MAGGIE RULEY, pottery, painting and life in Key West Florida

Bummer!

2012-02-05T21:19:00.004-05:00

See that dark round speck on the side wall of my kiln? Well something got on the element and burnt through it during my last firing. So the kiln didn't get hot enough at the top and now I have to get a new element and repair the kiln. It's always something.

But here are a few things that came out of the last firing. Some plaques for Margaritaville, and odds and ends for the gallery.

Some experimental sushi type dishes, faces and pineapples.

Some special order flip flops that had to match the fabric swatches. They have holes in them because they are going to be attached to a curtain valance. The drapery lady said she would sent me a photo after she got them installed.

And some mugs for the gallery and some mugs for Margaritaville. I am going to North Carolina to celebrate my Dad's birthday and when I come back I will have to get that kiln fixed because I have orders to do.

Good enough for government work

2012-01-26T19:08:00.004-05:00

This week I am busy taking an oil painting portrait workshop with artist Letty Nowak http://www.lettynowak.com at The Studios of Key West. I have painted portraits before, but never with any instruction. And I really wanted to know how a serious portrait painter approaches it. In the photo above I have roughed in a sketch. I thought it was fine while I was doing it, then I saw fatal flaws, the nose was too long and the face wasn't wide enough. In the above photo I have made corrections and started to block in the color. There are still flaws, but I feel I can make some corrections and it will be passable. I'd like you all to know that the brave soul who said he'd be my test subject is my brother Bill Rogers, http://www.jenandtonicband.com , who besides being a wonderful musican, is very good looking so I don't want to screw this up. As you can see this workshop is about painting from a photo and one really interesting thing that Letty said is that portraits painted from photos where the subject is not smiling end up looking more like paintings then ones where the subject is smiling. And I can notice in the class that this is true. For the most part the smiling portraits look more like photos and just a little cheesy.

And here is the pottery I made last week. There a some cute new flip flops designs and lots of bright colors, as always.

Shore Leave

2012-01-15T20:29:00.003-05:00

When I first came to Key West you would occasionaly see a sailor in his whites. I can't tell you the last time I saw them. I wonder if they even wear whites anymore? So this is a nostalgia kind of painting. For people familiar with Key West there is a dead giveaway as to which old town Key West street he is traveling.

"Shore Leave'
acrylic on canvas
20" x 16"
$475.00 unframed
giclee prints available

Happy Holidays

2011-12-24T09:42:00.003-05:00

I decided to revisit a previous painting. I decided to change the size and the color, somewhat. Behine the easle are two barn style doors that open and give me a lot of light when I paint. But the photo looked better with the doors closed. This is the painting in progress. I think my coffee is getting cold. See my pink cup in the foreground?

Here is the finished painting. ( I wish I had done a better job of cropping the image, that dark line at the bottom is not part of the painting.)

Wishing you all a wonderful holiday.

"Sunny Day on Pearl Street" 20" x 16" acrylic unframed $485.00

in the gallery now

From Abstract Study to expressive realism

2011-12-22T09:48:00.002-05:00

This acrylic study is the basis for the oil painting below. The acrylic is loose and abstract. I like it for it's freshness.
"Into the Evening" 16" x 20" acrylic on canvas unframed. $345.00

This oil painting still isn't resolved and I'm not sure how to finish it, so it will have to sit for awhile and rest. In the meantime the acrylic has made it into the gallery.

Odds and ends

2011-12-19T20:21:00.002-05:00

Well, it is the time of year when everyone feels like they have a million irons in the fire and I am no exception. I have had a number of orders to get out, and the store to get stocked for the Holiday tourists that fill Key West the week between Christmas and New Year's. Plus I can't stay away from my paint brushes even when I have other things to do. Here are a few items that are going in the gallery and a very special dog bowl that is a Christmas gift for a friend who has a rescued puppy. (That's a secret, so don't tell).

I'll show the paintings in another post. I hope everyone is doing well.

I'm still here

2011-12-07T08:28:00.002-05:00

Just a few images to prove that I am still working. And maybe these bright tropical colors will entice some of you to come and spend a few days in Key West and visit my gallery.

7 Artists Key West

604 Duval Street

Key West, FL

No Excuse

2011-12-05T21:05:00.003-05:00

I have no excuse for being gone from "blog land" for so long. I have been busy, but it hasn't seemed like I have been doing anything really blog worthy. However, I did buy some really inexpensive paints and have been doing some experimental painting.

They are very fluid acrylic paints, and while they are not great paint, I don't feel bad about using a lot of paint and not being sure about the results. They are Lukas brand acrylic paints and you really get a lot for not much money. But some of the colors seem "off" and chalky and you have to tweak them to get the color you want. For example, I couldn't mix a decent black and I had to use a store bought black on the above cowpainting. I use a large sheet of plexi for a pallette and really pour out a lot of paint.

I also bought a big box of 16 x 20 canvas. The plan is to use these supplies up doing lots of experimental work. Most of which will probably just be for my own education. I was happy with the cow painting and it is hanging in the gallery.

But I have had very little time to paint and most of my time has been spent making pottery for customers who want special things in time for Christmas.

the cow painting is titled, "Those big brown eyes"

acyrlic on canvas, unframed 16 x 20" $395.00

Fianlly finished

2011-10-31T20:22:00.002-04:00

This painting sat unresolved in my studio for many months. I just didn't know how to finish it. I finally decided to approach it the same way I did my recent bird paintings. See the April, 24 2011 post to see it "before".
"Little Gem on Pearl Street"
24" x 20" $495.00 acrylic on canvas

Finished oyster plates

2011-10-24T21:29:00.005-04:00

Here are some pics of the finished oyster plates. I can't wait to do some more.

I only have one small plate finished, but I like it too.

In the works

2011-10-17T19:25:00.003-04:00

I have always been fascinated with antique oyster plates, the fancy shmancy ones. It has been on my mind to design some of my own. It took me a little while to figure out how to put them together and get the look I want, elaborate, but contemporary. In the photos here you are seeing them in the greenware stage. That means the pieces are drying and no color has been put on them and they have not been fired. If I were to put them in a bucket of water they would turn back into soft clay that I could use again. These are pieces that need a lot of attention and baby-ing while they dry to insure that they do not warp. So it will be slow going with these. But I have big plans and high hopes for these.

Saturday's glaze fire

2011-10-16T21:27:00.004-04:00

I haven't done this little sail boat design in a while.

Flip flop spoonrests in assorted colors and designs. $23.00

Love on the half shell

2011-10-09T20:34:00.000-04:00

I finished this painting a couple of weeks ago but never got around to taking a photo. Now it is framed and hanging on the gallery wall. I meant to take some pictures at the opening. But I was having fun talking to friends and just forgot. We all had a good time and it was fun to see the gallery full of people. Saturday I had a hard time getting motivated to do much. But I did get some pottery started and I continued on today. I think the next couple of weeks will be mostly pottery. But I would like to paint another cow. Thanks to all my friends who came to the opening. It was great to see you.

"Love on the half shell"
oil on board
16" x 20"
$345.00

You are invited

2011-10-05T08:25:00.000-04:00

What do you do when you have paintings piling up in your studio? HAVE AN OPENING! This is a last minute kind of party so just come as you are.

