The New Smyrna Beach Area is filled with natural beauty and artistic endeavors, many of which owe their existence to the dedication and hard work of Doris Leeper. This modern-day renaissance woman’s commitment to ensuring the sustainability of both the environment and creative community is evident in the area.
Who Was Doris Leeper?
Leeper was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1929. Due to her original intent to pursue a career in medicine—not the typical path for women of her time—she earned the nickname “Doc,” which stuck with her throughout her life. She instead pivoted to study art history and began a career as a commercial artist. In 1958, she moved to Eldora, a small barrier island near New Smyrna Beach, and became involved in her community. Within a few years, she had become a full-time painter and sculptor, with her work found in over 100 art collections throughout the world.
Credit: Atlantic Center for the Arts
While she was forging her path in the art world, Leeper was also deeply involved in the environmental movement in Florida, and thanks to her persistence, Congress passed an act creating the 58,000-acre Canaveral National Seashore in 1975, to preserve the longest stretch of undeveloped beach on the east coast of the state.
Artistic Community Collaboration
Ever involved in the area’s art community, Leeper began what would become the Atlantic Center for the Arts, as a multidisciplinary artist-in-residence program in which artists could create in a supportive environment. The ACA opened in 1982 and has become a world-famous center for the arts that has fostered the work of more than 3,500 emerging and mid-career artists. Several residencies have resulted in the creation of work that went on to be displayed or performed at the top venues in the United States, such as the Metropolitan Opera, Lincoln Center, Jacob’s Pillow, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
This sculpture was created by Doris Leeper to great visitors to the Atlantic Center for the Arts.
Supporter of Sustainable Environments
As mentioned earlier, Leeper was instrumental in the creation of Canaveral National Seashore. She feared the overdevelopment of this pristine land, as was occurring up and down the Florida coastline, so, in the 1960s, she worked with the Friends of Canaveral to keep the land and water wild. She continued to fight for the natural area until 1975, when Congress made the preservation permanent. Today, everyone can enjoy the natural beauty she fought to keep wild by visiting the barrier island where Canaveral National Seashore is located.
Credit: National Park Service (Canaveral National Seashore)
Explore the dune, hammock, and lagoon habitats of the 57,000-acre park, or take a hike on the Castle Windy Trail at Apollo Beach. Many threatened species call this park home, such as endangered sea turtles that nest on the beaches. Keep an eye on the rocket launch schedule at Cape Canaveral—launch viewing is best from Playalinda Beach, but be sure to arrive early to secure parking.
Another tranquil natural spot carved out by Leeper, the Doris Leeper Spruce Creek Preserve, sits adjacent to the ACA, on Turnbull Bay. Several miles of minimum-impact natural trails crisscross the 2,513 acres of this property, allowing visitors to explore the hundreds of plants and animals found here. The trails are open to hiking, biking, and horseback riding. A boardwalk features a 15-foot observation tower, which grants views over a lush marsh. For those interested in local history, the shell middens left by the Timuca people who lived here before the European colonists arrived will be of interest. The sights can also be taken in from the water by canoe or kayak.
Although she died in 2000, Leeper’s influence remains in the New Smyrna Beach Area, in both its natural spaces and creative communities. Visitors and residents alike can enjoy these places, thanks to the never-ending work of this visionary woman.
