Cedar Key 2017 - my 'Old Florida' retreat

Cedar Key is a wonderful little town. an island at the end of Route 24 on the Gulf Coast, an area sometimes called the Nature Coast or the Forgotten Coast. We've made it part of our winter retreat for years now. 

Cedar Key is in Central Florida and the nearest city is Gainesville, an hour or so away.  We always make a day trip to Gainesville to the wonderful Harn Museum of Art, with a stop at the Gainesville Artisans Guild gallery, but mostly our time in Cedar Key is being off the grid by the Gulf and walking around town, which boasts two art galleries - The Island Arts Gallery and  Cedar Key Arts Center and a half dozen restaurants, our favorite hang-out is Steamers. 

The "Old Florida' architecture. colorful, vintage with a dash of funky and a smidge of chaos, always inspires me. And being 'off the grid' of doing, creates a wide open space for collage.

Breakfast Lunch - Cedar Key

Snake Plant Cottage - Cedar Key

Carts and Truck - Cedar Key

Live Oak Cottage - Cedar Key

The collages use my own photographs, amplified and altered and many of the elements are also from my photographs, extracted and 'amped', others are found images. The octopi are not from my own photographs - lol, but I do like to use octopi - they're always unexpected.

You can see past posts from Cedar Key by just entering Cedar Key in the blog search box.

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Cedar Key Redux

Cedar Key continues to fill me with color and whimsy.  And although the weather has been a bit cold and windy, it affords me to time to collage while looking out at palm trees and the Gulf.

This collage is a perfect capture of Cedar Key.  The three main elements - the flamingo, the funky Tiki bar sign and the Pirate cottage are all pretty much as you see them.  Of course, I did amplify the overall color of the composite image, but they all started out intensely colorful.  Even the large yellow flower was found painted on a building. Happy.Happy.

Pirate Flamingo Tiki Bar - Oh My

My favorite restaurant in town is Steamers.  They're open every day and have a wide variety of food. We've taken to eating at the bar, hanging in the locals vibe.  The uber-competent and very nice bartender is a joy to watch as she handles drinks, food and more and perfect pours of Guinness.  And it is yet another colorful building.

Steamers

I first started collecting octopi images because my son likes them, but I've developed my own affection for them.  Tentacles add a nice frisson to things.


Far Away Inn provided another wonderfully painted exterior as a background.  Now the repeated image motif is fashion dolls instead of paper dolls. And everyone liked pie.

Admire

Now you just have to be intrigued when you come upon a sign that says "Fine Art & Smoked Mullet."  Following the sign down the road presented me with this great art house trailer, complete with its own Lady on the roof.  Alas, it was not open - and has yet to be open - , so neither fine art nor mullet was to be had.  This is the sign that got my attention, but it is actually on the main road in town.  And the 'sushi' is candy sushi, with a Gummy fish on top.

Fine Art & Smoked Mullet

Smoked Mullet and a dip made from it is a local favorite here.  I purchased some dip at a nearby Winn Dixie.  Very weird.  The dip had pimentos and mayonnaise and eggs in it, so in the end this brand tasted like Pimento cheese spread gone bad.  That's enough fish adventure for me. Better as art.

Smoked Mullet Dip

Dockside Motel at night has a very noir feel to it.  Our mystic guest has left the building.

Dock Side Motel