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Welcome
to the official site of artist Philip S Steel, offering action
portraitures, original paintings and limited edition signed Giclee
prints. |
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Visit the SALTY DOG GALLERY
Features Philip's paintings and giclee prints
322 Main Street
SouthWest Harbor, Maine
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Welcome to the official site of artist Philip S Steel. Philip is a signature member of the American Society of Marine Artist,(A.S.M.A) and Florida Watercolor Society, and a Fellow Member of the American Artist Professional League. He is published in Marquis Who's Who in American Art.
Many times I meet people either in my classes, workshops, Museum shows or at my Salty Dog Gallery in Souhwest Harbor, Maine, who ask me why I like to paint people, boats, the shore and the sea.
I think my first love affair with the sea began when I was 10, at summer camp on The Chesapeake Bay. The camp owned 7 small dories and made them available to us young campers. Early one morning the waterfront instructor arranged a day trip across the bay. With a crew of 2 on each boat, our little fleet set off with a good breeze and clear skies. By noon a horrific storm came up the bay. A number of the crews were frightened out of their wits as the storm plummeted our little dories. Luckily, we all survived. But for me it was an unforgettable exhilarating experience, the beginning of a lifetime love of the sea's power, a boat's ability, and the visible reaction of people on and about the waterways of the world.
Another question often asked is "why I paint". I think the desire to paint is in my genes. My parents and grandparents were artists and musicians. When I was a boy, I couldn't stop drawing and sketching...and I've never stopped.
Teaching I find particularly rewarding when a student finds his/her work suddenly improving. There is nothing more exciting then when their peers begin to admire their work after dedicated hours of practice and study.
I've inherited the wanderlust from my maternal grandfather. So either through sailing in Maine, the Chesapeake Bay, Florida or the Caribbean Basin, or traveling to a foreign county, I am always energized when I meet people whose lives are affected by the sea. It is these people, their lifestyles, their water craft and their surroundings that I need to capture.
Thank-you for visiting this web site...
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CAPTURING THE CHALLENGED LIFESTYLES OF OUR WORKING FISHERMEN AND WATERMEN:
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Celebrated artist and architect Philip S. Steel is known for his love of the sea and the people whose lives are affected by it, his award winning ability to capture the power and excitement of wind and waves, the ever changing play of light and tension in sails rigging and crew is unique.
Several years ago, Phil was sketching on the docks of the only remaining fish house in Fort Pierce, Florida. He was angrily approached by the owner of the facility who thought Phil was with the Florida Fish and Wildlife. Although the banning of certain types of net fishing in Florida had taken place several years earlier, Phil learned of the staggering affect the ban had on generations of fishing families. The frustration felt by these fishermen fairly roiled just below the surface of their feelings. The result of this encounter added a new dimension to Phil's art He was determined to capture the lives of the commercial fishermen. Philip and writer Evelyn Wilde Mayerson formed a ground breaking partnership to document the fascinating history of Florida's Commercial coastal fishermen. The result ,"Net Loss",gave a voice to those who had virtually given up on ever having a public forum to express their sense of loss and helplessness. "Net Loss" was performed across the entire State of Florida as a unique combination of a one man monodrama and a traveling art exhibit. "Net Loss" also focused on a larger issue, the issue of art as a social commentator.
Last fall Phil and author Roger Vaughn completed a book and play entitled " Fishing Gone"about the Watermen of Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay.
They captured the uniqueness of this Island and the challenges facing the Watermen who have been there for more then three hundred years. The Tangier History Museum & Interpretive Cultural Center sponsored this second phase of art as a social commentator. The play showed at ten locations around the Chesapeake Bay, including The Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC.
The third phase concerns the lives of our Maine fishermen and lobstermen. Last fall when Philip and his wife closed their "Salty Dog Gallery" in Southwest Harbor for the season, they had to return a sculpture to an artist. They drove to Stonington, Connecticut and found the Stonington Inn. It was here they met acclaimed playwrite Frank Reilly and his wife Sharon. After hearing about Phil's determination to capture the story of those whose lives depend on the sea, Frank declared he would like to be the author for the Maine project. Frank and Sharon had recently moved to Maine and were excited to join Philip Steel's quest. The name of the third phase is "A Green Sky".
The means needed to facilitate the project required a non-profit sponsor. The Maine Seacoast Mission has agreed that they would like to be the sponsor. Stephen Richards, their Director of Development, is working very hard with Phil to make the project a success .
The "Net Loss" Book and " Fishing Gone" are available for sale.
Size:11"x11" Size: 11"x11"
Net Loss 19 .95
Fishing Gone 24.50
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CRITICS CORNER
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Review of the performance of "Net Loss", Apalachicola, Florida by Ms. Dixie Partington, Executive Director, Dixie Theater:
"What a treat, this program of "Net Loss"!
I have seen many great works of Art in my life, here in this country as well as Europe and Britain; Phil Steel is an incredible talent. He has truly captured the essence of life in the fishing world; you could almost smell the salt air as you took in his paintings. I wanted to have each of them for myself. It won't be long before he rockets to stardom. . . ."
NET LOSS REVIEW by Edgar Straeffer, Chairman, Cultural Affairs Council, St. Lucie Co. Fl.
"When the house lights go down in the Black box Theater, on Indian River community College's Fort Pierce campus, Philip Steel's paintings jump to life. Twelve paintings portraying fishermen and their work are the set for a one character performance about the powerful effects the net ban caused on Florida's commercial fishermen and their families. . . .
Rarely does the set of a play express the situations and emotions of a script. Steel's large paintings show fishermen in their every day work environment, one painting at a time. An intimate bar scene of fishermen swapping stories on a bad weather day seems to give way to a large, stormy seascape, with a lone commercial fishing boat slicing through the seas. Each painting could stand alone for its vibrant composition and affectionate subject matter. Together they offer vista of the robust routine of making a living from the coastal and offshore waters that make Florida a peninsula. . ."
IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT.... Jack Connolly, V.P., Vero Beach Opera Guild, Fort Pierce, FL
Black Box Theater, Fort Pierce, Florida -
"Net Loss" is a dramatic production that debates different perspectives of commercial fishing. This amazing program has captured the imagination, eyes, mind and critical discussion of its viewers. This pictorial essay brings together a playwright, an artist, an actor and the audience. It explores the feelings of a seventh generation Florida commercial fishing family as it examines the dilemma of survival. You will travel on their fishing boats, listen to their comments, and experience a sociological and historical statement being made. . The tour includes 12 original oil paintings by artist Phil Steel, a dramatization of a fictitious fishing history by playwright Evelyn Mayerson, and is brought together on stage by 30 year veteran actor Joel Kolker. . . . "
IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT.... Larry S. Chowning, Southside Sentinal
An entire culture may be lost forever: by Larry S. Chowning, Southside Sentinal, Oct. 1, 2009
This wonderful play is much more far reaching than the Chesapeake Bay. It brings out a nationwide dilemma that commercial fishing cultures through the entire United States are facing hard times. The essence of the play is about the realty of an entire culture being lost forever.
2011: Phil's painting, "The Race", a watercolor by Phil, has been chosen by the National Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for their 2011 poster and public relations material for all their races across the country.
Copyright 2010, Philip S Steel
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Copyright 2008.09,10, Philip S Steel
4949 N. A.1.A. , Fort Pierce, FL 34949 U.S.A. 772-465-8322
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