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Ann Morley Obituary
1936 - 2009Artist Ann Francis Roberts Morley, known to some as "Frantic", died at her home in Pensacola on February 11, 2009. Born on October 1, 1936, in Pensacola, the only child of John M. and Clotilde Roberts, her early artistic development was guided by her uncle, Michelangelo DiLustro, a Pensacola portrait painter. She would always remark on the small books he gave her as a child including "How to Draw" and "The Color Wheel". Her later art, she said, "was a subconscious memory of those little books" given to her those many years ago.
She graduated from Pensacola Catholic High School and attended Florida State University. She met Richard James Morley, a Marine Corps flight student in Pensacola, in 1956, and they remained married until his death in 1986. After raising five children, at the age of 48, she began showing her art and thereafter produced hundreds of pieces during the next 25 years. She was a self-taught artist with a broad range of styles, from paintings of Gauguin-influenced island women and primitive images of the Madonna to whimsical ceramics. In addition to her loving family (and friends and neighbors), she will be missed by the many gallery owners throughout the Southeast who carried her work, and by all of those who include her unique works in their collections.
Ann Roberts Morley is survived by her daughters Ruth Morley, Susan Ecenia (husband Steve), and Jane Morley; sons, Samuel (wife Susan), and Jack (wife Linda); and grandchildren, Alexandra and Samuel Ecenia, and Samuel and Anne Morley.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. (central time) on Monday, February 16, 2009, at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Pensacola. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made on behalf of Ann Morley to Edmundite Missions, 1428 Broad Street, Selma, Alabama 36701 -9989.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Memories and Condolences
for Ann Morley
Sharon Perez
March 6, 2009
I am so sorry for your loss. Lizette Phillips called to tell me the sad news. I was a huge fan of her work and have a nice collection. I will sadly miss her, although I never had the pleasure of meeting her. I hope you take comfort in knowing how talented she was and how happy her works make me feel every time I look at them. She was certainly my favorite!
Stephanie Torr
March 4, 2009
I was so sad to hear about Ann's passing. I was never fortunate enough to meet her in person, but have always felt a sense of who she is through her paintings. We started collecting a few years ago and she has become my favorite artist. I can't look at her work without it bringing a smile to my face. Her presence and spirit will live on through her wonderful artwork. My prayers go out to her family.
JUIE FORET
February 27, 2009
I loved Ann for her creative talent which was so obvious but equally for her genuine beautiful self . She was her own person . She worked hard at her craft,she loved what she produced, she cared to create different and other items if only we would have let her by buying them !Southern Living Show Houses loved her work. I only wish she had received the monitary rewards she so rightly deserved for her so very very incredible talent.
I will miss you , Ann.
Juie Foret
nancy norris
February 23, 2009
It has been my great fortune to know Ann through the art gallery and interior design shop where I am a decorator. I always looked forward to Ann's visits to bring us new things. Her creativity and unique approach to her artwork always "wowed" me. The people who bought her things were absolutely delighted! What joy she gave us all. As another guest wrote, I, too, will smile everytime I walk past the precious pieces of Ann's I am so fortunate to have. My sincere sympathy to all of Ann's family. Nancy Norris (Merrill Millers Interiors, Orange Beach, AL)
Thomas Howell
February 22, 2009
I like to think I had a special connection with Ann Morley, but I have come to realize she had a forte for making special connections. Yet another admirable quality she possessed.
A dear friend recently shared her thoughts on why she believed people were drawn to Ann Morley. This dear friend spoke of Ann’s “generous and kind spirit, her incredibly interesting mind, and how she was so different.“
Naturally, I was drawn to Ann Morley for those reasons and many more. The thing I found so exceptional about the life of Ann Morley, was how much she accomplished in her latter years: The creative outpouring, the special connections she made, the lives she touched, etc. Ann Morley turned defying the stereotypical notions of old age into an art form.