RECENT PAINTINGS BY MAGGIE RULEY

Friday October 7, 5:30 to 7:30 pm

7 Artists Key West

604 Duval Street

SEE YOU THERE AND BRING YOUR FRIENDS

This week's pottery

2011-09-25T17:53:00.000-04:00

A customer had a request for some fish flops. So I made a few pair. I've also made some nesting wall chickens. I used to make a lot of those "back in the day" and it seemed like fun to do some again.

I also made some flip flop ornaments. Some for me and some for Margaritaville Key West.

Little wall chickens are $29
flip flop ornaments are $22
fish flops $48 a pair

Learning curve

2011-09-20T08:56:00.002-04:00

I have been wanting to paint a cow for quite some time. While going through my stacks of paper to use there was another odd size one that just said "cow head" to me. At the time I put my signature on it I thought it was finished but as I look at it now I see a number of improvements I could make, and that is a good thing. It means I learned something. But now the decision, do you go back and work on it some more? or do you leave it as is and apply what you learned to the next one?

acrylic on paper
about 15" x 15"

Standing Tall and Proud

2011-09-19T07:53:00.004-04:00

This great blue heron, again on odd size paper, looks like he is standing guard at the entrance to the swamp.
"Great Blue Heron" acrylic on paper
11" x 7"

I call this one "Ruffled Feathers"
acrylic on paper
11" x 7"
I get to see white herons, and great white egrets on a regular basis in the wetland areas that surround where I live. But a blue heron sighting is more rare. For these poses I would like to thank the artists who share their photos on wetcanvas.com.

http://www.wetcanvas.com/

This painting is on larger paper 15" x 11'

no title as of yet

Feathered friends

2011-09-18T12:39:00.003-04:00

September in Key West is a quiet month. Not very many visitors and the snow birds haven't returned yet. The gallery ( 7 Artists Key West) is opened limited hours this month and I am using my extra time in the studio as best I can. I am determined to use up art supplies that I have on hand. Some of which is beautiful watercolor paper that was cut in an odd size for a workshop and didn't get used. The paper is about 7" wide and 11" long. Not standard at all, but a great shape for this series of expressive roosters. My plan was to start abstractly with just shapes and then use layering and brushwork to resolve the image. My new favorite brush is a synthetic liner that was perfect for the feathers. I used acrylic paint for all the paintings in this series. I will be showing more.

I like the above image because even though there is a lot of activity in the grass and feathers he seems calm and reflective.
"Lost in thought"
acrylic on paper
I think this rooster is just about to shake himself into a crow.
"Day Break II" acrylic on paper

I like this rooster very much but it has a "commercial" feel to it (my opinion). That may be the result of the color palette and its abstract qualities.
"Day Break I" acrylic on paper

The title says it all.

"All riled up" acrylic on paper

A look at what is in the gallery

2011-09-11T17:58:00.005-04:00

Just a quick peek at some of my pieces in 7 Artists Key West.

Big Skies and the white dot trick

2011-08-28T21:27:00.003-04:00

Here in the Keys, we have been having some really lovely big skies. The dark clouds move in, drop some heavy rain and move out. Leaving bright clouds and puddles. This is a painting of those skies with a marina in it. One of the things I learned while doing this painting is the white dot trick. I often use a dark spot in a painting to stop the eye from moving out of the picture plain. It acts like a period at the end of a sentence. In this painting I found that a white dot works just as well. I got this little insight when I placed the little area of light that comes between the two boats in the lower right hand corner. There is also a more muted one in the peak of the building at the edge of the left side. I have been looking at the work of English landscape painters lately, so this is painted with the palette I call my "gray skies palette" Lemon yellow, vermillion, ultramarine blue, naples yellow, yellow ochre, English red, and titanium white.

Searching for a title

2011-08-22T17:51:00.003-04:00

Sometimes it seems that finding the right title is harder than painting. This lovely blue heron and turtle are from a photo on wetcanvas.com. In the photo they were facing away from each other. But I wanted the painting to be about their relationship. I placed them facing each other and they are having a converstion. They are very comfortable in each other's company dispite their differences. Now I just need a title that will say all of that in two or three words. It may take me awhile but I will come up with one. This painting is 20" x 24" and is still on the drying rack.

P.S. However, a painting where they are not looking at each other might be an interesting way to show a shift in their relationship.

Low country marsh

2011-08-21T21:11:00.002-04:00

I have been experimenting with painting with oils on a very absorbent ground. It is an acrylic gesso mixed with calcium carbonate. While this technique is new to me it is not new to others. It really speeds up the drying of the first coat of paint and lets the second coat go on without the colors getting muddy, which so often happens in oil painting. I did tweak this painting a little after I took the picture. I made the marina in the distance a little whiter and I made the the edge where the reeds hit the water a little darker.

I call it "A distant marina"

14" x 18" not sure if it is finished.

Sunny Day in Tuscany

2011-08-15T20:56:00.003-04:00

I did a lot of painting this week and I have been continuing my "travels". I went to Italy, England, and the low country, USA. Here is my painting of Tuscany. I enjoyed wandering around these hills, but I'm not sure if the painting is finished yet.
12" x 16" oil

More Flowers

2011-08-14T19:18:00.004-04:00

This week in painting class there was a large vase of flowers to paint. I had a large canvas and decided to paint loosely on the canvas the same as I did on paper last week. (See earlier post) I covered the canvas with various blues mixed with a lot of water. While it was still wet I sprinkled it with alcohol. That is was created the spots with halos. Then I took white and did a thin negative shape painting of the vase, flowers and table top. Then I laid in the large yellow flowers as focal points and worked all over the canvas adding more flowers and leaves.

This is the finished piece. I'm happy with it.

This is what the sky looked like while we were painting (the class is out doors). If I ever put two twin clouds like that in a painting they would just look fake.

P.S. If you get my blog you may have missed some posts because of a posting error I made. So if you want to see them click through to my blog and scroll down.

"Wild Flowers" 24" x 20"

framed in a white frame $485

in the gallery now

The colors of summer

2011-08-07T20:50:00.004-04:00

I love watching art instructional DVDs. I recently added several new ones to my collection with the intention of watching them while I am on the elliptical trainer. It is amazing how fast 35 minutes go by while I am watching someone who wants to share painting skills. One of my new DVDs is by Robert Burridge, on painting loose floral paintings. I have taken a Burridge workshop before so watching the DVD was like a refresher course and I think I put it to good use with this fun painting. Another exciting thing is that Mr. Burridge is going to be in Key West in February conduction a plein air workshop. I have already signed up and can't wait.

Most of my other DVDs are on plein air painting and it is so beastly hot I'm not sure when I'll paint outside again. Although now that I think about it my studio isn't air conditioned so what's the dif? ( At least I'm out of the sun and have lots and lots of fans.)

