Untitled II
This painting depicts the old church in North Side, Grand Cayman, notable for its ironwood posts (raised stilts) and traditional wattle and daub frame. The surrounding foliage and sand yard provide a quaint backdrop to the architectural subject in this scene, emphasising the peacefulness and quiet for which the Island’s district is still noted to this day.
About the Artist
Ruth Harvey
1908–1984
Ruth Harvey was born in the small rural farming village of Halbrite, Saskatchewan, Canada, in 1908. She graduated from the University of British Columbia with a degree in education in 1929. Although she painted wherever she went, Northwestern British Columbia became Ruth Harvey’s inspiration, along with the local First Nations communities. She was a prolific artist who moved from medium to medium, working in oil, watercolour, acrylic, pastel, and linocut. She first visited Grand Cayman in 1964 and would return to the Island for extended winter visits for the rest of her life. During that time Harvey joined the circle of artists who helped found the Visual Arts Society in the late 1970s — among them Betty Wise, Janet Walker, and Joanne Sibley. VAS provided a network for fellow artists to share their work with one another and the general public, significantly aiding in the growth of the Islands’ emerging arts scene. Harvey and her contemporaries would meet at English Point to paint together, usually working outdoors or “en plein air” to capture the scene in front of them.