HCC Art Galleries’ free one-day public art festival “Now on View” returns to Ybor City on Saturday, February 22nd with the eclectic mix of art forms and creatives HCC launched the event to showcase.
“People’s eyes light up when I tell them we have everything from projection mapping and interactive photography to dance battles, a poetry alley, and a botanical installation,” HCC Art Galleries Director Amanda Poss says. “It’s expanding the idea of what art is and can be.”
On top of spotlighting the diverse local art scene, “Now on View” explores themes of Tampa’s past, present, and future as the city goes through rapid growth and transformation. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the public can check out six art installations and performances spread across three venues, HCC’s Ybor campus, Hotel Haya, and the Kress Contemporary.
At the HCC Ybor Performing Arts Building, 1411 E. 11th Ave., “Legacy Systems,” a collaborative, hurricane-inspired immersive dance and sculpture installation by Emma Quintana, the University of Tampa’s digital fabrication coordinator, and interdisciplinary dance artist Amanda Gabaldon, is at Gallery114@HCC. Among other things, the installation includes oversized flamingo and beach chair sculptures, Florida icons like palm trees and neon signs, and dancers in vintage beachwear and in raincoats and weatherproof clothing who represent our area’s ongoing dance with disaster,” an HCC description says.
At the HCC Ybor Building Patio, 2001 N. 14th St., “Resilient Rhythms: Honoring Tampa’s Diverse Dance Voices” features a dance battle led by dancer and educator Jehoshaphat Jacinto and Tampa’s street dance community.
“This unique, immersive street dance battle celebrates Ybor City’s rich and diverse blend of dance cultures, with a special focus on amplifying the voices and contributions of minorities and the LGBTQIA+ community,” a description in HCC’s guidebook for “Now on View” says.
Freestyle, hip-hop, litefeet, popping, locking, breaking, vogue, waacking, and house dance will all be represented.
Over at Hotel Haya, 1412 E. Seventh Ave,. the large-scale installation “everything is built on layers on top of other layers on top of other layers” is part poetry, part art collage. It’s the creation of FAX 727 289 3069, a trio that artists and poets Tyler Gillespie, Keifer Calkins, and Eleanor Eichenbaum formed and named after Calkins bought a fax machine in 2024.
They’ll create a fictional Ybor history by “flyering” a poetry alley with layers and layers of handmade fliers featuring poets, pirates, punks, and cigars. Outside Hotel Haya’s Café Quiquiriqui, FAX’s creation will have poetry on pillars, hanging pennants, and free handmade buttons for the public.
Botanical artist Kali Rabaut’s installation “Untitled (Floral Galaxy)” at Hotel Haya is
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Botanical artist Kali Rabaut's installation at Hotel Haya for last year's "Now on View." an immersive experience, with an infinity mirror booth/tunnel that takes viewers “into a mesmerizing floral galaxy,” HCC’s description says.
At the Kress Contemporary, 1624 E. Seventh Ave., playwright and producer Erin Lekovic presents “Ybor Interrupted,” a 15-minute site-specific play inspired by Samuel Kress, the five-and-dime tycoon who had a store location in this historic building that bears his name.
“Set in both the 1910s and today, the story follows a newly arrived Samuel Kress as he attempts to charm a cigar factory heiress—while rumors swirl that he’s daring to sell New York cigars in Ybor City,” HCC’s description says. There are performances at 10:45 a.m., 11:45 a.m., 12:45 p.m. and 1:45 p.m.
Also at the Kress, Tampa native and LGBTQIA+ advocate Victoria Alvarez’s “Back to Black” is a temperature-sensitive installation that reveals photographs of Tampa’s LGBTQIA+ community.
“Tampa has a long history of its LGBTQIA+ community,” a description in HCC’s festival guidebook says. “The queer pioneers of the 1950s left Tampa with safe spaces, churches and memories that show the queer community was not just a current wave of transplants but something that holds strong in the very fabric of Tampa’s history.”
Following the first “Now on View” last June, HCC Art Galleries set out to give the performing arts a larger presence at this year’s festival. Poss says that included specifically mentioning the performing arts in a call to artists and reducing the total number of installations from eight to six. That way, a larger stipend was available for dance groups and theater troupes with multiple people.