"The colors of summer"

11" x 14" acrylic on paper

matted and framed (black with a gold edge) to 16" x 20"

$325.00

A Moment in Venice

2011-08-07T20:35:00.006-04:00

Late summer and September is when Key Westers head for Europe and other fun spots. The town gets quiet and everyone is sick of the heat and mosquitoes, so it's a good time to "get out of Dodge". I won't be headed to Europe any time soon but thanks to wetcanvas.com I can be a vicarious traveler. On wetcanvas.com there is a section where artists (very generously) share their photos and allow other artists to use them without any copyright infringement issues. I found a lovely little photo of Venice that was really fun to paint.

Note to artists; You might have to go through a lot of photos before you find one you like.

Recent firing.

2011-08-07T20:24:00.003-04:00

Last Friday's firing had the recently discussed chip and dip pieces, some fish spoon rests for Margaritaville Key West's web site, some coasters and a special order plaque.

A customer came to me about a month ago with a special request. She wanted the above saying on a plaque that could be outside in the weather and she wanted it a certain size. Other than that I could do what I wanted. I came up with this little scene to go with her text. I hope she likes it. It leaves via UPS tomorrow for her house in Tallahassee.

Three chip and dips, one very tropical and two not so much.

2011-08-07T20:04:00.004-04:00

Of the three chip and dip pieces I made recently I decided to do only one with a tropical theme and two that are packed with bright colors but no specific motifs. I do love the tropical flora and fauna but I can understand that not everyone does. So for those people, there are two color-packed contemporary style chip and dips.

Tropical chip and dip $124.00

Comtemporary chip and dips $94.00

In 7 Artists Key West gallery now.

604 Duval Street

Bliss

2011-07-11T20:41:00.001-04:00

It is hot and humid here these days. A beach chair and an umbrella at the water's edge would be perfection. With a good book, of course.

Bliss
10 x 8"
oil
$325.00 framed

The one not choosen

2011-06-27T20:38:00.003-04:00

A customer in the gallery a couple of weeks ago was interested in a re-creation of a painting that I did several years ago, but wanted it to be a palette knife painting. When I sent them a photo of the finished painting they were "No longer interested". Oh well I have a rustic 16 x 20" barn wood frame it will look good in.

Here is a better photo of yesterday's painting. This one is shot straight on and has no glare. The only thing I am going to do to it is to give it a few more shades of red in the flowers at the base of the palms.

No title yet

8" x 10 inches in a gold plein air frame (or black) $265.00

Sunday painter

2011-06-26T21:14:00.002-04:00

I have been doing a lot of reading about oil painting and looking at many oil painting photo demonstrations and somewhere in my reading there was a suggestion to do your own demonstration to make yourself aware of where your problems begin. Since many of my paintings start our fine and end up a mess I decided that this was a good idea. Here's my demo. Using a photo and a canvas that had a middle value ground I start out by painting in the negative shapes. (The area around the palms and shadows).

I lay in the dark values in the palms and the grass.

I decide to take out the palm fronds on the left hand side, so I scraped them out, add some more paint to the sky and lay in the shadow and the lower palm fronds and the palm trunks.

I darken the shadows and added some paint to the ocean.

I start to add color and value changes to the palm fronds and I scrape away the right hand palm because I realize I need to adjust the color (make it blue-er) to establish distance. I start to lay in the ground shrubs at the base of the palms.

I decide the palms don't look right so I scrape parts of them away and add more sky.

And here I make the exact mistake again, to many fronds and the distant palm on the right is too heavy and too green.

Here I get more air back into the upper palms, get the distant palm to be okay, but not great and then I screw up the shadow.

By this time I am sick of blue and green, so I throw in some red, and some color variation to the sand, which doesn't show up here and start to rework the shadow and give the ocean a little wave action.

I have added a lot more paint to the sky and reworked the shadow shape. And that's as far as I got. I'll look at it tomorrow and see what to do next. And I think working it like a demo helped. By the way the photo was from wetcanvas.com, they have copy right free photos on their site.

Recent firing

2011-06-20T21:38:00.002-04:00

This recent firing included some serving pieces with twin palms on them, some spoon rests and some Christmas ornaments. If I do a few ornaments during the summer months it might not seem so overwhelming when the season hits.

2011-06-13T21:24:00.002-04:00

Here's and order of flip flops that I did for Two Friends in Lewes, Delaware. If you are in the area check out the store.

Back to fundamentals

2011-06-05T20:37:00.003-04:00

Mangrove study, "Before the rain"
Mangrove study, "After the rain"

Mangrove study, Mangroves on a windy day"

Mangrove study, "Mangrove with distant sailboat"

This mangrove clump is not far from my house and I have painted it many times over the last 8 years. I feel my academic painting skills need reinforcement. Using oil paint I am going keep painting this scene stressing the fundamentals of the painting process. I am using a limited palette of colors and concentrating on light, value and composition. All of the above studies were done on location, en pein air,and they are all are 8" x 10". I'll try not to bore you with too many of them.

I'm on vacation

2011-05-12T08:45:00.000-04:00

Last week I headed to North Carolina to visit my Mom for Mother's Day. While I am here I try to walk the beach on Topsail Island every day to collect seashells and hopefully walk off all the cookies I seem to be consuming. This charming cottage is perched on the dune and I think this is a good photo reference for a future painting. I would like to give a shout out and thank you to
Pam Hobbs for selling my "A and B Marina" (see April 11 post) painting for me and for working some of my shifts in the gallery while I am gone.

Another plein air Saturday

2011-04-24T20:54:00.002-04:00

I had such fun the Saturday before, that I went out on my own again on Saturday and found this cute American Gothic cottage in the Meadows section of old town. It isn't finished yet and I have ended up making a lot of changes. I will show it again when it is finished.

A Fun day of painting and art in the sculpture garden

2011-04-17T20:21:00.004-04:00

Last Saturday the Studios of Key West had a plein air quick draw. Artists had from 9 am to 1 pm to paint in the old town section of Key West. Paintings were put on easels in the sculpture garden at 2pm for judging and a short reception. My friend Andy Thurber won 1st place for his painting of the Armory building.

My friend Pam Hobbs won a prize for her painting of the Armory.

I did not win a prize, but I had a great time and I'm happy with this painting of a Southard Street cottage I have wanted to paint for quite some time. I am never really comfortable painting architecture, but maybe now I will do more of it.

Southard Street in Bloom

24" x 20 " unframed $425.00 SOLD

Morning at the marina

2011-04-11T21:07:00.002-04:00

When I first came to Key West the man who was the captain of the pilot boat ate breakfast every morning in the restaurant where I worked. The Pilot boat guides the cruise ships in through the channel to the port. I am not sure if this boat is still in service since they made the channel bigger, but it does look very charming where it rests at the foot of Front Street. Morning at the Marina 24" x 30" $595.00

Great advice.

2011-04-03T20:34:00.002-04:00

A customer in the gallery was admiring the flip flop beach signs and said I should do ones that said "Pool" for the people who had pools. I sounded like great advice to me so I made them in flip flops and mermaids. They have proven to be very popular. I hope that the customer comes back so I can tell her she was right and give her a free sign. Another customer wants a flip flop that says "bar", so I quess there will be some bar signs too.

Keepin' it real - almost

2011-03-18T09:05:00.002-04:00

This lovely bunch of coconuts was painted a couple of weeks ago and has been at the printers have its picture made, so giclee prints are available of this image. I call this style "contemporary realism". It is a studio painting from a photo I took of a palm tree in my neighborhood. The punched up color and the graphic black edges in some areas were deliberate choices to create some visual excitement. The one thing I don't want you to be when you look at my work is bored!

"Lovely Bunch of Coconuts"

24" x 20" $950.00

It's been awhile

2011-03-17T09:33:00.003-04:00

I know it's been awhile since I have posted, but I have been busy doing lots of fun stuff. I was up in South Beach and had the good fortune to make a friend of this egret. He will be a great photo reference for a fun painting.

Isn't he handsome?

I also took some great photos for beach path paintings.

South Beach has these wonderful life guard stands that are painted all different colors.

I went to a rockin' party at the "W" and danced the night away with old friends.

View from the room.

And I have done a little work. Made some orange juice squeezers.

And did some dip sets in black, a color I rarely use. As you can see my camera did turn up. It was on a chair in the back yard for three weeks and still works. Imagine that.

Everyone have a great day.

Abstact palms

2011-02-28T21:08:00.003-05:00

I have "misplaced" my camera. I have been looking for it for two weeks and I have finally given up. I borrowed one today to take this photo. These palms are part of my on going revisionist landscape series.

"Dawn Beach" 20" x 24" $395.00

Pointing the way to Margaritaville

2011-02-13T21:32:00.002-05:00

These cute little flip flops point the way to Margaritaville. Find them (in a week or two) at Margaritavillestore.com

Look at these cute little turtle shaped coasters. I'm trying to think of more shaped coasters I can do.

turtle coasters $32.00 set of 4

Stars on the water

2011-02-12T09:59:00.002-05:00

This painting was started last fall and it has been sitting on the easel daring me to try and finish it. So I worked on it yesterday, thought it was finished, saw some things I didn't like and worked on it again today. Now I think it is finished, but I will look at it a couple of days before I'm sure. It is a large painting 30" x 40" and I am looking forward to taking it into the gallery.

Top shelf

2011-02-10T16:46:00.002-05:00

These four pieces were on the top shelf of the last firing. They are two colanders and two batter bowls. The two pottery colanders I have in my kitchen always seem to be in use. I don't bake that often, but when I do I love! the batter bowl. The spout makes getting the batter into the pan much neater.

Batter bowls and colanders, $58.00 each

A Peek inside the kiln.

2011-02-09T22:20:00.002-05:00

This is a glaze fire that I am unloading. The glaze fire is the second firing these pieces have been through. I had already unloaded the top shelf when I decided to take pictures of the pieces as they come out of the kiln. This is the second shelf down from the top.

Because that heron platter has glaze on the bottom I placed it on a special 3-prong stilt to keep it from sticking to the shelf. Since it is sort of floating above the shelf I could set some flat pieces under it.

This pineapple platter came out great. I'll give more details about it in the next post.

These flat pieces are sitting in special holders made for tiles. I have to wipe the glaze off the area that is touching the holder before I set them in the holder. I will show more pictures of these items with prices in the next post.

Everyone have a great day.

Now showing at Margaritaville.com

2011-02-07T20:00:00.003-05:00

Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville Store and on-line store has added a Made in Key West Section. It features work by local artists. They get serveral items from me. Just out of the kiln and headed their way are these fish spoon rests and these small Key West flip flop ornaments. I think these are going to be on-line and in the store. It is always good to ride on Jimmy's coat tails. These items are also available in 7 Artists Key West gallery.

"B" the "D"

2011-01-31T18:59:00.002-05:00

Bill the dog was a dog about town. His job took him all over the island and he was welcomed everywhere. He enriched the lives of all his friends. He is now gone, but not forgotten.
He had many human girl friends. He loved them all equally and they, in true island style, were never jealous. However, one was a little territorial and she always liked to leave her lipstick kiss mark on his head. It was a bright red smooch.

Now the smooch is permanent and will never have to be reapplied.

And the inside of his urn is lined with love. RIP Bill.

Small nosh sets finished

2011-01-30T18:27:00.005-05:00

The "nosh" sets are finished and on the shelves in the gallery. They are really cute.

Small sets $37.00

Before there is color.

2011-01-17T17:22:00.002-05:00

Before there is color the clay is a lovely warm gray. These are some new dip sets with a small plate as part of the set. I think I will call them "nosh sets". They should be fun when they are finished, and a nice alternative to the larger sets.

Favorite subjects in larger sizes.

2011-01-16T20:07:00.005-05:00

It is always a good feeling when one of the subjects you like to paint is also liked by the public. Often when I am painting, or have just finished a painting, I get an idea how to do it a little differently. If the public seens to enjoy what I am doing then I feel encouraged to go forward with my other ideas. All of the 10 x 8" beach path paintings have sold, so this time I did one in oil. It is 14 x 11" on canvas. Framed $295.00

I painted several 6 x 8" pelican paintings and they have all sold. I wanted to do another one but a little larger. This one is 8 x 10" on canvas, framed $225.00. I am thinking about doing a larger than life one, could be fun.

I hope everyone had as much fun with friends and family over the holidays as I did. It's time for me to get serious in the studio again. I think I am going to concentrate on pottery for a while.

Everyone have a good day.

New Flip Flop Beach Signs

2011-01-02T19:38:00.002-05:00

The new flip flop beach and flip flop Key West signs are now hanging in the gallery.

Large ones are $29.00 and the small ones are $24.00

Brand New in 2011

2011-01-01T16:38:00.003-05:00

Here are a couple of new items for the new year. These little flip flops will point you in the right direction to either Key West or the beach. I haven't made these before, but I think they are pretty cute. I just put the hangers on the back and the glue has to set up, but I can't wait to see what they look like hanging on the wall. They will be sold singly and some point right and some point left. I'll take them into the gallery tomorrow and get a photo of them hanging on the wall. I'll have the price figured out by then too.

Here's a new little flamingo dip bowl and plate set. $54.00

Bright red flip flops $48.00 and some palm coasters, $29.00 set of four.

Last kiln firing of 2010

2010-12-31T09:26:00.003-05:00

Here are the last pots of 2010. A big cheerful kiln load of serving pieces and a couple of tiny pairs of flip flops.

WISHING YOU ALL A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR.

Obligatory green and red

2010-12-25T11:08:00.002-05:00

My attendance at Jim Salem's painting class has been spotty, at best, lately. But the weather was beautiful this last Thursday and I really wanted to go. He had a green and red still life set up (apples and green cloth) and some beautiful lilies. I really wanted to paint a landscape, so I walked to the water's edge by this small red mangrove that I have painted many times before. The red mangroves have very red-ish branches, so I incorporated a few hints of red. I have watched this mangrove clump grow in size over the last ten years and I am very fond of it.

This is a palette knife painting and I think it needs a couple more tweaks, but nothing too serious.

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate and I hope you are enjoying the day.

Small in size, but big in color.

