Beautiful flyer

I love this recently finished Roseate Pelican!  He was a joy to work on.  He will soon be flying to his new home in Ohio.  

Bon Voyage!

Roseate Pelican
acrylic,
private collection
© Maggie Ruley 2014

And, you will notice I changed my header (again!, but really that one had been there a long time and that painting has been long gone)

Anyway this new header is a cute little watercolor of my studio front.  I wanted something sweet I could use for a biz card and postcard.

Roseate Pelican 

20" x 24"

Acrylic on canvas

 SOLD

Giclee prints available

Meet the neighbors

The cucumbers and green peppers I brought for lunch today just weren't cutting it.  So I popped out my front door and headed to Help Yourself for some hummus to add to my lunch plate.  It's wonderful that the new studio is in such a cool location.  There are B and B's,  a small inn, food places that are not your same-ol'-same-ol', interesting shops and small biz firms, quaint cottages and perfect Victorian homes.

It's not the main drag of Duval Street, but it has it's own lovely charm.  When you come and visit the studio you will know exactly what I mean. But until then I will start introducing you to the neighbors.

Help Yourself houses an organic restaurant, organic market, juice bar and health food store.

Help Yourself
829 Fleming St. Key West
photo Maggie Ruley

Here's my lunch after I added the fire roasted jalapeño hummus.  Much more filling.

Salt Island Provisions
830 Fleming St. Key West
photo Maggie Ruley

Salt, Island Provisions is a lovely small retail shop featuring local honey and sea salt.  I love the way they have their mission statement on the front door.  So simple and honest, I am going to "borrow" that idea.

 

 

 

Not too many peeps on the Conch Tour Train today, maybe too hot.  Directly across from my studio are these lovely Victorian homes.  I have a wonderful view.

I love this town.  Lunch was great, now I feel like going for a swim!  

The Mango Seller

June is the beginning of mango season in Key West.  By late June and early July most of the Mango trees are laden with fruit.  One day there was a young girl with a mango stand selling mangos for a dollar a piece on Fleming Street.  She was standing along side her small table on the side walk selling to the passers by. It was late in the day and I went around the block to get back to her, Fleming is a one way street, and when I got back she was gone. She became the inspiration for this painting.  My cat's name is Mango so she had to be in the painting.

The Mango Seller
© Maggie Ruley 2014

"The Mango Seller"

Acrylic on canvas

40 x 30"

Sold

Giclee prints available

The new studio~gallery is going well.

 

My children's art classes are over and I can be in the studio all day.  I'm getting lots of painting done and meeting the people in the neighborhood.

Island Inspirations

933B Fleming St

Key West, FL 33040

I've gussied up my entry a little.  Lots of dogs walking their people on the street and they get very thirsty in this heat.

2 Studios in Action

My July mornings are filled by working with young artists in a studio space in the East Martello Fort.

We work on various projects until 1:30.

Afternoon from 2 to 6 I spend in my new studio/gallery.  There is still lots to do and get "in order". Whatever that is?  But yesterday I just had to paint.  So here is the first painting from my new studio.

Untitled as of yet, it is  a piece inspired by 2 other pieces I wanted to tweak.

Mangrove and cloud study, untitled
acrylic
12 x 12"
©Maggie Ruley 2014

Above is the studio corner of the gallery before I started using it.  And below is the after pic.  I think I like after better.

A brand new gig or Plan B

The Studios of Key West (the parent organization where I have my painting studio) is moving.  The beautiful historic Armory Building has been a rental and the lease is up.  TSKW is in the process of renovating a building they have purchased.

That meant that my future was up in the air, the new building won't be ready until Dec. or January.  I was on Fleming St. in March and saw this sign.  And thought, "Humm???"

Long story short I signed the lease June 26th and my new studio/gallery opened July 4th weekend.

Through the month of July I am teaching children's art classes in the morning, so weekdays I am only open in the afternoon.

Here is the official announcement!  Trumpets please!

Maggie Ruley ~ Island Inspirations
933b Fleming Street
Key West
Florida, 33042

305 304-1013

July Hours
Monday - Friday 2pm to 6pm
Saturday and Sunday, 10am to 6pm.

It is slowly taking shape here are the first photos.

Having a wonderful time in Philadelphia

Visiting a lovely home here, brick houses, quiet streets, roses in bloom.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Next I am off the the Jersey Shore.

Pottery Galore!

 

I spent almost all of April and May in my pottery studio working on pieces for various friends and events.  So I thought I would give you a quick rundown of them.  I won't say too much, because really, it's more fun to look at the pics than read a lot of stuff.

 

I did a few paintings during that time, but we'll look at those later.

 

 

 

This giant 18" toucan bowl was a special order from an old friend as a wedding present for his son.

 

 

This load of pottery was for my featured artist event May 2 at

 SoDu Gallery,

1102 b Duval Street,

Key West

  The photo of the work was so colorful I used it for a new post card and invitation to the show.

 

 

 In side SoDu Gallery

 

Inside SoDu Gallery

 

Inside SoDu Gallery

 

 



I am happy to say that lots of new pottery pieces have gone to

 Wet Paint Gallery,

 430 Duval Street KW

 In addition to my pieces Jennifer Badry, gallery owner, and her lovely staff have filled the gallery with lots of local and tropical art.

