Although painting was something that Harriet C. Stodden always wanted to do, it wasn’t until the 1940s, when her son left to fight in the Korean War, that she turned to it as an activity to fill her time. As a woman who lived alone, art provided Stodden with intellectual stimulation. According to her granddaughter, artist Anita Wooten, "it gave her community."

Highlands Hammock reflects Stodden’s great love of nature, particularly the pristine and uncultivated fauna of old Florida. The scene is a preserve outside Sebring, Florida, in Avon Park. Stodden made every effort to surround herself with the pristine Florida landscape and her paintings document her appreciation for that scenery and her relationship with the land.

According to Wooten, there is a definite sophistication and intellectual aspect to Stodden’s art. "Her art raised the consciousness of herself and those around her. It let her become more immersed in her environment. She was more than a hobbyist; she was very devoted to and serious about her art. She led a solitary existence but she never seemed lonely. Art gave her independence; it gave her something to live for."

[artist biography by Sydney Pettus; artist photograph by Tracy Cornett]
Harriett C. Stodden (1887-1973)
Highland Hammock, 1956, oil on canvas