from the National Academy of Design (on view through Jan. 18, 2027)
Henry Ossawa Tanner’s The Miraculous Haul of Fishes (around 1913–1914)
Charles Wilbert White’s Mother Courage II (1974) [on view from Feb. 13, 2026]