2010-12-13T19:16:00.007-05:00

Key West Pelican $85

Laughing Gulls $85

The last couple of mornings I have hit the studio before my first cup of coffee was finished to do a couple of paintings I had in mind. I have painted pelicans and laughing gulls before, but they where all larger paintings. The Key West Art Center recently hung a show of small paintings and I had a good time doing them and wanted to do more. In the late winter and early spring the laughing gulls are in attendance at the painting class I go to, and their noise can be overwhelming. They love to crowd together and I find their black and white coloration very appealing. And who doesn't like pelicans? Well maybe the fisherman who have their bait and catch stolen.

Both of these paintings are 6" x 8" and painted around the edges rather than being framed (unusual for me). The first two photos have quite a bit of glare on them. The above photo shows the edges and seems to be free of glare.

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU TO DIANE SALTER! I won a wonderful collage from her blog. She is a busy woman making all sorts of wonderful things, so I am honored. Please take the time to visit her blog, My Art Journal.

A Stroll through the gallery

2010-12-11T20:13:00.004-05:00

I keep forgetting to take pictures of new pieces as they come out of the kiln. So here a some photos of what is in the gallery now. Here is the front of the gallery looking out toward Duval Street.

Some of my small paintings and framed prints, and a few of Egg's paper smashey creatures.

Cute little Christmas ornaments.

Paintings and prints

Entertainment sets.

Looking down from the stairs.

New flamingo sets.

Classic chip and dip.

Some new flip flop designs

2010-11-28T20:54:00.003-05:00

As you can see I am experimenting with flamingo images. I have added them to my serving pieces and my flip flops. I did a nice serving set with just palm fronds and I am still trying to perfect the dragonfly and sunflower images.

Happy Thanksgiving to all

2010-11-25T11:17:00.003-05:00

Here are some lovely platters for your holidays. Thank you all for your support and friendship.

Extra large platters with braided handles

13 x 21 inches

$125.00 each

Studio interruptus

2010-11-15T21:15:00.002-05:00

Life has been getting in the way of my studio time lately, but I won't bore you with the details. I have been working on the usual suspects in pottery and they are coming along nicely. But I have been struggling with a larger painting of the A & B Marina that is at the end of Front Street. I can't seem to get the colors right. And I can't set up and do it plein air because the view is from a narrow pedestrian cat walk. So that painting is having a short time out. While it is getting a beauty rest I have fallen back on an old familiar theme; The Key West Rooster. This one is painted with the palette knife.

11" x 14"

framed with a black frame

$345.00

Final Bike Photos, (maybe)

2010-10-29T08:21:00.002-04:00

There was a photo shoot for the bikes yesterday, isn't she pretty!

I'm like a proud parent here.

Notice the star hand grips

I had to put Key Lime pie on it.

Love the yellow rims.

Now the bikes get ridden in the Fantasy Fest Parade tomorrow night. I am having a surrogate rider. Then it goes to the Restaurant Store to be viewed until the auction. It will also be in the Christmas parade and I think I will ride it in that one. While it is in the Restaurant Store it will have a "buy me now" price. I do not know what that will be yet.

Charm School

2010-10-28T10:25:00.004-04:00

When I am talking with visitors to Key West in our gallery, if they say it is their first visit, or they ask what they should see, I always tell them to get off the main street and walk around in the residential neighborhoods. And I repeatedly use the word charming to describe the town's architecture and small lanes. For the commission piece I posted about last week, I spent the whole day walking around old town Key West seeking out that charm. This little house on Thompson Lane just fit the bill, but it wasn't the image I wanted for the commission piece. So this week I have painted it by itself, just for fun. I made a decision to bump up the charm to the next level in this painting. I used sweeter colors and more fluid brush strokes. I am very happy with the result and have decided to enroll myself in the "charm school" of painting for a while and wander down all the lovely little lanes it leads me.

This painting isn't for sale yet because I want to use it as a visual reminder of what I am trying to achieve in my next paintings. But I am considering having prints made.

The bike is put together

2010-10-24T19:50:00.002-04:00

I went by the bike shop n my way into the gallery this afternoon to see if my bike had been put together yet, and there it was! What a relief, it looks great. These are not great pics because it was in a row with other bikes in a small space, but later this week I'll get some photos of it all by itself.

Great show at Gallery on Green

2010-10-24T19:42:00.002-04:00

A friend of mine, Andy Thurber, had his opening last night at Gallery on Greene, here in Key West. The work is wonderful, it really has the Key West spirit. If you are in town do yourself a favor and check it out.

Gallery on Greene

Bicycle frame finished and delivered.

2010-10-22T13:16:00.002-04:00

Front wheel assembly.

Chain guard and main frameFenders

More fenders

My bike is covered in Key West post card like images and is titled "Greetings from Key West" I can't wait to see it all put together. So more on this later.

A Contest of Sorts

2010-10-21T07:37:00.003-04:00

This painting is a jumble of some Key West Images, and was painted as a possible commission piece. A business contacted the Key West Art Center and said they were looking to purchase a painting by a local artist that was evocative of Key West. They would purchase the original painting and would also want giclee prints of the painting to give away to people they are bringing on a cruise to Key West in January. So the Key West Art Center asked its members to submit paintings. Today the paintings have to go to the photographer and the business will get a CD with all the images. I don't have my hopes up on this but, I have ended up with a good size painting. 24" x 30"

"Island Coffee Queen"

Some sparkle-y things.

2010-10-11T19:55:00.004-04:00

Well, I can say it has been awhile since I have posted to my blog, and it is not because I haven't been working, I have. But most of the work has been the nose to the grindstone kind of thing. The reality is that not every minute in studio is full of wonder. My main focus has been clay these last few weeks and the clay work is very process oriented. Pieces only get finished after all the steps have been completed. It is not for those who constantly require instant gratification.

But things are finally getting finished. These Christmas ornaments came into the gallery today. There are palm trees and flip flops all with added glitter for fun and sparkle. Fantasy Fest (our biggest event of the year here in Key West) is right around the corner and the town will be bursting at the seams with people, so it seemed like a good time to get these done.

I have also been working on painting a bicycle for a fund raiser for The Studios of Key West, a local arts organization. 40 bicycles are being painted by Key West artists and will be auctioned off in February. Between now and Feb. the bikes will be on display around town and ridden in a couple of parades. My bike is going to be on display in The Restaurant Store. I'm trying to have my bike finished by Oct. 20. It is almost done and I will post some photos.

Also going on the Key West Art Center, a non-profit art center and gallery, of which I am the president this year, is about to start their season. I have been planning the season along with other board members. Our first meeting is this Thursday and I am giving a short workshop on how to write an artist statement, something we encourage all our artists members to have.

I hope you all have been well. It has been a fabulous fall so far here in Key West. We had lots of rain for a while (while all those storms were out there) and everything is green with lots of tropical flowers. I've put in my tomatoes and have lots of blooms and one small tomato starting.

Well, more later.

Pottery ornaments

Palm trees, $14.00

Flip Flops, $24.00

This week's production work.

2010-09-13T18:11:00.002-04:00

I am a production potter so a lot of the small items that I make get made in bunches. I have a work area where I can lay out several spoon rests, or Christmas ornaments or small sets and do them all at the same time.

