This exhibit will be on display starting in February at the Hart Memorial Library. The exhibit will travel to our different branch locations on the following schedule:

When we think of inventors, most think of Thomas Edison or Alexander Graham Bell. What about women inventors? Although they may not be as well known, women have always solved problems by inventing. The stories on these posters illustrate that the creativity of women inventors ranges across diverse backgrounds and interests throughout American history. Picturing Women Inventors is a series that explores the inventions of 19 highly accomplished American women. Astronauts, computer pioneers, and businesswomen join athletes, engineers, and even teenagers in this remarkable group of inventors. 

This exhibit is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service in collaboration with the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, and was developed in collaboration with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and made possible with the support of the Lyda Hill Philanthropies IF/THEN Initiative and Ericsson.

This exhibit will be on display at the Hart Memorial Library starting on Saturday, June 28.

In partnership with Osceola County Corrections and UCF, the Library is exhibiting a set of 44 puppets crafted by inmates of Osceola County Corrections, the result of four weeks of bilingual workshops led by Dr. Tyler Fisher and Leah Basaria in June 2025. Fisher and Basaria used puppetry to help inmates develop job interview skills as part of the Correctional Facility’s classes. Open Scene, a multilingual performing arts non-profit, created kits of puppet-making materials, which the incarcerated students used to create puppet personas for practice interviews.

Research in “applied puppetry” has shown that puppets’ capacity for allowing a puppeteer to adopt various personas can build confidence, linguistic competence, and creativity. Drawing on this research, Fisher and Basaria developed a series of workshops, aptly named the “Art of Interviewing,” in which incarcerated students learn to make puppets and then practice job interviews in Spanish and English. The puppets help soon-to-be-released inmates build confidence and competence. Via their puppet personas, students can let go of self-consciousness and inhibitions. The puppets serve as an empowering extension of the self.

One inmate reflected on his experience using puppets as a proxy: “I can’t feel offended by critical feedback when I have a puppet on my hand.” Initially funded by an “Our Town” grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, the puppet-making kits were created by Open Scene artists, who included written instructions in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole. Distinct from typical children’s puppets, the puppet components were designed to be playful without being childish, featuring human-like qualities and non-human colors, steering clear of any racial connotations.

The students’ unique puppets, displayed at Hart Memorial Library, constitute something Fisher calls “anti-mugshots”: these puppets encourage the public to perceive the incarcerated students as artists, performers, creative agents. Alongside each puppet, a written description offers details about the particular student’s journey and aspirations. The exhibition aims to inspire and uplift, illustrating how creative engagement with incarcerated individuals can spark personal transformation, from incarceration to reentry and reintegration.

This exhibit is on display Thursday, May 8 – Thursday, July 3, 2025.

Madison Wilkins has dabbled in photography for many years. Originally working with a 35mm film camera and now a digital SLR camera, Wilkins continues her photography journey despite life’s curveballs: the theft of her equipment, a battle with cancer, and a coma.

Wilkins is interested in preserving moments, made precious by their ephemerality. “The ultimate action of making time stand still is a photograph. So much is happening all around us with every precious moment. So many of which simply pass us by going unnoticed. Through my work I aim to capture those fleeting instances of beauty or excitement. Maybe share a peaceful or quiet moment of reflection, but always being aware of a possible spontaneous occurrence. I hope these little snippets of time can transport you, however briefly, to another place and mindset.”

For more information contact diana@osceolaarts.org 

This exhibit is on display Tuesday, April 22 – Wednesday, June 25, 2025.

Ruth Tank is a painter and member of the Solivita Artisan Guild. Tank took her first watercolor class in Billings, Montana 15 years ago. She helped found the Women of Watercolor (WOW) guild in Columbus, Montana. WOW presents an annual open house in the Columbus Community Center, displaying local art and hosting a reception.

Since moving to Solivita, Tank has expanded her work in acrylic and watercolor on YUPO, a recyclable, waterproof, and tree-free synthetic paper. Tank enjoys allowing her paints to move freely with acrylic pours and abstracts. The artist’s love for nature and the outdoors reflects itself in her oeuvre.

The Solivita Artisan Guild is an organization located in Poinciana aimed at fostering artists and their talents by sponsoring exhibitions, workshops, and seminars. Its mission is to enrich the lives of the community through art and emphasize the importance of creativity.

For more information on the Arts in Public Places Program contact diana@osceolaarts.org

This exhibit is on display from Saturday, June 7 – Friday, July 25, 2025.

Kline has always had a love of drawing and art. As a child, she would make paper dolls for each of her teachers, then carefully construct their ensembles. Any available surface became her canvas – napkins, fabric, even the branches of a Century plant. She studied at Windermere Art Gallery and received a year of private instruction from a prolific watercolor artist.

Kline participated in various workshops and classes in oil, pastel, and watercolor; and juried art events. Kline’s preferred medium is painting portraits, finding it exciting to sculpt face and form with paint, as the subject comes to life.

For more information on the Arts in Public Places Program contact diana@osceolaarts.org

This exhibit is on display from Friday, May 9 – Wednesday, July 2, 2025.

Sarah Kennedy was born in Illinois and lived most of her life in Missouri. She moved to Florida 15 years ago and has been painting here since 2020. She loves to travel and garden with her husband and four sons, where she finds inspiration in nature and color. Kennedy’s paintings are worked in layers, a technique that allows her to incorporate mistakes in a way that celebrates them.

“Painting gives me the opportunity to speak in the language of colors and preserve memories from precious trips with my family. These paintings represent trips to France and Colorado. Others are from moments in our backyard and in our neighborhood watching the sunset with my four boys.”

For more information on the Arts in Public Places Program contact Marilyn@osceolaarts.org