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Arts and Entertainment: Artist of the Month in Cedar Key
July 11th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: Feeling Inspired to Write a Little Poetry?
July 2nd, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: 2014 Old Florida Celebration of the Arts
June 27th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: Summer Art Program at Cedar Key Arts Center
June 24th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: Cedar Keyhole Artist of the Month
June 3rd, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: CALL TO ARTISTS FOR 2014 DESIGN
May 19th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: Sign Up Soon for the Cedar Key Art Center Children and Teen Art Program
April 29th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: Come Join the Fun at the CKAC Kids and Teens Summer Art Program
April 15th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: 2013 Cedar Key Art Festival Full of Hearts and Winners
April 15th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: CEDAR KEY ARTS FEST OFFERS HEART STICKERS FOR VISITORS TO MARK THEIR FAVORITE ART
April 2nd, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: CKAC Gallery Opening Saturday, April 6th 4-6
April 2nd, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: Workshops at Cedar Key Arts Center
March 25th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: April Shows at the Arts Center
March 21st, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: "Little Shop of Horrors" HELD OVER FOR ONE MORE WEEK!
March 12th, 2013

Arts and Entertainment: Cedar Keyhole Artist of the Month: Connie Starks
March 10th, 2013

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A View Under the Ocean with Artist Alda Leffew

A View Under the Ocean with Artist Alda Leffew

Maureen Landress

There are artists who imbue their work with hidden meanings, who bare their souls on canvas with swirls of shadowed darkness that leave us feeling somehow diminished. Then there are also those rare few whose work is so filled with the joy of life, that our own lives are enriched by having viewed it. Alda Leffew's work is infused with that kind of warmth and wonder, the kind that brings a smile to your face each time you see it.


Reticent to talk about herself and her work, she lets her creations speak for her, and they speak volumes. If you have never had the pleasure of seeing Alda's work, then stop by the Cedar Key Market and ask if you can visit their restroom. No, you have not misread that last line. When Tina Hooper, the market's owner, wanted to spruce up the restroom, Alda offered to paint a mural on the walls. What she created is an incredible view from beneath the ocean that covers the entire room from floor to ceiling.

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Floor and walls cleverly combine in a delicate coral reef.

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The room's floor transformed into the ocean bottom.

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The ceiling becomes a bird filled sky.

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A friendly octopus waves hello.


Working in her spare time, it took several months to complete the project. Everyone who witnessed the room's transformation got caught up in the creative energy, so Alda hung a piece of paper on the wall and asked them to jot down their ideas. The result is an unbelievably intricate mural depicting the creatures that live above and below the sea. Everywhere you look there is something wondrous and delightful to behold, like the octopus whose arms drape down from the wall, the small crab crawling up from the floor, or the sharp-eyed gull swooping overhead. The scene is so cleverly rendered that one can barely tell where the floor ends and the walls begin. It is like standing under the ocean, eye-to-eye with the denizens of the deep. It is the essence of joy, life, and laughter.

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