I don't tend to work on multiple original paintings at the same time. I do best when I zero in on one and bulldog it until it is done. Although some paintings need to have a "time out" and sit in the corner until I'm ready to deal with them again. And while they rest, I can work on something else.

New Beach Path painting

2010-09-09T21:07:00.003-04:00

I have painted another "Beach Path" painting. The first one sold so I got out the photo again and started all over. This time I made the water a deeper blue, the path wider (I like that) and it has less shadows. I did it with the palette knife, I quess next time I will have to try it with the brush.

Here is a new grouping in the gallery.

Everyone have a great day.

Dollar Store Poppies

2010-09-06T15:44:00.006-04:00

As I mentioned before, my painting teacher is off to Italy for the month of September and it seems I've developed "poppy envy". We don't have poppies here in Key West so off I went to the Dollar Tree to see what they had to offer. This bunch came home with me. I also got some other cool things to paint and I will show those when, and if, their paintings ever happen.

I still have dreams of painting poppies in Italy, but for now I am happy with these. And I got to use red, black and turquoise again.

no title yet

8" x 10"

acrylic on canvas

SOLD

framed in a plein air gold frame

All American boy

2010-09-05T17:38:00.003-04:00

Those of you who aren't familiar with Key West might not know that the city is home to a multitude of free range roosters and hens. So, chickens and roosters are a popular theme in our local art galleries. They are very Key West and hallowed Americana at the same time. This lovely fellow is painted in one of my favorite color combos, turquoise, red and black.

Happy Labor Day to all.

"All American Boy"
10 x 8"
acrylic on canvas panel
$325
framed in a gold plein air frame

Odds and ends and a new turtle design.

2010-08-31T18:11:00.004-04:00

Some fish spoon rests. P.S. Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville Store carries these on their web site.

Here are some new coaster designs. Set of four $25.00

3 - Palm platters come with small dip bowls and a pate knife. $74

New Turtle design, he has a kind of bewildered look. I'll work on that. He comes with a dip bowl too.

Odds and ends.

This morning's sunrise. My painting teacher is off to Italy for the month of September. So while he is gone I am going to work on my clouds. He likes the way I do my cloud edges, but he says all my clouds are separate and never layered like real clouds. So I took this photo of cloud layers this morning to be my inspiration.

I've always wanted to paint a rainbow

2010-08-29T19:04:00.004-04:00

Something that caught my attention when I was at the beach this summer was the wonderful selection of beach umbrellas. I remember when there where 4 choices, dark green, dark green and white stripes, dark blue and dark blue and white stripes. But these days there are many lovely choices. It was obvious however, that this summer the "rainbow" umbrella was the most popular. The beach was covered with them and it was very festive. Here is my take on the rainbow umbrella against the blue sky.

"A Sunny Day at Rainbow Beach" 20" x 24" $550 framed

A little cloud and sea study.

"Blue Water Sailing" 8" x 10 " $150 framed

Paintings on the wall in the gallery.

Gallery interior.
7 Artists Key West
604 Duval Street KW FLA

Smaller rectangular platter

2010-08-13T03:26:00.002-04:00

In addition to the new medium size oval platter, I have also added a medium rectangular shape to my inventory. Here they are with palm appliques. And notice the smaller palm plate in the background with the braided handles.

A new size platter and experimenting with a positive message

2010-08-11T09:06:00.004-04:00

Isn't this the truth!
It will be interesting to see how people respond to these in the gallery.

That is a new size platter in the front, and the lemons are new, I usually add strawberries.

Here they are in the gallery. And thanks everyone for the positive feed back on the beach gals, now I'll have to try a larger one. Everyone have a great day.

Friends Since High School

2010-08-09T17:20:00.006-04:00

I took this photo on North Topsail Beach in North Carolina this summer. I loved everything about the scene, the colorful umbrellas, the fact that all 3 women were about the same age, they were all reading, they all had L.L. Bean totes. And I liked the fact that they were together and separate at the same time. Each umbrella is like an island. I don't usually feel the need to go super real in my paintings and people are a challenge, so I decided to do a small one before I plunge into a larger one. So I got out my small brushes and went for it.

I did a sketch on a small canvas, and then changed my mind and decided because I wanted a lot of little detail to do it on smooth Bristol paper.

I used all kinds of paints, even the cheap craft paints I'm embarrassed to say I own. And then I thought I would use my pencils, but they didn't work as well as I had hoped, but they came in handy in some detail spaces.

So now I have a small study and plan to do a large one. I think the woman on the left came out best of the figures, but I like the umbrella on the right the best.

I'm calling it "Friends since high school"

The Usual Suspects

2010-08-01T08:20:00.006-04:00

After two vacations this summer my inventory in the gallery is depleted, so I have been working on "the usual suspects" to go into the gallery asap. Here are some entertainment sets and spoon rests just out of the bisque fire.

Glazing in progress: Messy.

The lead free glaze I use goes on opaque and fires clear. I dip and pour the glaze to get an even coat.

Here they are out of the glaze fire, nice and shiny. Now into the gallery they go.

maggieruley.com
7 Artists Key West

Count your blessings

2010-07-29T16:07:00.004-04:00

In painting class today we sat on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico and looked out on this beautiful vista. I am fortunate indeed. Today's class lesson was abstracted seascape using cardboard (small pieces of old mat board) instead of brushes. I opted to use my palette knife instead. I have been using the knife a lot this summer and wanted to continue. This painting is larger than what I have been doing lately. 20" x 24", acrylic on canvas on board. I think it is finished, but I have to look at it for a day or two. I am looking forward to putting a frame on this and taking it into the gallery.

One of the best parts of class is the critique at the end. You get to see every ones paintings and hear what Jim has to say about them.

Plein air painting for the uninspired.

2010-07-27T09:07:00.004-04:00

This painting of a variegated Agave and flower friend are from Jim Salem's painting class last week. The lesson of the class was "what do you do when you go out to paint and none of the "big vistas" inspire you? The solution is to find a very small area you like and paint it life size. I found this lovely variegate agave and his flower friend nestled at the base of a gumbo limbo tree (they have a red shiny bark) and loved the cool and warm colors together. I did not finish this painting in one plein air session, but continued with it in the studio over the next several days. I haven't settled on a title I like yet, but when one comes to me it will go into a frame and into the gallery.

There is an unfortunate glare on the top of the photo, pretend you don't notice.

11x 14"
acrylic on canvas on board
$375.00

Vacation Photos

2010-07-25T09:38:00.004-04:00

My son Guy on Father's Day, it's all about the gifts.
Jake and me, early morning Hilton Head

Whitney and Jake, "cute shoes"

Guy multi-tasking, when they eat every 2 and a half hours, you have to.

Father and son

Jake with his bodyguard, Randy, aka BD

Beth with girls Kathryn and Caroline "Mom to the rescue"

The Guy Ruleys, Guy, Jake and Whitney

Caroline and Donna, Mother of the Groom

The Ben Ruleys, Beth, Caroline, Kathryn and Ben

"Watch your cocktail"

Rehearsal dinner, Guy, me, Ben, Randy with Jake, Whitney

With the Ben Ruleys, you know our names by now

The three "goombas" Frank, father of the groom, Randy and Guy

Uncle Ben

The Mark Ruleys, Mark and Andrea

The Dinnerware

A friend's new web site

2010-07-19T07:26:00.003-04:00

My friend, Janet Burner, in Tucson, AZ is a wonderful potter, sculptor and pastel artist. Her studio and gallery are in this delightful old adobe house. Above are some photos of her gallery and work. She has a new web site and I invite you to take a look at it.