Poss and Jennifer Ring, who handles marketing and membership for HCC Art Galleries, like the results.
“I think we’ve got a really great mix of artists this year,” Ring says.
Poss says HCC Art Galleries is well-situated to organize a festival that brings together a broad range of art forms.
“The intent from the onset of this project was to really celebrate the full spectrum of arts and creative folks here in Tampa,” she says. “Perhaps we have a unique perspective into that because our gallery at the Ybor City campus is actually located within the Performing Arts Building. And our department, the home of the Visual and Performing Arts, is all together here in Ybor. We’re all together, whereas at a larger university, you may have a performing arts department separate from visual arts. So we’re constantly working together and collaborating with our colleagues in theatre or dance. We saw the value of that early on and knew that our creative community in Tampa was also broad like that. So it’s always been intended to be this kind of bridge.”
HCC Art Galleries suggests starting the tour at the Ybor campus Performing Arts Building to pick up a free festival guidebook. Max Herman and Jorge Contreras of Tampa Bay Tours are also leading three free English-language walking tours. Those tours begin at the Performing Arts Building at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., and 12 p.m. A fourth tour, in Spanish, begins at 1 p.m. The tours take participants through Ybor, stopping at the three “Now On View” venues and dispensing fun facts about Ybor’s history along the way.
“You can make that connection between the art and our history as you go,” Poss says.
For more information and to register for a tour, go to Now on View tours
Black History Month events
The Tampa Bay History Center celebrates Black History Month with a series of events highlighting the Black community’s impact on Tampa's history.
At 10 a.m. on February 15th, the Downtown Tampa walking tour explores the stories of courage and strength behind the F.W. Woolworth lunch counter sit-ins and other events in Tampa’s Civil Rights movement.
At 6:30 p.m. on February 19th, “Florida Conversations: Chitlin’ Circuit” features NPR journalist Eric Deggans leading a discussion about the network of Black-owned clubs that thrived in Tampa during the Jim Crow era, launching the careers of artists like Ray Charles. The free program is presented by WUSF.
The February 22nd West Tampa Black History walking tour with Black History Curator Fred Hearns is sold out.
The History Center's Black History Book Club meets at Tampa’s Black History Museum, 1213 N. Central Ave., on February 24th with the title“Black Like Me” by John Howard Griffin. Sessions will be held from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. on the last Monday of February, April, June, August, and October, and the second Monday in December 2025.
For more information, go to Black History Book Club
The month culminates with the Black History Month Reception at 5:30 p.m. on
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Leonard George JrFebruary 28th. This year’s keynote speaker is West Tampa native, attorney, and sports and media trailblazer Leonard George Jr. In 1968, George became the first African American to sign a football scholarship with the University of Florida. After UF, he pursued a career in television journalism at Tampa’s WTOG and practiced law in Atlanta and Tallahassee, including work for the Florida Attorney General’s Office. The evening also includes live music, gallery access, and the presentation of the Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr. History Award.
For more information, go to Tampa Bay History Center
The third annual
Black Art Gala is 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday, February 23rd at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa.
Presented by Symphonic Distribution, the Gobioff Foundation, The Tampa Edition, Armature Works, and Diageo Spirits in partnership with Green Book of Tampa Bay to celebrate Black History Month, this year’s event features more than 30 visual artists, performing artists, and special guests.
For more information, go to Black Art Gala
The seventh annual
Tampa Bay Black Art & Film Festival is February 20th through 23rd at multiple venues in St. Petersburg. Friday, February 21st features documentaries and indie shorts at the Lemonade Stand, 2634 Emerson Ave. S. On Saturday, February 22nd, indie shorts and web series are featured at Eckerd College. On Sunday, February 23rd, indie shorts, and music videos are showcased at Eckerd College.
For more information, go to Black Art & Film Festival
“Black History They Don’t Want You to Know,” a new play written by playwright Lance Felton and directed by Bob Devin Jones, is at Stageworks Theatre in the Channel District’s Grand Central at Kennedy at 7 p.m. on February 12th and 13th. The play uses a mix of poetry and live theater to explore untold truths and hidden history.
