RETREAT

Withdrawal? Shelter? Flee? Why do we take these painting vacations? They are retreats, or re-treats. They may be withdrawals from our daily lives, shelters from the mundane, and a temporary fleeing from our regular responsibilities, but we think of them as ways to TREAT ourselves over and over again! We connect with new knowledge, practice new skills, and search for inspiration among the unique local sights.  This trip met those expectations.

Oil Pastel of Banyan Tree, side yard- Little White House, Key West

Presidents have been finding Key West a splendid retreat since 1946.  According to the history of the Harry S. Truman Little White House, Truman was in sore need of a rest following the war years and war economy.  After an inspection of the Naval Station on Key West, Truman soon found the quarters there just the right place to recover his emotional and physical health. Since then many presidents and dignitaries have found it a welcome refuge.  We’d walked many miles down the main street of Key West before arriving at the Little White House, so we’d had our exercise and found the lawn chairs in the big side yard a welcome sight. Walt and I sat and spent a leisurely afternoon sketching there before taken the interior tour (no charge for sitting in the side yard). (I enjoyed experimenting with the oil pastels I brought.) The water and sun were to our back and shade and flowering shrubs were laid out in front of us. Perhaps “Harry” himself sat here and put his feet up.

This is the pie I made.  It's easy and fast.

Next stop was Kermit’s Key West Key Lime store for what else? Key Lime pie! I think I had a pie-a-day.  Now, with as much walking as we did, I could easily justify the pie, and a retreat is no time to say “no” to yourself!  A literal treat. Yum! We purchased a bottle of their key lime pie juice.  It comes with a pie recipe as follows:

1-9 in graham cracker crust

2 14 oz. cans sweetened condensed milk 

6 egg yolks

½ cup Kermit’s key lime juice

Blend milk and egg yolks at low speed until smooth. Add key lime juice and finish blending. Pour into pie crust and bake in preheated 300 degree oven for 15 minutes.  Cool 15 minutes before refrigerating.  Serve thoroughly chilled pie topped with fresh whipped cream.

  

Sometimes you find a moment of calmness and a reminder from another species to just “be”, breathe deeply and be still.  A sighting of a pair of placid manatees in a cove near our residence did just this. Unfortunately, they were a bit too far for a good photo, but we felt grateful for their presence.

"Once A Refuge" 24 x 24 oil on panel Available

Finally, we discovered the local Key West Tropical Forest and Botanical Garden.  It's an interesting walk through local flora, fauna and relics of local history (Cuban boats).  My painting above is based on one of the Cuban boats displayed which once ferried hopeful Cubans out of Castro’s Cuba to Florida—a different retreat than what we were experiencing. Something for us to ponder. Learning is restorative in itself, and we felt refreshed by the diverse collection we encountered here.

We found Key West to be a multifaceted place—bars, bistros, music, fishing, sun, wild chickens, small homes, big yachts, museums, flowers, history, color, art—the low-brow and the high-brow. 

New knowledge.  New skills.  New ideas.  Refreshed. 

Key West:  What a treat!

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Thank you for reading. If you enjoy my essays, please share with your family and friends.  I’d like to hear from YOU!  Please leave comments and questions. 

My paintings are available at my studio in Cary, NC, online at Sheffield Art Studio and at my Daily Paintworks Gallery (see also clickable link above right)

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All About Vision and Voice

"Gentle Mooring" (in progress) oil on panel 24 x 24 Thanks to fellow artist G. Wade Carmichael for the name!

 Soon after arriving in Key West, stories started unfolding for me about creativity, imagination and vision.

Of course Key West would attract all manner of artists.  Some of the most noted are the following: John James Audubon, Mario Sanchez, Winslow Homer, Ernest Hemingway  and Jimmy Buffett.  Key West has much to offer the visual artist, “eye candy” in flora, fauna, architecture, and year-round painting weather.  Galleries and street artists are plentiful.  

After thinking about my own art history while investigating the lighthouse and my grandfather’s circa 1970 lighthouse painting, Walt and I walked across the street to the Hemingway House and Museum on Whitehead Street.  Outside the entry gate, there we were introduced to the very interesting Scott Gruppe′, grandson of Emile Gruppe′ and of the extensive Gruppe′ artist family.  “Which one do you like?  Which one do you like?” the kinetic artist bounced around asking. He was selling his colorful, unique, and expressive figure drawings on the street. He was surprised I was familiar with his grandfather’s work. Was he happy with his own?  I couldn’t tell. His work is unlike the work of others in his family.  I was left to wonder the journey he’d taken to arrive at his own “voice” or style. (We were happy to buy one for its own appeal.)

Six-toed cat

Standing outside the bricked walls of the Hemingway House, we were enticed in by the sneak preview of the six-toed cats lounging within (not all interests are art!). A meandering tour found me fascinated by his studio and my new knowledge to another side of this most famous writer.  To admit my ignorance, I had not known he had an extensive art collection and life-long appreciation and association with masters of American and European painters.  It was exciting for me to learn that he educated himself to this visual language to enrich and hone the way he would use words to conjure an image. As luck would have it, one of the artists of profound influence on him, Joan Miro′, has a show currently at the Nasher Museum near me in Durham NC through February 22, 2015.

Sunset celebration performer

Our short trip didn’t allow time for discovering more about the many artists associated with Key West--Audubon, Sanchez, Homer, or Buffett, but many current street performers at the “Sunset Celebration” offered imaginative entertainment.

"Robber Rooster" Available here 4 x 4 oil on panel

Cackle and crow.  One sight and sound ever present underfoot you can’t miss in Key West is that of chickens and roosters. Before you even know, they’ll jump up on a café table and rip the lettuce right out of your sandwich!

In my next issue on Key West, see how I tie together stories of Presidential retreats, key lime pie, Manatees, and walks through botanical gardens.

If you want to be the first to know about exhibits and discounts, sign up for my NEWSLETTER email list on the home page of Sheffield Art Studio. 

Thank you for reading. If you enjoy my essays, please share with your family and friends.  I’d like to hear from YOU!  Please leave comments and questions.  

My paintings are available at my studio in Cary, NC, online at Sheffield Art Studio and at my Daily Paintworks Gallery (see also clickable link above right).

 Please LIKE me at my FACEBOOK Fan Page.