Often when we have profound breakthroughs, we may not know how it happened. Art can be a conduit for those breakthroughs.
Energetically, if the artist is also along for the journey, it can be even more profound and transformational, as was the case for Taylor Hale, local artist and owner of the Hale Gallery in Islamorada. On April 10, Hale opened his first show, “Channel.” It’ll close Friday, June 20.
It’s been two years since Taylor and his wife, Kelly Hale, purchased the gallery located in the Ocean Sotheby’s building at MM 81.8, bayside. This is Taylor’s first solo show at the gallery under their ownership. The show features seven new paintings, which took about eight months to complete.
“Oil lends itself to a lot more time, and what’s nice with print reproduction sales (giclée) is that it allows me to spend more time on ideas and projects,” Taylor said.
“Taylor paints with a method called alla prima, which means at first attempt and a lot of ‘wet on wet brush strokes,’” Kelly said. “He also uses indirect glazing, which adds luminous color. As light travels through the transparent layer and bounces off the ground, it travels back to your eye, making a different color.”
“The show started with this piece, ‘Serenity,’” Taylor said. “I wanted to create a world that’s right on the edge of reality — dreamlike and gives you that feeling of connection with the spirit world or something higher. Before, I was trying to paint a scene. Now, I am trying to paint a feeling — with color and atmosphere.”
Other favorite pieces from the show include “Moon Baby,” in which the details of the crescent moon leave one awe-struck, and “I am a Mountain.”
“‘I am a Mountain’ resembles a buddha when you blur your eyes — the clouds in the sky,” Kelly said. “We came up with the name because it’s a Coldplay song. He (Taylor) listened to a lot of Coldplay while he was making this show.”
Taylor also had fun dancing to Coldplay with his two young daughters while painting.
Hale was finishing the painting “Serenity” during an Islamorada Morada Way Art Walk when a client went to this piece and started crying. Hale said he didn’t think much of it because it was the art walk.
A couple of weeks later, she came back and went right to the piece again.
“I watched it happen again, and it made me realize that thinking about painting and how they connect to music as a visual artist, you don’t get to see this a lot — the piece being its own energy and being its own thing,” Taylor said. “To see it come through in this way is incredible. At the opening, the same thing happened with a different person.”
Hale’s early career as an artist was more focused on portraits, primarily because of art school training. As he was grateful for the opportunities, he also grew tired of painting something so specific. As life goes, a client request propelled him to make a change.
Hale ended up moving back to the Keys and was searching for the right thing to paint. During that journey, he found himself looking at the clouds while waiting tables at Morada Bay.
“Every night (there were) amazing sunsets, and I started painting clouds,” Taylor said. “Clouds are always received, and it’s something that’s become my muse. (There’s) no end to the inspiration for it, always able to go further fine-tuning and always able to explore a different color palette.
“Clouds lend themself to endless exploration and something I loved growing up down here,” Taylor continued. “A big part of painting is endless. I could spend my whole life on it.”
Further evidence of the theme “Channel,” an idea that intuitively came to Taylor to use his unique crystal and mineral collection around the gallery as decor.
“I’ve been collecting since I was a kid. Most are from my great-grandmother (Rebecca Lindon Smith). She was an artist and very into crystals,” Taylor said. “Every Christmas, we would get a box filled with beautiful crystals. I’ve always cherished them, but they’ve mostly lived in boxes.”
Hale’s work will take centerstage as the Islamorada Chamber of Commerce will host an after-hours event at the gallery on Tuesday, June 17 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
More information is at thehalegallery.com.
Taylor said he had a date for the show and a lot he wanted to accomplish, but he was intuitively choosing the art pieces he felt were right at the time.
“It was beautiful and wonderful to put them all together in a wonderful space with room to breathe and walk around. Everything went seamlessly,” Hale said.
The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Hale Gallery can be found on Instagram and Facebook, via @thehalegallery.