For more information and tickets, go to Black History They Don’t Want You to Know
The
2025 UNCF Black History Month Walk for Education and Community Festival is 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. on February 8th at Perry Harvey Sr. Park, 1000 E. Harrison St., in Tampa.
The event is a fundraiser for UNCF, the largest private scholarship provider to minority students in the country. The event includes a warm-up led by Dancehall Fit by Chinyere Sam, the 5K walk, a kid’s zone, vendors, Black history tours led by Tampa Bay History Center Black History Curator Fred Hearns, and music by DJ Rock-It-Rod.
For more information, go to UNCF Black History Month Walk
At 2 p.m. on February 9th, the
Sulphur Springs Museum and Heritage Center Sunday Speaker Series features author and public historian Jada Wright-Greene.
Wright-Greene will examine the contributions Black Floridians have made to the state in education, business, politics, and other areas. Audiences will learn about a selection of Black historical homes across Florida.
For more information and future speakers, go to Sunday Speaker Series
The
2025 Tampa Bay Collard Green Festival is 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, February 15th at the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museum of Florida in St. Petersburg’s The Deuces neighborhood. The festival includes a collard green cook-off, an intergenerational agriculture zone, a youth entrepreneur row, a family zone, a galleria of greens, live entertainment, and food trucks.
It also includes the Inkclusive Pages Book Fair, which brings together authors, readers, and literature lovers for discussions, workshops, and exploring a wide array of books.
For more information, go to Collard Green Festival
“iMAGiNE NATiON,” a new exhibit by local artist iBOMS, opens at Creative Pinellas on February 20th.
The solo exhibit uses graphite, spray paint, resin casting, and digital design to explore the imagination as the infinite “motherland of all knowledge,” a Creative
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"iMAGiNE NATiON," a solo exhibit by iBOMS, is at Creative Pinellas Pinellas description says. The Woodson African American Museum of Florida in St. Petersburg and Creative Pinellas are presenting the exhibit in partnership. The Woodson’s Communications Manager Danny Olda curates the exhibit.
“We’re excited to be working with Creative Pinellas to make this stunning solo exhibition of iBOM’s work possible and to introduce his deeply imaginative art to new audiences,” Woodson Executive Director Terri Lipsey Scott says in a press release. “His unique way of using the imagery of music, fashion, and spirituality is one reason we’re especially thrilled that his art is being showcased in connection with Black History Month.”
The artist tour of the exhibit is 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on February 20th. The opening reception runs from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. “iMAGiNE NATiON” is on display through May 10th at Creative Pinellas, 12211 Walsingham Rd. in Largo.
For more information, go to iMAGiNE NATiON
The
Tampa Theatre Black Love Classics movie series returns on three Sundays in February. The series launched in 2022 and focuses on a different theme each year. This year, the theme is “Blerds,” or “Black nerds.”
The lineup of films is “Fast Color” on February 9th, “Nope” on February 16th, and “Hidden Figures” on February 23rd. All films start at 3 p.m.
For more information, go to Black Love Classics
The
Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative has a busy month of events planned.
There are screenings of the films “Race,” “Lee Daniels’ The Butler,” “The Great Debaters,” “Respect,” “Harriet,” and “Hidden Figures.”
There are also several book discussion groups throughout the month.
For more information, go to HCPLC Black History Month
The Clearwater Public Library System’s eighth annual
Night at the Library Black History Month celebration is 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, February 25th at the North Greenwood Library.
The theme for this year’s event is “Achieving a Legacy Through Learning.” Put on in partnership with the Clearwater Historical Society, the event includes several guest speakers.
For more information, go to Night at the Library
ReadOUT Festival
The eighth annual LGBTQ+ book festival ReadOUT is at the Catherine A. Hickman Theater in Gulfport from February 14th through 16th.
Presented by OUT Arts & Culture, this year's festival’s theme is “Queering the Narrative” and the weekend features panel discussions, readings, keynote addresses, author meet-and-greets, book signings, and entertainment. Fantasy author, radio host, stage performer, and teacher Ellen Kushner is the keynote speaker.
For more information, go to ReadOUT
February performances
On February 23rd at Ovations Dance Studio in Tampa,
ThinkFast Experiment 2.0: A Celebration of Women's Creativity features a short comedy play by eight women playwrights.
