Walters, Maggie

I was born and raised in the Puget Sound area.  Studied two years at the Factory of Visual Art in Seattle, and graduated from the UW with a degree in Art, focusing on low-fire, sculptural ceramics.  I returned for my teaching certification and taught art at The Annie Wright School and local public school districts.  I have completed several mural commissions – private and for the Peninsula School District.

In addition to my involvement with NWFB’s past and present Chair Affairs, I have been a participating artist with the Gig Harbor Garden tour’s annual fundraising event. 

I have lived in Gig Harbor for 37 years with my husband, Dan.  We raised our three children on the shores of Puget Sound.  In addition to artwork, I volunteer for Franciscan Hospice and enjoy international travel, gardening, hiking, fishing, SUPing, cruising Puget Sound and the Salish Sea - prioritizing family and fitness.

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Chair Affair Artist

I was born and raised in the Puget Sound area.  Studied two years at the Factory of Visual Art in Seattle, and graduated from the UW with a degree in Art, focusing on low-fire, sculptural ceramics.  I returned for my teaching certification and taught art at The Annie Wright School and local public school districts.  I have completed several mural commissions – private and for the Peninsula School District.

In addition to my involvement with NWFB’s past and present Chair Affairs, I have been a participating artist with the Gig Harbor Garden tour’s annual fundraising event. 

I have lived in Gig Harbor for 37 years with my husband, Dan.  We raised our three children on the shores of Puget Sound.  In addition to artwork, I volunteer for Franciscan Hospice and enjoy international travel, gardening, hiking, fishing, SUPing, cruising Puget Sound and the Salish Sea - prioritizing family and fitness.

Serengeti Stool

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Having had the privilege of twice visiting the Serengeti, in northern Tanzania and SW Kenya, I have developed a special fondness for this remarkable region of Africa.

The Maasai Mara hosts the largest terrestrial mammal migration in the world!  Experiencing it first hand is nothing short of extraordinary, and I highly recommend it as a travel destination.

The patterns of the leopard and zebra, on the stool, represent the rich African wildlife – if only I could have included the sounds and scents! 

Chair NW

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Fishy Time Out

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Quite simply, I love FISH.  Fishing, snorkeling, researching, drawing and eating fish.  The choices represented on the chair reflect some of my favorites and also species I had never heard of.  The following are included:

Salmon, Smoothhead Sculpin, Ling Cod, Grunt Sculpin, Flounder, Lined Seahorse, Tiger Rockfish, Lookdown, Barracuda, Leopard Moray Eel, and Mosshead Warbonnet. Their intricacies are beautiful and fascinating and perfectly lent themselves to the detail I was able to depict with the fine and ultra fine point sharpies.  Most all of the drawings are created with individual dots.

 

Tree of Life

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This year i was asked to transform this specific cradle.  Admittedly, when i first saw it, I paused...... it was in need of a lot of TLC.

As i further thought about the purpose of a cradle - to provide a safe and comfortable sleeping spot for a precious new baby, it brought the miracle of life, front and center.  

I felt privileged to have the task of creating such an intimate piece, to be accepted into the home of loving and caring parents.

One end of the cradle had a nice large surface for painting and i immediately thought of a 'Tree of Life', which symbolizes the interconnectedness of all living things.

Years ago, I adopted the mantra "respect all living things, seek the truth that lies within."  I believe the Tree of Life is an extension of that concept.

 

NOTE:  The mattress is brand new, as are the mattress pad, the sheet, blanket and of course, the little bird!  The mattress pad, sheet and blanket have been washed and there is another new sheet included.

 

Save Our Rainforests

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Help!

Our Rainforests are disappearing!

They cover only approximately 2% of the earth’s surface yet are home to over half of our planet’s species of plants and animals!

I have chosen to represent just a few of the thousands of living things found in the world’s Rainforests on this desk - hopefully to inspire others to educate themselves (see attached info) and become pro-active in doing their part to help save our threatened, yet vitally important Rainforests.  Their future affects our future!

Endangered Species

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“Respect all living things”

A mantra worth adopting if we and other species are to survive on this planet!

I have represented 10 endangered species (some critically endangered)*, on this desk, to bring 

awareness to the dire situation facing many of our most admired species:

*Amur Leopard

*Green Sea Turtle

*Tiger

*Southern Blue fin Tuna

*Mountain Gorilla

*Giant Panda

*Asian Elephant

*Black Rhino

*Black + White Ruffed Lemur

*Blue Whale

 

We can no longer carry on with our daily routines, and remain complacent.  Our active participation is needed to secure the future of our planet’s endangered species.  My plea to you:  please help!  I have included information in the storage compartment of this desk, to help engage you and your children or grandchildren in the easy, fun and important ways you can become actively involved.  As citizens of this planet, it is up to each one of us to do our part.

The desk was painted mostly white.  I used Ultra-fine Sharpies to draw each animal, entirely with dots.  Perhaps you will notice that the top of the flip-up lid to the compartment, is actually a chalk board.  I painted it with chalkboard paint, and included chalk and an eraser.  

***Please note that before using the black board, you must prime it by first covering it with a layer of chalk - using the length of a piece of chalk to cover the surface.  Erase.  Now it is ready!