Gary Monroe, a native of Miami Beach, received a master's degree in fine arts from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1977. Upon returning home, he photographed the old world Jewish community that characterized South Beach. Since 1984 he has photographed throughout Haiti, and later look at tourism across Florida, especially the "rite of passage" of vacationers at Disney World. During the last decade, he has been traveling to photograph - to Brazil, Israel, Cuba, India, Trinidad, and Poland to name a few of the countries that interest him.

Gary Monroe has received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Florida Department of State's Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Humanities Council, and the Fulbright Foundation to support his photography. As a writer and lecturer, Monroe has introduced self-taught artists and told the Highwaymen story.

Besides continuing to "wandering aimlessly" with his Leica, wherever he is, Monroe is currently photographing the effects of corporate-driven architecture on the landscape. He is also developing a book of his photographs of Haiti and Haitians with the University of North Carolina Press.

He and his wife Teresa Gurucharri live in DeLand, Florida, and the couple have two children, Mathew and Jessica.