The showcase of talent, creativity, and unity was originally unveiled at the Powerstories Shevolution Festival in 2018 and made a lasting impact with a powerful drama that delved into the emotional challenges faced by a suicide prevention group. With only 25% of all plays written by women, the ThinkFast Experiment 2.0 hopes to bring women's voices to the forefront.
This time, eight women writers ranging from novice to seasoned playwrights will collaborate to craft a short comedy. There's a twist. When registering, each playwright answered eight questions about the play's theme, characters, situation, props, and other details. A Google randomizer then selected one answer from each category from their responses to include in the play.
"This experiment is all about celebrating the incredible things that happen when women join forces," producer/playwright Deborah Bostock-Kelley says in a press release. "It's where creativity flows, boundaries are pushed, and extraordinary things unfold."
The writers will have eight hours on February 22 to create a brand-new comedy that features a banana, a cruise vacation, and a love triangle, according to a press release. Four additional mystery elements will be revealed on the night of the show, adding to the challenge. The ensemble of writers includes Katie Welch, Dorelle Raphael-Fishkin, Leslie Farrell, Tana Gundry, Alyssa Cabrera, Cheryl Flowers, and Crystal Marie.
The ThinkFast Experiment 2.0 is at Ovations Dance Academy of Tampa, 13976 West Hillsborough Ave., in Tampa at 5 p.m. February 23rd. Tickets are $10 for general admission and $7 for students, seniors, and military. All funds raised will benefit Life Amplified PURRRFECT, a feline-themed costume party KitCatClub to support St. Francis Animal Rescue at the end of the year.
For more information and tickets, go to ThinkFast Experiment 2.0
The 49th
St. Petersburg International Folk Fair is February 20th through 22nd at England Brothers Park in Pinellas Park. This year’s festival showcases African-American, Chinese, Albanian, Filipino, German, Hmong, Indian, Irish, Italian, Jamaican, Japanese, Mexican, Mongolian, Peruvian, Polish, Russian, Scottish, Serbian, Taiwanese, Tongan, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese cultures.
The event features music, dance, food, beers from around the world, and other cultural traditions.
For more information and tickets, go to SPIFFS
The
New Tampa Performing Arts Center has New York’s The Jon Lehrer Dance Company on February 13th; the Tampa Bay Symphony Winter 2025 Scandinavian Romance on February 14th for Valentine’s Day; the Creative Arts Theatre’s presentation of “Sleeping Handsome on February 18th; and The Premier Fleetwood Mac Tribute Show on February 21st.
The Kuumba Dancers and Drummers have three performances this month. The Tampa-based dance company presents the rhythms, songs, and dances of the African diaspora on February 22nd. On February 23rd, Kuumba Dancers and Drummers perform “TIMINI: A West African Cinderella Tale.” On February 24th, a morning performance, “Journey to Africa” takes children “on a journey to the beautiful continent on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean.”
On February 28th, guitarist Pavlo presents an evening of Spanish, Flamenco, and Mediterranean guitar! Pavlo returns to Tampa performing with his full band and special guests.
For more information and tickets, go to New Tampa Performing Arts Center events
At 8 p.m. February 8th at Bayboro Brewing in St. Petersburg,
WMNF Fan Jam: A Sonic Odyssey of High Energy Psychedelic Rock features Asheville, North Carolina’s The Snozzberries and their mix psychedelia, progressive rock, and deep-fried funk, and Tampa’s own Cope, a stalwart on the local jam scene. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the door.
For more information, WMNF Fan Jam
The Tampa Oratorio Singers “Keeping it Keyboard” benefit concert is 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, February 16th, at Palma Ceia Presbyterian Church, 3501 W. San Jose St., Tampa.
In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, talented Bay Area keyboard artists and composers will perform an evening of romantic works, including a newly discovered waltz by Frédéric Chopin Waltz. The concert is a fundraiser for the Tampa Oratorio Singers. Tickets are $25 for general admission, $10 for students.
For more information, go to Tampa Oratorio Singers
“The People Downstairs” is at Stageworks Theatre at Grand Central At Kennedy on weekends from February 7th through 23rd. Playwright Natalie Symons will appear after the February 16th performance for a meet and greet and discussion.
