Award-winning author Mallory McCane O'Connor, Professor Emerita of Art History, Santa Fe College, is an author, curator and educator. She received a B.F.A. in art with Honors, an M.A. in American History, and an M.F.A. in art history from Ohio University, Athens, and taught courses in art history at the University of Florida (1969-1978), and at Santa Fe College (1995-2005). She also served for ten years as director of the City of Gainesville's Thomas Center Gallery (1984-1994). Mallory is the author of two books on Florida art and culture, Lost Cities of the Ancient Southeast and Florida's American Heritage River, both published by the University Press of Florida. She has organized numerous exhibitions and has received grants from the Southern Arts Federation, the Florida Division of Cultural Affairs, and the Florida Humanities Council. Since 2006, Professor O'Connor has participated in the Florida Humanities Council Roads Scholars Program, lecturing on Florida art and artists at museums and libraries throughout the state. Since retiring from her position at SFC, Mallory has written five novels. The American River Trilogy, Book One, American River: Tributaries, was published in 2017 and recently won First Prize in the Fiction Category from Northern California Publishers and Authors. Books two and three of the trilogy were also recently released. She then began work on a new series of "occult thrillers." Epiphany's Gift was published in 2019. Book 2 of the series, Key to Eternity, was published in 2020. Book three, Xanadu's Cavern, will be released this summer. Born in Illinois and raised on a ranch on the American River in Northern California, Mallory now resides with her husband, artist John O'Connor, in Gainesville, Florida. For a more comprehensive review of Mallory's career, please visit her website at www.mallorymoconnor.com
