Gigi is a graduate of Ringling College. Her award-winning career with Sarasota has spanned many years (and a few too many weekends!). When not at her desk, she can likely be found in her craft shack making art or tooling around Florida’s back roads with her vintage camper in tow.

Sarasota Confidential

The Locals' Guide to Sarasota

Whether you’re visiting, new to town or just need a refresher on the joys of living here, explore our only-the-locals-know guide to our region.

05/04/2026 By The Editors

Haunting Grounds

Sarasota's Most Haunted Places

A spine-tingling tour of ghostly spots.

10/31/2025 By Lauren Jackson and Sarafina Murphy-Gibson

Hot Sips

Sarasota's Best Coffee Shops

Get your caffeine fix at one of these top spots.

09/29/2025 By Staff

Fresh!

Your Guide to Every Single Local Farmers Market

Whatever you’re hungry for, you’ll find it at a local market.

09/19/2025 By Lauren Jackson

As Above, So Below

With Help From Sarasota’s Eternal Reefs, Astronaut Mary Cleave Was Laid to Rest in the Gulf of Mexico This Spring

Since Eternal Reefs’ founding in 1998, the company has laid to rest the remains of more than 3,000 people, 1,000 of whom are at a burial site named Silvertooth near Big Pass.

06/01/2025 By Lauren Jackson

Best of Sarasota

The Best of Sarasota 2025

A record number of you cast a ballot this year. The result? A comprehensive review of everything you love about living in Sarasota.

05/01/2025

From the CEO

A New Chapter and a Familiar Voice: Welcoming Susan Burns Back to Sarasota Magazine

A note from Sarasota Magazine CEO and DreamLarge founder Anand Pallegar.

04/18/2025 By Anand Pallegar

Love Where You Live!

11 Local Neighborhoods Where Everything Is Changing

Our region has grown like crazy in recent years, but growth can look very different depending on your neighborhood.

01/13/2025 By Kim Doleatto, Lauren Jackson, Megan McDonald, and Cooper Levey-Baker

The Aftermath

Local Residents and Business Owners Pick Up the Pieces After a Catastrophic Hurricane Season

“You jump the first hurdle, then get a giant kick to the gut. That’s what’s been so traumatizing.”

11/20/2024 By Kim Doleatto

Smallville

Browse Art That's 'Small Enough to Steal' at Sarasota's 502 Gallery

Sarasota Magazine creative director Gigi Ortwein is among the artists whose work is being featured.

11/13/2024 By Lauren Jackson

Fast Track

Harvest House Hires New Chief Operating Officer

Plus, new board leadership at the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board, Children First and more.

01/29/2024 By Staff

A New Day

Selby Gardens Opens the Doors to a Transformed Downtown Campus

A multimillion-dollar completion of Phase One welcomes visitors to a revamped experience starting Thursday.

01/10/2024 By Kay Kipling

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo

How Cinderella’s Castle Became the Latest Battleground in the Culture Wars

Is it changing from something aspirational and inspiring to something darker and even dangerous?

11/03/2023 By Robert Plunket

Publix Display of Affection

The 10 Best Publixes in the Sarasota Area, Ranked

Publixes are like seashells: Each one is special and deserves to be cherished. But some are more special than others.

11/02/2023 By Lauren Jackson

Good Gourd

'Summerween' Combines Halloween and Coastal Culture. It's Perfect for Sarasota.

Amid the palms and beach sunsets, this Florida twist on Halloween decor can still spook.

10/13/2023 By Kim Doleatto

Head Above Water

Could the Catastrophic Flooding in Fort Lauderdale Happen in Sarasota? 

As Sarasota’s skyline looks more like Miami with each passing year, can we avoid the same flooding issues that beset Florida’s southeast coast? Local experts weigh in.

04/27/2023 By Isaac Eger

Burning Question

Does Sarasota Need to Put Pants on Its David?

A Florida school principal resigned after a teacher showed Michaelangelo’s famous sculpture without warning parents first. Does that mean Sarasota's famous replica needs to cover up?

03/24/2023 By Isaac Eger

Let's Settle This!

Publix Subs: God's Gift to Florida or Wildly Overrated?

Our editors enter the rhetorical ring to determine the correct take.

03/07/2023 By Isaac Eger and Lauren Jackson

Book ban

Shelf Indulgence Is Starting a Mobile Bookstore That Will Feature Banned Books

Shelf Indulgence is fighting statewide book bans by providing access to censored literature.

02/27/2023 By Isaac Eger

Into the Wild

Join Us on a Wild Raccoon Release

We recently released raccoons that were orphaned by Hurricane Ian back into the wild.

01/23/2023 By Isaac Eger