Patricia Rottino Cummins, Black Mangroves at Adams Key, oil on canvas, 48" x 36"

TALLAHASSEE, FL – Secretary of State Glenda E. Hood announced today an exhibition of oil paintings by Miami artist Patricia Rottino Cummins. The exhibition entitled “Biscayne Botanicals at the Capitol” will be on display in the Cabinet Meeting Room from April 11, 2005 through July 8, 2005.

“We welcome this extraordinary body of work by this talented artist to the Cabinet Meeting Room,” said Secretary Hood. “The colorful paintings of Patricia Rottino Cummins truly express the incredible beauty found in some of our state’s natural flora and fauna.”

In her own expressive and vibrant style, Cummins has created a unique series of oil paintings depicting the magnificent, yet fragile and often unnoticed, plant life commonly found in Biscayne National Park. With over 95% of its 172,000 acres covered in water, the park is home to a wide range of plant species which Cummins eagerly captures in her bold and dramatic works. “My goal as an artist and a painter is to "arrest motion," and communicate the beauty found in nature,” states Cummins. “To make my viewers look again at what we normally take for granted is what I find most important in my work."

Originally from New York, Patricia Cummins is a fine arts instructor for Miami-Dade Public Schools, where she has worked for the past 26 years. She is also an adjunct professor at Barry University and a resident artist at ArtSouth in Homestead. She holds a B.A. from the City University of New York, and an M.S. in Art Education from Florida International University.

This exhibition is part of the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs’ Capitol Complex Exhibition Program. For more information, contact Erin Long at 850/245-6475 or visit: www.florida-arts.org.

# # #