Photos: Pinellas arts community celebrates final Arts Annual at Pinewood Cultural Park in Largo

Two people stand in an art gallery between two large, colorful abstract paintings. One person wears a striped shirt and shorts with white spikey hair; the other wears a dark blazer, jeans, and sunglasses. Credit: Jennifer Ring / Creative Loafing Tampa Bay

Creative Pinellas has nurtured the careers of Pinellas County artists and writers from its Pinewood Cultural Park space in Largo since 2018—and last Friday night, the nonprofit closed an important chapter in its history.

Beyond cultivating homegrown talent, The Gallery at Creative Pinellas has served as an important gathering place for creatives across the county. Its central location made it a natural meeting point for North and South Pinellas artists, as Tarpon Springs-based artists Carol Mickett and Robert Stackhouse noted just before Pinellas County commissioners voted 5-2 to defund Creative Pinellas.

As a result, Creative Pinellas CEO Margaret Murray warned at the same hearing, the organization will need to vacate its Pinewood Cultural Park gallery and offices. That move is now scheduled for February 2026.

Last Friday night, arts professionals from across Pinellas met in the middle once again—this time to bid a final farewell to one of Pinellas County’s best cultural gathering places. Representing South County—staff from the Museum of Fine Arts St. Pete, the Morean Arts Center and the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance. From North County—staff from the Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art in Tarpon Springs, the Dunedin Fine Arts Center and Safety Harbor Art & Music Center. Independent artists and arts administrators from across Tampa Bay were also in attendance. They posed with their artwork, friends and colleagues, highlighting the vibrancy of the local arts community and underscoring the loss Pinellas County residents will feel when Creative Pinellas moves out.

The Arts Annual Exhibition features work by more than 70 Pinellas County artists and will remain on view at The Gallery at Creative Pinellas in Largo’s Pinewood Cultural Park through Jan. 4.

Credit: Jennifer Ring / Creative Loafing Tampa Bay

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This article appears in Nov. 20 – 26, 2025.

Jen began her storytelling journey in 2017, writing and taking photographs for Creative Loafing Tampa. Since then, she’s told the story of art in Tampa Bay through more than 200 art reviews, artist profiles,…
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Photos: Pinellas arts community celebrates final Arts Annual at Pinewood Cultural Park in Largo

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