Her studio is Sabino Pottery Her web site also hosts her blog.

Now, today, my vacation is officially over and I am back in the studio. There won't be any finished work for a little bit but I'll get some wedding photos together to post.

Everyone have a great day.

A Single Mango

2010-07-18T07:48:00.002-04:00

Well, I am home from vacation and I am still getting reorganized and I am not back in the studio "groove" yet. Here is a painting that recently went into the gallery. We love our mangoes in Key West and always look forward to mango season, which is just ending. This single mango and its reflection is a good example of the dry brushing technique, which often frustrates me, but this time it worked.

Mango Reflection 11x14" framed (gold) $325.

Sunflowers and dragonflies

2010-07-05T07:55:00.003-04:00

I make a lot of these two piece entertainment sets. The most popular of the motifs I use on these sets is the pineapple, but I am always experimenting with new ones. These sunflowers have the same bright colors as the pineapples, so maybe some customers will find them appealing. They went into the gallery this week.

Dragonfly and Sunflower set $74.00

Key West Sunset paintings

2010-07-04T09:31:00.004-04:00

Key West Sunset #4

Key West Sunset #3

Key West Sunset #2

Key West Sunset #1

I had a great time visiting my family and grandson. I was sorry to leave them, but I am going to be seeing them all again at a family wedding next weekend. I will post a few family pictures then. In the two weeks I have been home it has been mostly "same old - same old" getting things together to go into the gallery. But I did sneak in a couple of new direction sessions. I am still working on the sunset set theme but with these I used a palette knife. These palette knife paintings got a little work each day until I was happy with them. We take our sunsets very seriously in Key West and I do plan to give them proper titles. Sometimes I know a painting's title almost at once and sometimes I have to live with it for awhile.

You are seeing these paintings framed because the canvas size is 6" x 8" , which is not a standard frame size. So these paintings come framed. They are acrylic on canvas, $125.00 each.

A Happy 4th of July to all.

Off to the low country

2010-06-15T07:57:00.002-04:00

I have had a wonderful time in North Carolina visiting my parents and seeing my brother and his family. I took some wonderful beach walks that were full of visual inspiration. Now I am headed to Hilton Head SC to see my grandson Jake. It is always hard to pay attention to the road while I'm driving through this area because it is so lovely. Everyone have a great day.

Waiting patiently

2010-06-11T08:55:00.003-04:00

While I am away on vacation this dinnerware set is waiting for me at home. I come home from this vacation and then I leave again shortly to go to a wedding in KY. The couple are very special, Mark Ruley and his sweet girl friend, Andrea. Their gift is going to be this dinnerware set. So it needs to be dry and ready to decorate and fire when I get home. I think I am going to do the sea life pattern on it. They are going to live in California, so I think that will be appropriate. I will show pics when it is finished. I am enjoying myself on vacation and maybe I will be able to post some pics along the road.

Dragonflies and roses

2010-06-06T19:06:00.004-04:00

I am leaving for vacation on Tuesday. I am headed to North Carolina to see my parents and then to Hilton Head Island to see my son and his wife and my new grand baby, Jacob. I am very excited. So the above photos are of the last load out of the kiln before I go. They are going into the gallery tomorrow. They are a swarm of dragonflies to celebrate the summer. I will try to do some posting while I am gone.

Today is my friend David Scott Meier's birthday. He is such a nice man HE brought ME roses on HIS birthday. He says that the little yellow one is going to smell wonderful. Thank you David for the roses. David is a wonderful friend, and he is an amazing artist. His mixed media work is truly artistic and his design sense is impeccable. Please take a minute to check out his blog.

3 Sunset studies

2010-05-31T18:10:00.004-04:00

"Sunset Study #1" Exaggerated color for excitement.

"Sunset Study #2" Dry brush technique for hazy atmosphere.

"Sunset Study #3" Wet into wet for painterly clouds.

These paintings are basically the same composition painted in 3 different styles. In all three I kept my palette colors and my point of view the same, low horizon, late afternoon, back lit mangrove islands.

Sunset study #1,2 and 3

8 x 10" each

acrylic on canvas on board

in a 3" plein air gold frame

$195 each

Smells like "paint by numbers"

2010-05-30T19:01:00.003-04:00

"Island Beach Path" SOLD 8 x 10" oil on canvas
"Beach Path" and "Island Beach Path" hanging in 7Artists Key West
$275 each
p.s. "Sanibel Beach Path" sold

My computer is behaving like the bride of Frankenstein so I have been avoiding going on line, which has given me lots of time to paint. I have been going back and forth between oils and acrylics. This painting is oil. When the oil paintings are finished I bring them upstairs into the house to dry. Randy (my honey) came into the house and said, "Smells like paint by numbers!" I remember them fondly, the little skinny brushes and the tiny pots of paint and staying in the blue lines. But even then the thrill was more about the process of painting more than the finished painting.

Sunflowers in the sand

2010-05-17T08:30:00.006-04:00

Sunflowers in the sand 8 x 10" acrylic on canvas on board.

On Thursday I brought home several bunches of grocery store flowers with the intention of painting a large and loose red and yellow floral painting. I worked all day Friday on it and it was a mess. I painted, I scraped, I painted, I scraped, you get the picture. I couldn't get the background color right and the day ended in frustration and myself being covered in oil paint. On Saturday I decided to simplify. I got a smaller canvas, I used acrylic paint and focused on just two of the flowers. I was bound and determined to get my money's worth out of these flowers. Because I felt my waterfront pictures held promise I decided to put the Gulf of Mexico in the background. Turquoise and yellow-orange are always a nice color harmony. I did a quick under painting with a brush and then got out the palette knife. I added Golden's soft gel medium to the paint to extend it and to help with the impasto properties.

P.S.

In the floral set up picture in the lower right hand corner you can see some ceramic buttons I am working on. I don't know if they will ever get finished they are such a pain. (I don't know what possessed me to try and make buttons.) I had to stick the one poor sunflower back in the jar. It did not like being out of water. Tom, can you see your clock in the background?

Sanibel Island Beach Path

2010-05-16T09:48:00.006-04:00

" Beach Path" In this painting I like the color of the water and the subtle gray of the shadow.

"Sanibel Beach Path" SOLD In this painting I like the dark cloud and the little glow of light under it.

My background as a production potter seems to make me want to do things in multiples. When I do something once, I always see a few things I could have done differently. These two beach path paintings were done on two successive days. Each one has elements that I like. They are oil paintings on canvas mounted on ampersand board. I painted in the background very loosely with oils thinned down with turps and then proceeded to finish the paintings with my palette knife. I add Lukas painting butter to the paint while I work. It extends the paint and speeds up the drying time. I only use it with the palette knife, not with the brush. I like the hard surface of the board with the palette knife. For inspiration I used a photo I had taken on Sanibel Island, one of my favorite places, several years ago. I still see things I would like to do differently with the shadows, so maybe I wll do it again. They are both 8 x 10 inches.

