I have always lived by the beach, surfing, fishing, diving, snorkeling and watching fish. I got my first boat when I was seven years old from my father who had always been on the water. I learned to respect and love the sea, especially all the beautiful creatures that dwell within her.

I raised my three sons on the West Coast of Florida in a small fishing community. My eldest son is a Charter Captain in Boca Grande, fishing for snook, redfish, grouper and tarpon. We live on the Gulf of Mexico.

I was raised to understand that we are the caretakers of our fragile environment. I have always been passionate about the ocean. My subject matter reflects my love of the sea. We depend on its health for our very livelihoods, it is the reason we have such a good quality of life.

Never was this more apparent than on April 20, 2010 when it was announced that there had been an explosion on BP's Deepwater Horizon Oil Platform in the Gulf of Mexico. This devastating accident resulted in the largest marine oil spill in history, changing the lives of millions of people and bringing to the forefront the need for us to find alternative energy sources for the future of our planet.

My newest series of etchings is dedicated to the creatures of the Gulf of Mexico. My hope is that each and every one of us will remember that we live on a fragile planet and everything we do has an effect on our environment.

     Born in Toronto, Canada on November 2, 1955. Began oil painting at 8 years old. At 14 exhibited in her first art festival, the Allentown Outdoor Art Festival in Buffalo, NY. Majored in Painting & Printmaking at York University in Toronto, Ontario with extended studies at the Ringling School of Art and Design in Sarasota, Florida after relocating to Florida in 1977. The search for the perfect palm tree brought Swayze south permanently in 1978.
     Carroll Swayze lives and works in the the town of Englewood, a small beach community on the Gulf of Mexico in south Florida. Visitors are always welcome in her back woods studio near the beach. When she is not fishing or exploring tropical islands she splits her time creating original art in her studio in Florida, her small summer gallery in Brethren, Michigan and teaching art to children and adults at the Englewood Art Center, Boca Grande Art Alliance and other art centers around the country. Her popular Children’s Art Camps, held each summer are always one of the highlights of the community calendar.

       Carroll Swayze has exhibited in every major Fine Arts Festival in the US & Canada. Her Limited Edition Hand Colored Etchings and Original Acrylic Paintings are in public and private collections worldwide and she is represented by over forty galleries.

Englewood Art Center
Boca Grande Art Alliance
Venice Art Center
Charter Member Florida Printmakers Society
National Association of Independent Artists
Steering Committee Hermatage Artists Retreat Project
Englewood/Cape Haze Chamber of Commerce
Boca Grande Chamber of Commerce

Florida International University, Miami, Florida
Walt Disney Corporation, Orlando, Florida
Steven Simoni Collection, Dallas, Texas
Margaret Adorjan & Associates, Englewood, Florida
Debbie Weston Collection, Englewood, Florida
Donald & Sharon Shaffett, Englewood, Florida
Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage, Cortez, Florida

 The Carroll Swayze Art Scholarship was established by the Englewood Rotary Club in 1996. This ongoing yearly scholarship is given to one or two Lemon Bay High School art students to help them pursue their artistic endeavors.

Ashland Gallery, Mobile, Alabama
Autumn's Whims, Anna Maria Island, Florida
Frog's Landing Gallery, Cedar Key, Florida
Fisheads Gallery, Brant Beach, New Jersey
Pea Island Gallery, Pea Island, North Carolina
Frame Gallery, Hood River, Oregon
Island Style Gallery, Key West, Florida
Island Style Gallery, Sanibel Island, Florida
Koucky Gallery, Pine Island, Florida
Lemon Tree Gallery, Englewood, Florida
Lyons Share Gallery, Fairhope, Alabama
Mermaids Gallery, Little Cayman Island
Nancy Markoe Gallery, St Pete Beach, Florida
Nomads Gallery, Tallahasee, Florida
Paradise Gallery, Boca Grande, Florida
Ocean Traders, Lighthouse Point, Florida
Old Opera House Gallery, Sebastion, Florida
Rubini Gallery, Benzonia, Michigan
Suitable For Framing, Richmond, Virginia
The Banana Cabana, West Palm Beach, Florida
Wild Women Gallery, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida