St. Petersburg, FL (October 10, 2019) – Growing up in a rural and conservative town in
Florida, Andra Douglas struggled to find herself and to make sense of the traditional ideas she
was taught about what a woman could do and be. In her powerful and moving book, “Black and
Blue”, Douglas describes her upbringing and the adversity she faced to become who she is
today; a highly-regarded award-winning artist, an author, and the owner of the women’s
professional football team, the New York Sharks. Returning to Florida for “An Evening with
Andra Douglas” book talk and gallery exhibit opening at the Tully-Levine Gallery in the
ArtsXchange, Douglas shares the wisdom that comes from becoming who you were meant to
be and letting your strengths and creativity shine through.
Sports Icon, Billy Jean King say “Black and Blue will strike a chord with anyone who grew up before Title IX but its poignancy and appeal go beyond that”. The book touches on her life experience as a non-conforming female growing up in a conservative rural environment and the
subsequent unfurling of her life as an empowered executive and pioneer for women in American
football. Douglas attended Florida State University playing rugby, flag football and excelling at golf while majoring in communications design to hone her art and photographic skills. Moving to
New York City to pursue a career in the entertainment industry, Douglas became a leader in her
field nabbing a coveted job with Cosmopolitan Magazine and then rising to become a Vice
President/Creative Director at WarnerVision Entertainment/Atlantic Records. Later, she was a
creative consultant to high-profile clients including Disney, Universal Records, and BMG Music.
Her career path took a shift in 2000 when she acquired the NY Sharks for which she also quarterbacked. Changing career paths allowed Douglas to gain perspective on her past and future direction, giving her the courage to write “Black and Blue”, to pursue her passion for art,
and to establish FINS UP, a foundation that strengthens young women’s self-esteem through participation in team sports.
“Each day of the 20 years that I owned the team, there was something that was worth writing down; humorous, sad, inspiring, thrilling, poignant, memorable —a veritable color wheel of emotions and events that I wanted to somehow capture. I took thousands of pictures and filled up large bins with handwritten notes and hoped that one day, with paint or words, I could weave the story that needed to be told. Each person to enter Shark waters has a worthy story and when they are mixed together, the shareable tales are endless, said Douglas.
The Warehouse Arts District Association (WADA) is excited to bring Douglas’s mixed media artwork and “An Evening With Andra Douglas” to the ArtsXchange. Says WADA Executive Director, “Andra’s artwork is defined by the courageous spirit of the 100+ women’s tackle football teams throughout the world and inspired by the diversity of the players. She offers this work as a tribute to the female football players of all leagues and ages fueled by the force of their convictions. Her book is like poetry and offers insights into how we raise girls in our society. Highly-relatable, this is the story of every woman who has had a dream but been told no.”
“An Evening with Andra Douglas”
Friday, November 8th, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
$30 per person includes copy of Black & Blue, Purchase tickets at https://www.warehouseartsdistrictstpete.org/event-3579052/Registration
Exhibit Opens on Saturday, November 9th for ArtWalk 5:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
The ArtsXchange, 515 22nd St. S., St. Petersburg, FL 33712
Phone Number: 727-826-7211
The ArtsXchange is a year-round arts destination housing almost 30 rent-controlled studios. During St. Pete’s Second Saturdays, the exhibit is free to the public and many artists open their studio spaces for artist meet and greet. Parking is available at the ArtsXchange or ride the free downtown trolley to Stop #5.
Please visit https://www.warehouseartsdistrictstpete.org or https://andradouglasart.com for more information
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About the Warehouse Arts District Association
The Warehouse Arts District Association (WADA) is a 501(c)3 non-profit arts organization dedicated to building and sustaining a vibrant arts community within and around the Warehouse Arts District in downtown St. Petersburg. Spanning from 1st Avenue North to 10th Avenue South and 16th Street to 31st Street, the Warehouse Arts District includes the Deuces Live Main Street and is comprised of a thriving community of over 300 businesses that support both the artistic outreach of the organization and the community revitalization. For more information, please visit, warehouseartsdistrictstpete.com.
About the ArtsXchange
The ArtsXchange, a project of the Warehouse Arts District Association, is an artistic enclave with over 50,000 square feet of warehouse space that is being renovated into affordable working studios, galleries, classrooms, and performance space. ArtsXchange tenants are from all mediums with most spaces doubling as galleries open to the public on the Second Saturday of every month and a focus on providing arts education to underserved populations. For more info please visit, warehouseartsdistrictstpete.org/ArtsXchange.
WADA Instagram Page: @warehouseartssp
WADA Facebook Page: @WarehouseArtsDistrictStPete