Douglas Holsworth
About the Artist
Background and Education
Doug Holsworth received his BS in Music Education in 1985 from the University of Alabama, where he played Alto Saxophone and was the Drum Major for the Million Dollar Band. After graduating Magna Cum Laude, he served in the Army as a Signals Intelligence Pilot, holding dual branches at the rank of Captain in Aviation and Military Intelligence. In 1992, he left the service to return to Music Education as the Band Director of Desoto County High School. In 1995, Doug moved back to his hometown of Pensacola to take the reins as Director of Bands and Music Department Chair at his alma mater, Escambia High. He received his Master's of Music Education from the University of Florida in 2010, and after 27 years at Escambia moved on to become the Band Director at Pensacola State College and the Pensacola Civic Band.
Painting and Design
Doug learned to work in oil as a teenager from his mother Janet, and he has painted as a hobby his entire adult life. After taking classes at the local Painting With a Twist, he realized he could combine his love of painting and teaching into a single activity, and joined the Pensacola studio in May of 2021. 2023 marked his foray into selling his own works professionally with his first appearance at Gallery Night in downtown Pensacola. He still works mostly in oil at home, but has recently branched into acrylic for use when painting 'plein air' to take advantage of how quickly the paint dries. The subject matter has varied widely over the decades, but for the last few years he has focused on the beautiful beaches of his hometown here on the Emerald Coast. His personal style tends toward photorealism, rendering the movement of water and waves with depth and vibrancy.
Doug has done design work for many of the band programs in the area, including most of the band uniforms currently used in the Escambia County School District as well as props, color guard uniforms and flags. He has also written the marching routines for halftime shows at Escambia, Pine Forest, Pensacola, Foley and Central High over the years.
Renaissance Man
You can also catch Doug onstage from time to time at Pensacola Little Theatre in roles like George Banks in “Mary Poppins” or Santa Claus in “Miracle on 34th Street” – which led to his current bearded appearance as he continues to play Santa Claus for various non-profit events around the area.
Doug plays saxophone, guitar, bass, and blues harmonica, and is a regular with the "Band Director's Jazz Band", which is made up of active and retired band directors from across Northwest Florida. He has also been the sax playing Santa in the White Tie Rock Ensemble's annual Christmas concert since 2020.