Woodie Long was a 45 year old house painter when he first picked up his wife’s paintbrushes and began his life as an artist. He had no formal art training. His first paintings were memories of his childhood growing up one of 12 children in a family of sharecroppers. As a young boy, Woodie worked in the fields around Plant City, Florida. Many of his first paintings were of the black people he came to know plowing and picking in the fields. Woodie also loved to paint children enjoying the simple pleasures that he remembered, like Jumping on Grandma’s Bed, Flying Kites, or Riding in the Pickup.

Woodie Long’s paintings can be found in many museums and private collections. “I’m nothin’,” he said. “I’m just a house painter. The good Lord touched my hands and made me a overnight success.” Woodie Long passed away in October 2009.