Left: For artist Christopher Still,
drawing comes before any painting
in his Tarpon Springs studio.
Bottom left: This is the drawing
stage of A New Day, one of two
large paintings that Christopher
Still made for the Belleview Inn,
which opened in late 2018.
MARCH/APRIL 2019 | TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 49
Queen of the Gulf, Still’s 6 foot-by-5-foot second work in the
lobby, is composed of an arrangement of symbols from the
lives of the hotel’s former owners and guests. Still’s Queen of the
Gulf is filled with images, beginning with a slice of cake and a
glass of champagne to celebrate this new era at the hotel. White
roses symbolize the hotel, which helped Florida’s West Coast to
blossom, and to remind viewers that Morton painted the hotel
white, which led to it being called The White Queen of the Gulf.
There is a compass, barometer and thermometer that was given
to Henry Plant on his 76th birthday, when he was also presented
with a Gorham silver loving cup that appears in the painting.
You can also find the sheet music of the “Belleview Waltz,” which
was composed in honor of the hotel and dedicated to Mrs. Plant,
plus a copy of the book, The Cruise of the Iolanda, a log of Morton’s
33,000-mile cruise in 1909. Perhaps one of the most interesting
items in Still’s painting is a double strand of natural South Seas
pearls that Morton gave to his bride Maisie after exchanging his
Fifth Avenue New York City mansion with Cartier for the pearls
in 1917. The mansion still serves as the jeweler’s New York City
headquarters.
Queen of the Gulf also depicts a Babe Ruth Baseball card in
honor of Ruth, one of the hotel’s famous guests who came to
play golf on its world famous course. The Cuesta Rey Cigar
recognizes the hotel’s ownership from 1939 to 1944 by Carlotta
Cuesta Kirkeby and her husband Arnold. The front desk bell
depicts the reflected images of JMC CEO Mike Cheezem, his
wife Katherine, JMC President John Hobach, its Vice President
of Sales Claudia Emery along with Belleair’s Mayor Gary Katica,
who helped guide the project to fruition. There are more than
54 items in Queen of the Gulf, each with its own significance to
this cherished building and to those who in one way or another
were touched by it.
This three-year project has kept Christopher Still fully occupied,
and he is eager to resume painting the Florida he knows and
loves. Other Still masterpieces can be seen on display in Ruth
Eckerd Hall’s lobby, at the Sandpearl and Opal Sands resorts on
Clearwater Beach, and in the chambers of the Florida House of
Representatives in Tallahassee. We await Still’s next contribution
to our cultural heritage. 9
EDITOR’S NOTE: Artist Christopher Still works from a studio in
Tarpon Springs and can be contacted at (727) 942-1846 or by visiting
christopherstill.com.