“In Buffalo NY, Miles, an aging funeral home custodian lives with his middle-aged
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"The People Downstairs"daughter Mabel, who spends her days writing letters to prison inmates,” a description says. “When a court-appointed guardian threatens to take away their home, Miles sets out to set Mabel up with Todd, an inept mortician. It is a father’s fierce determination not to accept his daughter’s fate that ignites an endearing human comedy about love, loss, loneliness, and the healing power of laughter.”
For more information, go to Stageworks Theatre The People Downstairs
David Ives’
‘Venus in Fur” is at TheatreFor in Clearwater through February 9th. Set during an audition, the play tells the story of beleaguered playwright Thomas and audacious actress Vanda.
“The Complete History of America (abridged)” is at TheatreFor from February 13th through 23rd. Presented by Marshall Paddon’s Super Secret Syndicate, the play takes audiences from Valley Forge to fake news, Manifest Destiny to Mar-A-Lago, and Alexander Hamilton the patriot to “Hamilton” the musical.
For more information, go to TheatreFor season
Exhibits
“Survey the West: A Cross-Continental Reflection,” acclaimed Tampa Bay artist Ya La’ford’s first exhibit at The James Museum of Western & Wildlife Art in St. Petersburg is on display from February 15th through May 18th. The show features abstract paintings and sculptures inspired by La'ford's recent three-month journey
through the West.
“In this exhibition, La’ford explores the American West through her signature
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Ya La'ford's "Survey the West: A Cross-Country Reflection" geometric and linear labyrinths, redefining traditional views of the West,” a description says. “During her time in the region, La’ford surveyed mountains, canyons, and other geological features that were shaped over millions of years by heat, gravity, wind, and water. The resulting art captures the essence of place, prioritizing color, shape, texture, and emotion.”
For more information and a schedule of events related to the exhibition, go to James Museum Survey the West
At Tempus Projects in Ybor City,
“EDGE,” a solo work of recent works by Neil Bender, is on display from February 6th through March 20th, and
“Staying In,” a group exhibition of domestic interiors and housewares featuring more than a dozen artists, is on display from February 6th through April 10th.
The artist reception for both exhibits is Friday, February 14th. The “Go Ahead, Buy Some Art” lecture series features Bender on March 20th and a panel discussion on “Staying In” on April 4th.
For more information, go to Tempus Projects
"Teapots and Tin Cans,” featuring the oil paintings of Clearwater artist Fran Failla, is on display at the Clearwater Main Library downtown during regular library hours. The show is part of the Clearwater Arts Alliance’s pop-up exhibition program at the downtown Clearwater library.
Artists may apply fo the program at Pop-up exhibition
“Natural Selection: USF Graphicstudio at Wild Space Gallery,” a collaboration between USF Graphicstudio and the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation, is on display at Wild Space Gallery in St. Pete’s Warehouse Arts District through March 8th.
The exhibit features prints and sculpture editions by artists Mark Dion, Graciela Iturbide and Francisco Toledo, Andrea Modica, Ed Ruscha, and Janaina Tschäpe. During February 8th’s Second Saturday ArtWalk, Wild Space Gallery Curator Noel Smith, co-curator of the exhibit, will moderate a walk with artist Mark Dion and USF Graphicstudio Director Margaret Miller.
For more information, go to Wild Space Gallery
New England photographer Barbara Peacock’s
“American Bedroom,” series is at the Florida Museum of Photographic Arts in Ybor City from February 18th through March 23rd.
The series “offers a unique glimpse into the unguarded lives of individuals, couples, and families revealing the depth of their character, truth, and spirit,” an exhibit description says.
“Each photograph tells a story of love, struggle, hope, and everyday life,” the
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Barbara Peacock's "American Bedroom" series is at the Florida Museum of Photographic ArtsFMoPA description continues. “From tidy, minimalist spaces to bedrooms bursting with personality, these images explore the complexities and idiosyncrasies of contemporary American life.”
The opening reception is 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on February 20th. FMoPA is on the first floor of the Kress Contemporary, 1630 E. Seventh Ave.
For more information, go to FMoPA