By Jodi Hersey
“I woke up with this overwhelming feeling to pick up a paintbrush and start painting, so that’s what I did, and this is what came out,” explained Hezekiah Baker, Jr. while pointing at the walls of his Hampden home that’s filled with landscape paintings.
This military retiree never sought to become an artist even though art runs deep in his family.
“My dad would have two easels up at one time. He’d be painting one and painting another,” reminisced Baker. “He tried to get me to paint as I kid. I just didn’t want to. It wasn’t in me.”
Growing up in Florida, Baker Jr. was surrounded by beauty both inside and outside his home. His father, Hezekiah Baker Sr. was a gifted painter who later became known as one of the original 26 Florida Highwaymen Artists. This group of self-taught artists from the 1950s & 1960s painted the old marshlands of Florida with vibrant and captivating colors. It’s how they made their living. However, these artists, including Hezekiah Baker Sr., weren’t formally recognized for their contributions to history until 2004 when they were inducted into the Artist Hall of Fame.
“I remember my dad loading paintings in an old station wagon and taking off to go sell his art,” explained Baker. “The paintings my dad and the other Florida Highwaymen Artists used to make during the Jim Crowe days would sell for $25 each, which was good money in those days. Now they’re selling for $25,000-$30,000.”
Baker proudly owns three of his father’s paintings, using them for inspiration in his own self-taught works of art.
“You now have the second generation of the Highwaymen, which are the kids of the original Florida Highwaymen,” said Baker. “I can paint whatever I can paint and I enjoy it, but I want to show Maine what Florida used to look like, the old everglades and the old marshes, because that’s what the Florida Highwaymen Artists painted. And I want to show Florida the way Maine looks.”
Despite his dad’s urging, Baker didn’t begin his artistic journey until 2011 when he was stirred awake with an unexplainable need to grab a brush.
“I remember it like it was yesterday. It was around five in the morning, and I had this feeling I had to pick up a paintbrush. If it didn’t happen to me, I wouldn’t believe it,” recalled Baker. “When one of the original Highwaymen was interviewed he used to say, ‘You don’t learn to become a Highwaymen, the Highwaymen becomes you.’ ”
After completing a painting or two, Baker soon realized his father’s legacy existed in every one of his brush strokes. Bold yellows, blues, oranges and greens burst from each one of his paintings whether he’s recreating nature scenes in Florida or illustrating snow covered landscapes in Maine.
“My dad never did see my art [before he died] but as my sister says, ‘Dad would be proud of you,’” he shared. “He’s probably smiling down on me right now saying, ‘That’s my kid.’”
Baker Jr.’s artwork has been on display at the Agora Art Gallery in New York, and he’s participated in local art shows here in Maine including one at the Maine Veterans Home. His work can also be seen online at hezekiah-baker.pixels.com. Wherever his paintings are viewed, Baker hopes it inspires others and helps keep the history of the Florida Highwaymen Artists alive.
“It’s a part of history that’s not shown,” he stated. “It’s not in history books but if you lived in Fort Pierce, Florida, everyone knows about it. But as you venture out, it starts to dissipate and no one knows about it. If I can continue to bring that to Maine, then that’s what I want to do.”