- January 21, 2026
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When Michael Saunders founded her business in 1976, she was inspired by Sarasota's history to incorporate artistic elements into the business of selling real estate, she says.
"I think that we, over 50 years, have tried in every way to incorporate art, from doing incredible photography, white space in ads," said Saunders, who is CEO of Michael Saunders & Co. "Everything we've done has been a nod to the arts."
However, a new offering from the firm, for which it hosted a celebration on Jan. 16, isn't just a nod to the arts — it's a full on bow to them.
She said the length of about 200 feet behind the glass wall of the main office, along Orange Avenue just off Main Street, was a place for a story she wants to be told again and again.
That was the story of the colony of visual artists who were instrumental in establishing Sarasota as an arts and cultural destination.
"I hope our windows not only give joy and inspiration, but also educate and let the public know how rich this history is," Saunders said.
According to the display, Sarasota's visual arts legacy flourished in the decades following World War II, leading to the city's recognition as an "Artists Colony."
Covering a timeline from 1945 to 1965, the display highlights the work of artists including Hilton Leech, Syd Solomon and Helen Sawyer, featuring QR codes that help explain each element.
The expansive display started as a conversation between two friends.
Artist Tim Jaeger, who is director and chief curator of galleries and exhibitions at Ringling College of Art and Design, led the project, teaming up with Bill Hartman, a prominent painter and teacher in Sarasota's arts scene, who provided photographs and memorabilia.
"Many of you know that spending time with Bill is like stepping into a living archive," Jaeger told attendees. "What began as a casual conversation in his office looking through artifacts, paintings, photographs, old exhibition announcements and ephemera quickly turned into something much, much, much deeper."
He said they talked about the past of Sarasota, and how the stories of its artists were slipping out of view due to what he said was a lack of "structure, resources and sustained attention."
The conversation came to involve Michael Saunders and Susan McLeod, an artist who owned two galleries in Sarasota and worked with Saunders for some 30 years as a Realtor.
The group wanted to create an installation that could function as both a historical timeline and an educational resource.
"What became very clear very quickly was that the Sarasota Arts Colony was not just a group of individuals working in isolation," Jaeger said. "It was a deeply interconnected community. These artists thrived off of one another. They challenged one another. They shared meals, studios, ideas, risks. They built something collectively that was far greater than any single career."
McLeod called the display "a very strong and wonderful, powerful gift from Michael to the city."
"It's a once in a lifetime thrill to me, quite honestly," McLeod said. "It's been years that I have talked about it and it has been talked about, and the acknowledgement of the need to bring back the history of the visual arts in Sarasota, happened tonight."
She said that what was probably the most rewarding aspect of the event for her was the amount of attendees, noting the project was well-supported, including by many people who were relatives of the artists whose work was being showcased.
She says the role it serves won't be final, but that it is reopening a piece of the community's past for further exploration.
"My satisfaction from it is not that we could have said it all, but that we began the conversation," McLeod said. "I think what we did tonight was to light people's energy about exactly what we were bringing to the surface, that is the visual arts that began the reputation of Sarasota as being an arts and cultural core for the state."
