Carty Fine Art Studios
Continuing the Legacy
Shop now for exclusive limited quantity archival pigment prints on quality German Etching paper and on stretched canvas by the late Leo S. Carty & his son Stefan Carty.
Mission
Carty Fine Art Studios’ mission is to continue the legacy of illustrating life through vivid images that capture the imagination. The art is visually expressed through paintings and archival pigment prints by father and son.
The Timeline
Take a journey through time and learn about the dynamic talent of a black artist with a desire to depict images of self, pride and express black culture through art. Leo’s passion to uplift his community led him to open his own art studio in the early 1960’s. His son opened the doors to the Carty Fine Art Studios sixty years later to preserve his father’s legacy.
1931
Leo S. Carty is born in Harlem, New York to Trinidadian parents.
1941
At the age of 10, Leo won a scholarship to the Museum of Modern Art School for Children.
1963
Leo founded Anton Studios, an African American greeting card and fine art company in Brooklyn, New York.
1970
Stefan Carty, Leo’s youngest of four sons is born in Brooklyn, New York.
1974
Leo Carty relocated to St. Croix, USVI and over the course of 35 years, established himself as one of the most significant artists of this period in USVI arts and culture. He taught art at the University of the Virgin Islands, at St. Dunstan’s Episcopal School, volunteered his time at the prison, and was the coordinator of the St. Croix Senior Art Program.
1974
Leo Carty honored as the artist commissioned for the portrait of Florence Augusta Stephens Williams for whom the Public Library was named, the library was dedicated on September 15, 1974. The oil painting hangs on the wall in the mezzanine of the library and is visible from outside the building through the large lobby windows.
1976
Leo takes interest in US Virgin Islands culture & history by illustrating V.I. history with a historical calendar.
1976
Leo begins an eleven-year run of weekly editorial cartoons in the St. Croix Avis.
1981
Editorial cartoonist for the St. Croix Avis newspaper; Carty published a collection of his cartoons that highlighted the first five years of his tenure at the Avis.
1982
Stefan selected as winner of the Brooklyn Arts and Cultural Association city wide art contest. His artwork was on exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum for six weeks.
1989
Leo enters his impressionist period focusing on depicting historical landmarks and beach images of the early 19th century USVI.
1992
Leo is honored with a federal commission for the Alric L. Christian federal building and courthouse in Christiansted, St. Croix.
1996
Leo received his highest honor, selection as one of twelve recipients of the Governors’ First Awards for Excellence in the Arts from Governor Roy Lester Schneider. “In recognition of your accomplishments and exceptional contribution toward the advancement of the Visual Arts to the Virgin Islands.”
1998
Leo Carty’s “Good Day Ladies” is selected as the official Virgin Islands 2000 Census campaign poster.
2005
Stefan is commissioned by Walter Reed Army Medical Center to do a portrait of Secretary of State and retired General Colin Powell.
2020
Stefan founded Carty Fine Art Studios in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of Leo’s death.
2021
The Leo Carty Remembrance Exhibit July 30 – September 10th displayed over 20 selections from the Carty collection raised funding for the Leo Carty Fine Arts Scholarship.
Events
