Note Type
Antony Hayton, Exhibit DirectorNote
Livingston "Castro" Roberts (1941-2004)
River Hyacinths
Oil On Masonite Circa 1995
Image 24" X 36"
A vivid work by "Castro" from his career, displaying his command of color, mood, and artistic abilities. Before he started to paint, Al Black sold paintings of the group. Al Black said of Livingston, “He was the best painter of all the Highwaymen and the nicest. I have sold Castro’s paintings since 1963. From Key West to Montgomery, Alabama, you just show them and his paintings sell themselves.” He was motivated to try and paint as well as Harold Newton. He learned from Newton, Backus and Alfred, he learned from the best.
From Art in the Embassies "Livingston 'Castro' Roberts was known for his meticulous detail, emotive rendering of colorful skies, and intense reflective bodies of water. He began painting at a young age, using leftover house paint to create his earliest works. As a seasoned artist, Roberts served as a mentor and teacher to younger members of the Florida Highwaymen. Of the twenty-six Highwaymen artists, Roberts is among the nine artists who are considered the founders of the group that became famous for selling landscape canvases out of car trunks in the early 1950s when segregation laws prevented African Americans from selling in galleries."