Tropic of Mischief a painting by legendary local artist, Lee Harvey is now on display at The Thomas G. Carpenter Library at the University of North Florida.
The painting was painted by Harvey in 1995 and was donated to UNF by Pat Vail.
According to a 2012 Metro Jacksonville article by Stephen Dare, Lee Harvey is “easily Jacksonville’s most controversial and provocative painter and philosopher king and has been outraging and delighting patrons of art for decades, his new (work) seems to be the most promising yet.”
Harvey was an activist artist and most influenced by the works of Julian Schnabel, Phillip Guston and Andy Warhol. In response to being asked in 2000 by the Florida Times-Union why he is a purveyor of art designed to provoke discussion and oftentimes shock, Harvey shared, “Art has license. Artists have license. I have license.”
Lee Harvey died Nov. 10, 2014 after a long battle with mesothelioma. His work lives on.