DAYTONA BEACH, FL.- Featuring the largest private collection of Florida-based art, “Reflections: Paintings of Florida 1865-1965,” from the Collection of Cici and Hyatt Brown, makes its exhibition debut at the Museum of Arts & Sciences (MOAS) in Daytona Beach, Fla. For the first time ever, “Reflections” will be on display to the public from November 21, 2009 to May 17, 2010.

From idyllic beach scenes to lush green jungles, “Reflections” highlights a total of 69 paintings depicting the natural beauty of the state before the great post-World War II building boom.

“Together, Cici and Hyatt Brown have assembled a collection that is not only historical in nature but also incredible in its beauty and represents the very best of Florida art,” notes MOAS Executive Director, Wayne D. Atherholt. “We are honored that they have selected MOAS for the collection’s first-ever public showing.”

“Reflections” features masterworks by well-known American artists, some with international reputations, who painted in Florida. The artists include William Aiken Walker, Martin Johnson Heade, Thomas Hart Benton, Frederic Remington, Herman Herzog, Frederick Carl Frieseke, Walt Kuhn and Jane Peterson.

“While beautifully expressing the uniqueness of Florida, ‘Reflections’ transcends the usual limitations of regional art because of its extraordinary quality and the importance of art in shaping Florida’s image,” said MOAS Gary R. Libby Curator of Art, Jay Williams.

The collection subject matter includes: famous landmarks and structures, such as the buildings of St. Augustine and Key West; historical portraits of native Floridians; and location-specific landscapes, including elements of weather, light, water and land.

“Just as all Americans take pride in artistic ownership of the California coast and the canyon country of the Southwest, the Florida preserved in the paintings of the Brown Collection is an essential part of our shared natural and artistic heritage,” said Williams.