Island Canopy
Robert Threatte
- Artist
- Robert Threatte
- Location
- Big Pine Key Community Center, Big Pine Key, FL
- Installed
- September 10, 2017
A vibrant exterior mural spanning forty feet along the community center's east wall, depicting the native flora and fauna of the Lower Keys. The mural celebrates the Key deer, great white heron, and the pine rockland habitat unique to Big Pine Key.
“Island Canopy” transforms the Big Pine Key Community Center into a visual celebration of the area’s extraordinary natural heritage. Artist Robert Threatte spent three months on-site studying the local environment before beginning the mural, which spans the full length of the building’s east-facing wall.
The composition moves from the underwater world of coral and seagrass at one end to the pine rockland canopy at the other, creating a visual journey through the ecosystems that make Big Pine Key ecologically significant. At the center, a family of Key deer stands among silver palms and thatch palms, rendered in rich, saturated colors that hold up against the intense Florida sun.
Threatte used marine-grade exterior paints and a UV-resistant clear coat to ensure the mural’s longevity in the subtropical climate. The piece was funded through the Monroe County Art in Public Places program and has become a source of community pride, frequently featured in local publications and tourism materials highlighting the natural beauty of the Lower Keys.