St. Patrick's Day in Key West

(Above: Collection of antique dolls at the "Oldest House" in Key West. Click on this or any image in this post to enlarge.)

It is really easy to lose track of time while in the midst of an artist residency. I've described this sort of experience as "a month of Sundays dream-come-true" ... and this is very accurate. It is also very much like "every day" being a "Sunday". Thus, I really didn't realize that yesterday was "Saturday" ... much less "St. Patrick's Day"!

One of the other artists-in-residence here at The Studios of Key West is Anne Ireland. She's a landscape painter from Maine. Her husband flew in for the week yesterday. I loaned her my car to pick him up at the airport. She returned saying, "Avoid Duvall Street at all costs. It's St. Patrick's Day and it's a mad house. People are wearing green tutus and their hair is sprayed florescent green!"



That was enough to send me directly to the heart of the action within the next few minutes! I had a total blast! Everyone seemed willing to pose for photos except the two "ladies" wearing shamrock pasties on their breasts. (They wanted a tip! I didn't want the photos that badly!) From college students on spring break to senior citizens in leprechaun boxers, everyone was having fun. Even the police seemed to be taking the antics and frolics with more than a grain of salt. (I think their task was simply to prevent people from hurting themselves!) My favorite 27 photos are on a Flickr! set HERE ... or as a hilarious slide show HERE!



At one point, I even got into one of the photos!



Yet, this wasn't the only thing I did on St. Patrick's Day. Right there at 322 Duvall Street is the oldest house in all of Southern Florida. It is operated by the Old Island Restoration Foundation and is free to the public. It was wonderful to wander around the building with the noise of St. Patrick's Day held almost at bay outside the front door.


(Above: Key West, The Oldest House ... living and dining room areas. Click on image to enlarge.)

I was most impressed with the vivid colors ... atypical for anywhere else I've ever visited showing early 19th century living quarters. It seems that the tropical environment, the sun drenched days, and the luxury of deep hues affected the interior design choices ... for the better!



The bedroom was lovely ... though it was hard to think of a family with nine daughters sharing the space!



Like many places with very warm, summer climates, the "kitchen" was a separate building ... a place outside the main structure for all the heat associated with cooking. Though I actually hate to cook, I love looking at antique kitchens!



I love the utensils, the storage units, the essential elements that are associated with food and cooking. This place did not disappoint!

Exploring Key West and NEW WORK!

(Above: Lancet Window XVIII. 28" x 8". Polyester velvet, recycled acrylic felt, free motion embroidery and melting. Click on this and any other image in this post to enlarge.)

It is hard to believe that I'm already at the midway point of this fabulous art residency. There are so many places I still want to visit and so many project on which to work. The entire island is a creative, magical paradise. I'm torn every day between studio time and "Key West" time.



Because I have a bicycle (graciously provided by The Studios of Key West), I am able to ride through places like Zachery Taylor State Park. The beaches there are amazing colors and the Civil War era fort is in great repair.



From the fort I watched one of two giant cruise ships pull into the harbor not far away.



During a recent afternoon, I ventured into the local aquarium. It was a great experience. Five different rescued sea turtles call the place home.



A guide fed the adult sting rays and the tank of nurse shark.



Do you think they really need the "no hands" sign?



This morning I rode around the airport which sits at the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. A powerful rain burst totally drenched me ... but the sun came out and I was totally dry by the time I got back to the residency cottage to work!


(Above: Lancet Window XVII.)

Yes, I have been working! In fact, I've finished another four Lancet Windows! All these photos were taken using the marble bathroom floor as a background! This truly is "heaven".


(Above: Lancet Window XVI.)

Last night was "Walk on White", the third Thursday art crawl for the galleries along White Street. The Studios of Key West are located on White Street and dozens of people came through my studio/living space to visit. It was great.


(Above: Lancet Window XV)

Tonight there's a concert: "Vienna in Paradise" with Herbert Weissberg, former principal flutist with the Vienna Symphony playing with Heinz Medjimorec on the piano (Haydin Trio) and Peter Siakala on cello (Vienna Symphony). Am I going! OF COURSE! Better get dressed up. It's in a half hour!

Relics from Key West and a walk around town

(Above: Relic LXXVII. All these "relics" are the results of my workshop demonstrations. Each is approximately 6" by 8" to 9". Click on any image in this post to enlarge.)

On Sunday morning I took my camera on a walk down Southard Street, back up Fleming Street, and down Margaret Street on a meandering path back toward my cute artist residency studio unit on Ashe Street.



I passed fancy big houses ....



.... and comfortable cottages with rockers on their porches ...



... and more blossoming trees and flowers than I could possible photograph.



The architectural details are amazing ...



... especially all the colorful shutters ...


.... and the gingerbread woodwork and mosaics ... all in various state of repair depending on the property ...



There's all sorts of art and sculpture along the way.

I shot over 200 images but pared the selection down to under eighty. To see these on Flickr!, CLICK HERE. As a slideshow, click HERE.

With this blog post, I'm happy to share the finished demonstration pieces from previous "Hot" Workshops, including the one I taught here at The Studios of Key West last week. I've prided myself on finishing all my demonstrations but I'd gotten terribly behind. I had seven in various stages of completion ... now all done!


(Above: Relic LXXIX. Click on any image to enlarge.)


(Above: Relic LXXIII.)


(Above: Relic LXXIV.)


(Above: Relic LXXV.)


(Above: Relic LXXVIII.)


(Above: Relic LXXVI.)

