NAPLES, FLA.- Artis—Naples, The Baker Museum is presenting Entangled in the Mangroves: Florida Everglades Through Installation, a dynamic exhibition featuring the work of nine Florida-based artists who explore the critical importance of the Everglades through diverse media, including painting, photography, ceramics, film, poetry and installation. Climate change poses a significant threat to these vast wetlands, home to a diverse array of plants, wildlife and communities. On view from March 8 through September 21, 2025, this exhibition highlights the ecological and cultural importance of one of Florida’s most distinctive landscapes and the urgent need for its preservation in the face of this threat.

Curated by The Baker Museum Curator of Modern Art Dianne Brás-Feliciano, Ph.D., Entangled in the Mangroves unites artists, activists, Indigenous leaders and scholars in a shared dialogue about the Everglades and its complex ecological history. The exhibition will be accompanied by a full-color catalog, planned for release in the fall, featuring an introduction by William J. Osceola, secretary of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida Business Council, as well as a scholarly essay by Brás-Feliciano detailing the environmental challenges facing the Everglades today.

“Entangled in the Mangroves reflects our belief in fostering meaningful dialogue between art, nature, cultural heritage and environmental stewardship,” said The Baker Museum Director and Chief Curator Courtney McNeil. “By engaging with themes deeply tied to our region and showcasing artists who inspire a greater appreciation of the world around us, this exhibition aligns with our commitment to presenting thought-provoking exhibitions that enrich and inspire the community.”

“This exhibition brings together artistic vision, traditional ecological knowledge and scientific awareness to shed light on the interconnectedness of ecosystems and communities,” Brás-Feliciano said. “Through these works, we invite audiences to engage deeply with the Everglades and reflect on their role in its future.

Entangled in the Mangroves features over 40 works across a variety of disciplines. The featured artists are:

• Nathalie Alfonso (b. Colombia, 1987)
• Jennifer Basile (b. United States, 1973)
• Amalia Caputo (b. Venezuela, 1964)
• Beatriz Chachamovits (b. Brazil, 1986)
• Deryn Cowdy (b. England, 1962)
• Houston R. Cypress, Otter Clan (b. Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, 1980)
• Lisette Morales (b. Nicaragua, 1970)
• Donna Ruff (b. United States, 1947)
• Gretchen Scharnagl (b. United States, 1957)

Presented as part of the 2024-25 Artis—Naples season under the theme of Storytelling, this exhibition tells the rich and evolving narrative of the Everglades and its people.

The Miccosukee Tribe has a proud history, which predates Columbus. The tribe was first based in North Florida, with lands extending north to the Appalachians and south to the Keys; however, U.S. invasions pushed the Miccosukee to the southernmost extent of their traditional lands. While non-Native anthropologists have often confused the Miccosukee with their Muskogee Creek-speaking neighbors to the north, the Miccosukee were only briefly affiliated with the Creeks and are a distinct tribal nation.

To survive in this new environment, the Miccosukee adapted to living in small groups in temporary “hammock style” camps spread throughout the Everglades’ vast river of grass. In this fashion, they kept to themselves for about 100 years, resisting efforts to become assimilated. Then, after the Tamiami Trail highway was built in 1928, the tribe began to accept New World concepts.

To ensure that the federal government would formally recognize the Miccosukee Tribe, Buffalo Tiger, an esteemed member of the tribe, led a group to Cuba in 1959, where they asked Fidel Castro for, and were granted, international recognition as a sovereign country within the United States. Following this, on January 11, 1962, the U.S. Secretary of the Interior approved the Miccosukee Constitution, and the tribe was officially recognized as the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida. This legally established the Miccosukee’s tribal existence and their status with the U.S. government as a sovereign, domestic dependent nation.