My Florida
My Florida, Limited edition artist’s book, 2025, edition of 20. Digital and screen printing on Lokta, Mohawk, Epson, and French papers with binder’s board, book cloth and magnets. Drum leaf binding. Closed dimensions 24.5” tall x 19” wide, open dimensions 24.5” tall x 40” wide. Weighs 14 lbs. The thirteen prints inside are magnetically attached to each folio, allowing for easy removal and magnetic wall-mounted display.
My Florida, handling video, running time 5 mins.
In 1980, my family moved from Escondido, California to Tampa, Florida. Even though I was only five, I sensed the culture shock my parents felt. As a former student in the Florida public school system, the educational workbook on Florida history I used to create the imagery for this book felt familiar; however, as a long-time Florida educator, I recognize its flaws, political biases, omissions, and limitations. This project allowed me to engage in a dialogue with Florida educators from the past, and to critically reexamine aspects of my education while sharing my perceptions of the state I call home.
The original owner of my copy of “Book 4: Our Florida, Revised Edition,” published in 1962 by Dade County public schools, was a student named Lugenia. While Lugenia is typically a female African American name, I know little else about them. Based on their careful handwriting, I surmise Lugenia was a studious and attentive sixth-grade student. I suspect they would have noticed that Black Floridians are barely mentioned in this text.
Front cover of the source book for this project featuring Lugenia’s signature
For the production of this book, I employed a multi-step process: first scanning pages from Lugenia’s history workbook and adding layers of digital drawings as a kind of erasure poetry. Working in Photoshop, I hid the drawing layer and printed reproductions of the book pages, then added a layer of flocked screen printing. The non-reflective quality of the flocking deepens the black, creates a unique haptic experience and references the passing of time that reshapes historical accounts and reflects individual lived experiences. The book contains Mohawk Superfine, French, and Epson Hot Press Bright papers. The text I wrote and placed to the left of each print was set in Bookmania and digitally printed. Each screen print is magnetically attached to its corresponding folio, allowing for removal and wall-mounted display. This video demonstrates the sound made by rubbing the flocked areas of the prints, and shows how prints can be removed for display and snapped magnetically back into the book.
Gallery of selected still images of My Florida