Sanibel Beach Path 1 and 2 $275.

The Flip Flop Lady

2010-05-09T18:48:00.004-04:00

Several years ago I had a very nice business making hand made ceramic flip flops. I had a lovely rep and she got me into galleries and gift shops all along the south east coast. Whenever I had to call my customers I would always say, "This is Maggie, the flip flop lady". That business went down the tubes when someone sent my flip flops to China and mass produced them. The worst thing was they asked another artist to do the designs for them. Oh well, I decided it wasn't worth the money or effort to fight it, and shortly thereafter, the flip flop craze was dying out. But I still make flip flops and sell them in the gallery. They make really cute wall sculpture. I make a ladies size and a child's size in lots of different patterns.

I have recently added two new designs. The dragonflies and the cottages. I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day, I did.

Ladies flip flops $48.00 a pair

Child's flip flops $38.00 a pair

Welcome

2010-05-08T09:33:00.002-04:00

Pineapples have long been the symbol of "Welcome" so I like to use them in the serving pieces I create. I very often do a pineapple - papaya combo. And I love using the saturated reds against the orange and greens. I think when you are having a party your serving pieces should be as festive as possible.

Rectangular tray $58 sold
lg bowl $135. sold

Trying new techniques.

2010-04-19T08:57:00.003-04:00

Last Thursday's painting class was a lesson on dry brushing. I thought this class would be very good for me because I tend to paint with a really loaded brush most of the time. So I was painting and I was painting with almost no paint on the brush and just not getting the effect I wanted. It looked stiff and way too regular. So I decided to go for thin layers of color in just the opposite way, glazing. I loaded my brush with very wet, very thin paint and started applying different colors in very thin layers. I have one of those heat tools (best $20 investment ever) and I could dry the layers in a hurry. I was much happier with the the result. And then I decided to do some selective splattering and then some more glazing to tone down the splatters and then a few thin edge lines to give a subtle indication of a light source. I am really glad I tried the dry brush technique and there may be times I want to use it, but it wasn't working for me this week.

My instructor, Jim Salem is a master of dry brushing. One look at his work and you will understand why I want to be able to do it also. One short note: Jim did say that I was working on a canvas that was very smooth and dry brushing works better on a canvas with a little tooth. So I think I'll blame it on the canvas.

Now I just have to make a simple edge strip frame and take it into the gallery.

12" x 12" acrylic on canvas

Bowls and sets for entertaining.

2010-04-18T08:53:00.003-04:00

These little bowls I call "dip bowls" because they are intended to hold a dip or spread and I haven't come up with anything more interesting. I have added a "little thing" to hold the spreader knife. The little thing has no name, but when everyone sees one in the gallery they go ,"Oh look! It has a little thing to hold the knife". This should make it easier for guests to know what to do with the knife and help keep the table cloth clean. I have fluted the edges of the bowls for fun and they come with the knife. They sell for $29.00 each. They make a nice hostess gift.

I also make sets like this one, a platter that comes with a dip bowl. I occasionally make the traditional dip set where the bowl is attached in the center. But I like the idea of separates because you can get more use out of two pieces. This set is $74.00.

Good Morning

2010-04-16T07:12:00.002-04:00

Coffee in a new mug, what a way to start the day. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Fish Flops and coffee cups

2010-04-15T22:42:00.006-04:00

I have been very busy making pottery lately. I have finished some special requests and I am working on some others. Mostly I have been making a lot of the "usual suspects" that you have already seen. I have been out of mugs in the gallery for awhile and just kept putting off making them. Then I realized that I really like cups. I know most people prefer mugs, but in the morning I will reach for a cup before I reach for a mug. In my mind mugs are taller, with narrow tops and they have the advantage of keeping the coffee warmer for longer. Cups are more traditional in shape, think teacup, but I like the wider opening. So I decided that this time I would make cups instead of mugs, but really big cups. And to make them interesting I decided to put a message in them. My message this time is "Island Life is better" and of course they say Key West. I am hoping they will appeal to our gallery customers who are looking for handmade and unusal gifts to take home to the dog sitter, house sitter etc.

This is the whole load that came out of the kiln. I'm a productions potter so I almost always make things in multiples. This load was cups, fish flops, dip bowls and a set that had to be refired. This photo gives you a good idea of how large the cups are.

Here is a close up of the fish flops. They hang on the wall and make really fun sculpture.

Now I almost never keep any pottery for myself. I have a lot of my pottery and I use it all the time, but mine is all the chip and dent rejects that I can't sell in the gallery. But today I really liked the pink cup you see right in front in this photo. I picked it up, liked the way it felt in my hand, and I love the color pink so I marched it right into my kitchen and had a cup of coffee. Of course now I'm looking at that dark red one, it is pretty nice too. But I am going to stick with the pink. And I am looking forward to tomorrow morning.

Transition of a painting

2010-03-29T08:51:00.004-04:00

This painting was started in the painting class I like to go to on Thursdays. I wasn't thrilled, but I didn't hate it either.

I decided I wanted to see a little more "air" in the painting and totally screwed it up.

The joy of acrylic paints is that there are infinite possibilities, just keep painting. I decided most of the pink had to go, some of the white had to be whiter and to give it texture and movement there had to be splatter. (I love splatter, but you do have to think when you do it) Now it seems to be a better representation of the thrill of spring, and just in time for Easter.

"Treat yourself to Flowers" #4

12 x12"

SOLD

The Age of Aquarius

2010-03-25T21:54:00.003-04:00

"Flower Power"

this is what the prints look like in their frames.

"Live Long and Prosper"

"Joy to the World, all the boys and girls"

"Upon a Star"

"Makes the World Go 'round"

This is a series of small mono-prints that I have made to go into the Key West Art Center show "RETRO-WORKS". The Key West Art Center is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a large party and a show of how their member artists interpret the sixties. I chose the age of Aquarius theme and earthy images. These pieces are small, the image and mat are 5" x 7". I had a ton of fun making these. Some of them use oil based inks and some are acrylic paints, each have their advantages. The acrylics dry so fast that if you do a layer you hate, you can wipe it out with a sponge. The oil based inks have that wonderful consistency. The birds are stamps I carved out of Speedball blocks. The words are store bought stencils with Golden's mic------ iron oxide (can't spell it and too lazy to go down to the studio to look it up) which I love to work with. Lots of layering going on in these. At each step I used a discarded mat to isolate the image and decide what the next step would be. The show and party are this coming Sunday and I am looking forward to it.

Two Small Florals

2010-03-09T07:35:00.005-05:00

These two very small ( 5 x 7") paintings have evolved painfully slowly. They are on ampersand gesso board, and it took me awhile to get used to the slick surface. But finally, after many short sessions the flowers emerged in my favorite color combinations; red/coral and blue/tq. Each painting is framed in a simple 2 inch wide gold frame. They are hanging in 7 Artists Key West.

"Treat yourself to Flowers" numbers 2 and 3 $125.00 each

BOTH SOLD