 

 

 

  And last for my things to show you today is a bowl I am sending as a thank you gift to a friend in Philadelphia.  This friend is hosting an entire Memorial Weekend event for a gaggle of old friends.  All we have to do is show up.  So I am off to Philly to see the old Gang.  I lived for a short time in Philly as a child.  My brother was born there and we used to take class school trips to the various historical locations, so I have lots of fond memories.  Can't wait to see it again and all my chums.

 

bowl detail

 

 side of bowl

 

Everyone have a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend and remember our Vets.

 

  I return to Key West next week and then I am back to painting, this time with a horde of children.  I'll be busy teaching art to young artists all of June and July.

A couple of other fun things are in the works, but we'll talk about those as they happen.

bye for now,
Maggie

 

 

 

You're invited.

If you are in Key West Friday May 2 I'd love to see you at my featured artist reception at SoDu Gallery.  Here are the deets.

I'm showing some cute new mermaids!

Starfish Beach

 

Starfish Beach

 

 

 

I enjoy walking the island taking photos to use as inspiration in my studio.  I love the little touches of fun and whimsy that decorate so many of the porches here in Key West.

 

 

Little touches of starfish and scallop shells and year round shell wreaths are a common island motif.

 

 

Lovely starfish chair cushions and a boat floating on a blue door make you want to stop and rest here.

 It's a beautiful day here on

 Starfish Beach
24 x 20"
acrylic on canvas
© Maggie Ruley 2014
$640.00
SOLD giclee prints available  

 

 Everyone enjoy your day!'

Maggie

Secrets From a Mermaid's Comb

The coolest thing happened to me last week.  Musician Helen Davey asked me if she could compose a musical painting based on some of my art pieces.  I said YES!! PLEASE!!

 

Helen lives in Switzerland and we decided to use Facetime to begin the process. 

We had a very fun Facetime phone call, Switzerland to Key West, how cool is that?  We talked about my work, we talked about her work and then she got right to it and came up with this lovely composition.

Here is the statement I sent her about my mermaid pieces;

The Fish Whisperer 1 and 2

As a child, one of my favorite movies was "Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid".  My father and Grandfather took me fishing all the time but we never caught a Mermaid. Now that I live in a tropical island paradise, water imagery and the sea seems even more magical than ever.  I create my own little stories using real and imagined sea creatures. In The Fish Whisperer, even I don't know what the conversation is about. I guess it is a secret.

Here are links to the music and to Helen's Blog.  Please go to Helen's blog to learn more about her 52 week sound painting project.
 

SECRETS FROM A MERMAID’S COMB” 

(For 10 voices, piano, shells & percussion)

(6:35 mins) by Helen Davey 

listen or buy the music here: 

http://helendavey.bandcamp.com/track/secrets-from-a-mermaids-comb

Helen's blog: 

http://helendavey.com/blog/

What Helen says about her work.
"I love that Maggie has many interpretations of her Fish Whisperer  (as you can see). Mine stems from the myths and legends around mermaids, specifically from Cornwell (my own heritage).
As Maggie said, even she didn’t know what the conversation was about in her digital “woodcut”, so I decided to listen in on that conversation and sound-paint what I heard from the mermaid to her fishy friends.
I’ve chosen a Cornish legend “the Mermaid and her Magic Comb” as my starting point for a few reasons.  Firstly, I like the legend’s emphasis on the mermaid gifting some secrets to an elderly man who helps her.
History has portrayed many females in myths and legends as monsters. My interpretation of this legend, is a viewpoint from Herstory of what mermaids symbolize (together with their many mythical, matriarchal sisters). That is, that they are  carriers of life and goodness, wisdom and sacrifice through their healing knowledge, granting of wishes, nurturing cures and seeing the future. And besides… I’m thinking it’s likely that the Cornish legend inspired the 1948 film Maggie refers to.
I have scribed the legend into a folk song style with verses and repeating ostinati and choruses, drawing on my own Celtic roots.
I added many voices to this piece plus some shells and percussion to evoke some of the many layers of this beautiful artwork, the inherent stories and magic to spark our imaginations.
There is music for the fish, sea-stars, waves and bubbles, the rocks, reefs, coral, shells and plant life, the wind, waves and mother moon’s influence on women and the tides - the herstories of history.
 
 
Tomorrow is International Women’s Day. This is my little contribution for 2014. Wherever you are I hope you can enjoy celebrating the many wonderful accomplishments of women everywhere.
I’d LOVE to hear what you hear/see in these artworks via the comments section below;  please feel free to share this around to anyone interested in art & music via the little icons below.
Thanks for bubbling along with me."

Of course I had to find out more about the Mermaid's Comb,  here is a link to that legend.  The Mermaid's Comb

http://helendavey.com/blog/week-11-maggie-ruleys-the-fish-whisperer/

Diva of the Deep
acrylic 24 x 20"
© Maggie Ruley 2013
 $540

The Fish Whisperer 2
acrylic 24 x 20"
© Maggie Ruley 2013
$540

The Fish Whisperer 1
digital image
© Maggie Ruley
NFS 2013