about carmen's gallery
in our beautiful solomons island gallery
we have collected art and artists for many years, and now have a
wonderful body of fine art and handmade fine crafts and jewelry on
display and for sale. Also, carmen's offers professional interior
decoration and design services. For more info, please contact the
gallery. The gallery staff is charming and knowledgeable and will help
you choose art, custom framing, or a unique gift in the beautiful
gallery or through this website. Carmen is a certified picture framer
(CPF) and specializes in museum quality conservation framing. Our
gallery cats, Bella, Sayla, Calypso & Picasa provide help as needed
in this beautiful, historic waterfront setting.
For more
specific information on artwork, fine crafts, or framing from carmen's,
simply select a choice from the navigation bar above.
Carmen is a certified picture framer (one of the first in the
world) and is now at it again! She is now actively framing again so your art is in good hands!
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our staff
new photo coming soon!
photos by David Wright
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Sylvia
Koskey is the fashionable and charming part time staff member at
carmen's gallery. Sylvia helps us out during gallery shows and special
events. She and Carmen are painting buddies as well. AND...she makes
gorgeous "Magpie" jewelry that is very popular in the gallery. What a
talented lady.
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Stephanie
Williams is now on staff and here full time through the summer.
He goal is to become a gallery or museum director!
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Part
time staff includes Paula Moeller who works at Caren's (next door) as
if Caren's and carmen's weren't confusing enough without sharing
staff!! We love having her close by.
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carmen and 'roo |
how it all began:
I have often been asked how I started my business, and I generally
answer that I got tired of working for other people, I didn't like my
job, etc. Those things are true. However there's another part to the
story that I would like to share with you now. One of the most special
people in my life to this point was my grandfather. Sometimes two
people just bond, and that's the way it was with us. To meet him, you
might have thought him just a North Carolina farmer, but to know him
was to see how sensitive, caring, and special he really was. I grew up
living in "the little house" behind his home for the first 6 years of
my life and then moved about a mile away until I left for college. He
would pick me up for church every Sunday and let me play his 8 track
tapes. When I needed him to get down on the floor and give me a pony
ride, he was there. He gave me Juicy Fruit Gum on command and was the
only person who would let me drink coffee with milk (or milk with
coffee) and act like a grown up before I became one. When I started
teaching school, I remember him driving 60 miles in order to help me
take my class to the circus and afterward deliver kids all over Durham
in the middle of the night. He died of cancer 31 years ago and although
it really hurt me, nothing was left unsaid between us, so I dealt with
it. After he died, my mother told me that he had worked his whole life
with the dream of saving enough money to be able to leave each of his 7
grandchildren $1000. She presented me with mine. I knew that I wanted
to do something very special and important with that money and not just
squander it on something without meaning, so I started my framing
business. It was very small at first, but has grown considerably, and
now I feel that my grandpa would be happy with what I've done. So, you
see, when I say your business is important to me, I really do mean it.
To me, it's more than my business. It's my grandfather's legacy. |
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410.326.2549 
