About
Elisa McKay, a self-taught artist originally from Harlem, NY, had a diverse career path working in Electronic Data Processing before pursuing a BA in English and Education. In 1978, she made a significant move to the U.S. Virgin Islands, where she immersed herself in teaching high school English while caring for her young daughter and elderly parents. The breathtaking beauty of the "Island Paradise" served as the perfect backdrop for inspiring Elisa's handcrafted greeting cards, which later evolved into her distinct African-Caribbean collages exploring themes of family, community, and celebration.
Transitioning to larger formats, Elisa's mixed media designs incorporate silhouettes of African fabric and paper, acrylic, gouache, watercolor, and metal and wood elements. Her work frequently graces galleries in St. Croix and various mainland states, appearing in local calendars. Embracing her rich heritage and roots on St. Croix, Elisa finds deep artistic inspiration in her ancestry, crafting pieces that honor her cultural background with reverence and love.
“I’ve come home to St. Croix, the island of my parents, my multicultural roots, and my African-Caribbean ancestry. This rich culture is woven through the tapestry of my life. In the spirit of my ancestors, I celebrate my heritage through my art…with respect, honor, and love.”
Eucalyptus in a Crock, was painted in February 1969 when Elisa was home for a week from work. NYC was snowbound and much of it shutdown.
The Christmas of 1968, my longtime friend gifted me with a starter set of oils, brushes, canvases, and an easel. I took out my gift and began to paint the still life in 1969. I gifted my parents with it for their 50th anniversary in November 1969.
I don’t think I was influenced by the painting, but it may have conjured upsome artistic energy that had been laying dormant.
We moved to St. Croix in 1978 and I began pressing flowers from my mom’s garden and framing them. Then around 1980, I began making cards with fabric. I started with one female image and then I added another and another. I adorned them all with pressed flowers and sometimes a strip of narrow ribbon on the edge. Later, I removed the flowers and the ribbon. I felt they should stand alone in the beauty of the fabric.
Elisa holds Edges, Mixed Media, Acrylic,
on Paper 20 x 24
Published in St. Croix Source,
Sep 7, 2010
Through the years, I began to make cards with palm trees, a sugar mill, and other images that I saw on St. Croix and used the pressed flowers on those. My Flower Child card has flowers and it represents Ayanna. Her name is East African and means Beautiful Flower.
My daughter, Ayanna was studying in Cordova, Spain at the time of her 19th birthday. All of my female images were clearly women. I designed Flower Chile (original spelling) to look like a teenager…a younger woman than the others. I sent it to her in Spain for her birthday.
I continued to make my fabric cards and sent them to family and friends. One friend requested that I sell my packets of cards to her that I had gifted her and others. She encouraged me to sell them on St. Croix, which I did, and sold them to one store and later my cottage industry mushroomed to several stores on the island. In 1993, I began painting backgrounds and I created my work on an increasingly larger format from the “safe” 4x6 inch card size.
Elisa McKay and daughter, Ayanna Joy McKay enjoying Elisa’s 80th birthday celebration at the Mike Walsh Studio in 2017.
(Source Photo by Linda Morland)