The Audubon House and another Lancet Window

(Above: Lancet Window XIV. Approximately 28" x 8". Polyester stretch velvet, previously painted heat activated adhesive, metallic foiling, free-motion machine embroidery, melting. Click on this or any other photo in this blog post to enlarge.)


(Above: The Audubon House, Key West.)

Last Saturday I visited the Audubon House here in Key West. Audubon never actually stayed in this building. It wasn't built until over a decade after he left but it was constructed by Capt. Geiger, one of the people who entertained Audubon, gave him accommodations, and provided guides for excursion to find new specimens. Yet, he stayed in the building that pre-dated this one and used the gardens to sketch of 18 of the 22 birds he found in the Keys.



It is also a beautiful historic house which was rescued from demolition in 1958 by the Wolfsons. The renovation spear-headed the preservation movement in the area.



Over the years, Steve and I have sold dozens upon dozens of reproduction Audubon prints. (The Long billed curlew with the Charleston skyline in the background and the now extinct Carolina Parrots have always been our best sellers.) It was nice to spend time with 28 first edition prints.



The gallery/gift shop wasn't bad either. I expected the prices to be obscene but they weren't really. (Higher than I can command but still enticing for tourists looking to purchase an antique from a memorable place!) I took bunch of photos. They are HERE on Flickr or HERE for a slideshow.



The gardens were simply beautiful. I don't know much about flowers, especially orchids ... but they sure are pretty! I know my great aunt Janet, my late Grandma Lenz, and my sister Wanda would love this place! There was an exotic feel to the plant life!



Of course I'm sight-seeing ... but I am also hard at "work"! I finished another Lancet Window (first image in this post, of course!) and tomorrow I'll have more work to post. Tonight I'm hosting a "stitch & bitch" for my workshop participants. This is a chance to come together with our finished works ... after everyone had time to work in the privacy and quietness of her own home. It should be fun. In preparation for it, I, too, finished all the "demos" I had going. I generally demonstrate heat activated techniques by starting a piece or two of my own. Unbelievably, I had SEVEN in various stages of completion ... from at least the last three workshops! I finished them all! Photos coming!

The Hemingway House

(Above: The veranda at the Hemingway House. Click on any image in this post to enlarge.)

It's been over a year since I filled out the application for an artist residency at The Studios of Key West. When I was deep into this paperwork, my husband Steve continued to whisper in my ear, "I know why you want to go to Key West. You just want to see the six-toed cats at the Hemingway House". He was partially correct ... but I also wanted to see the master's typewriter ... plus, of course, have an uninterrupted month in which to create art!

So, the day after teaching my workshop, I went ... to see the cats ... to see the typewriter ... to soak up the history of a literary giant working in paradise "back in the day".

It was all I had hoped for ... and more. As much as I anticipated this excursion into yesteryear, I was surprised at how choked up I actually became. It was magical.


(Above: Gertrude Stein, a six toed cat at the Hemingway House.)

And, yes, there were cats ... about 43 of them.



Each and every one has six toes or at least the genetic trait to pass on to future ancestors of Hemingway's favorite pets. These polydactyl cats live all over the grounds. They were all born here and are totally accustom to camera wielding tourists. They can sleep through any shutter speeds but occasionally want to be pet or scratched behind the ear.

During the guided tour I took, a cat pranced into the bedroom and clawed at the carpet. She was permitted to do so. She then plopped down at the feet a group of tourists ... quite certain that no one would step on her. Another cat was asleep on the master bed.





I think the guide called this cat Audrey Hepburn.


The cats know that the guides carry cat treats in their pockets. This one wanted a treat badly ... and got it.



The art deco tiles in the bathroom where awesome.



The bookcase on the second floor held various publications ... personal books read by members of the family during the 1930s.



The second floor, wrap-around porch offered view's to the gardens and to the nearby lighthouse.



Behind the main house was the carriage house which had been converted into Hemingway's writer's studio.



The interior was small but just what I expected ... except that the typewriter was placed on a table. It is a well know fact that Ernest Hemingway stood to type ... and this table would have had to be too low for a man of his height, especially with a chair in the way! (I am proud to say that I have the same sort of strange habit. I stand to use my sewing machine. Like Hemingway, it was a habit that came naturally ... from the very beginning!)



The humble, manual typewriter. I learned to type on a machine not too unlike this one!



Outside were spacious grounds ... a full acre, the largest residential tract on the island. There were walkways and tiled areas ... beautiful tiled areas!



All the trees seem to be blooming.



This is a fountain that Hemingway's second wife created when he brought home one of the old urinals from Sloppy Joe's cafe! It is now a cat fountain ... though the intelligent animals actually drink from the running water above the urinal!



There were dozens of cats lounging in the gardens ... including an all black one named Gary Cooper!



And then there is the pool ... with cost $20,000! (The Hemingways bought the entire house and grounds a few years earlier for $8,000.) Originally it was a salt water pool.



It sparkled in the sun and looked quite inviting.



Hemingway's wife had the money. She paid for the pool but he got angry (okay ... they were probably fighting over the fact that he was having an affair). He tossed his "last penny" out of his pocket saying she might as well take his "last cent". She put it into the nearby plaster. It is now under plexi-glass ... but still there by the pool!



Now far from there is the cat cemetery. There's plaque with all the names and dates of all the cats who have passed on.



Everything about the Hemingway House seemed special and I took a load of photos. They are now on a Flickr! set. Click HERE to see them! If you prefer a slideshow, click HERE.