Ann Morley must have read William Somerset Maugham's playbook (Maugham was a twentieth-century English novelist, playwright who lived to be 91 years of age). Maugham wrote:
"When I was young I was amazed at Plutarch's statement that the elder Cato began at the age of eighty to learn Greek. I am amazed no longer. Old age is ready to undertake tasks that youth shirked because they would take too long."
Like Ann Morley, Maugham's public view of his abilities remained modest; towards the end of his career he described himself as "in the very first row of the second-raters."
The beautiful thing about Ann Morley was she would gladly give-away her front row seat for the hope of finding anonymity and laughter in the very last row.
Courtney Roberts
February 19, 2009
I am so sad after hearing the news about Ann. My heart truly aches. My first Frantic was a cigar box from my mother. I have since added to my collection when I visit my parents in Ft. Walton Beach. I have a beautiful Noah's Arc that hangs across from my bed that I look at every morning when I wake up. It always makes me smile. I also have a very special painting that my folks commissioned her to do as a welcome home gift for me after a deployment to Iraq. I treasue every piece of her work that I am fortunate enough to have.
Tracie Aguillard
February 18, 2009
My family fell in love with Ann's beautiful angel painting. It would become our first Frantic. For years after we would visit Ann while on our summer vacation. We all looked forward to our yearly visit and Ann's gentle spirit. We will miss her and are thankful for the beauty she shared with each of us. Sincerely, Danny, Tracie, Brendan, Lily and William Aguillard
John and Gae Anderson
February 18, 2009
Hi Su and Steve,
We are so sorry. You are all in our thoughts. If you ever get a whim, throw a few bags in the car and come up. (Su-remember our talk about Asheville, Gae).
Take care,
John and Gae
Butler Steltemeier
February 18, 2009
Dear Ruth,
Can't begin to tell you how sorry I am.
Ann was wonderful, always so nice and funny.Please give my regards to Sue.
Butler
Rita Durkin
February 17, 2009
Ruth,
I am so sorry to hear of your Mother's death. Kevin and I will keep all of you in our prayers.
Sincerely,
Rita (Broderick) and Kevin Durkin
soilleux
February 17, 2009
our prayers and thoughts are with you at this time
joan, stephan, nicholas and melanie
Nancy O'Malley
February 16, 2009
Dear Ruth,
My deepest sympathy to you and your family on the loss of your mother. I will keep all of you in my prayers during this difficult time.
Love,
Nancy (Kumpfer) O'Malley
Bryan Francher
February 16, 2009
I first saw one of her wonderful paintings at Wallace & Tina Bonds house many years ago and loved it!! I met her years later and purchased one of her carribean ladies...then a couple of her French Cave paintings...then a few of her stunning pottery bowls...I will think of her everytime I pass them in my house...I will miss her and I hope her family knows how much happiness she gave us and will continue to give us with her art!!! Our thoughts are with all of her family!! Take care!!
Beverly Gilmore
February 15, 2009
I first saw Ann's incredible work in the late 1980s at a small gallery in Destin, Florida. Some years later, I worked at Newbill Collection By the Sea in Seaside, Florida where Ann's paintings and ceramics were prominently featured. It was my pleasure to know her through that gallery and to see first-hand the shining influence and connection her work had on gallery visitors, who walked in and immediately fell in love with her work, and walked out carrying it and cherishing it. She and her glorious -- sometimes humorous -- art spoke to our soul and heart, a tribute to her own beautiful person.
Anne Bullard
February 15, 2009
I will always remember Ann's welcoming smile and sweet manner and I know that she will be forever painting heaven with her angels. My thoughts and prayers are with you today and in the difficult times ahead.
Judy Gaither Antczak
February 15, 2009
I met Ann years ago, introduced by Wallace and Tina Bond - spent an afternoon with her, talking about a painting I'd like her to do - she
produced an incredible piece of artwork that my husband has always called "the French painting"
what an interesting and creative soul she was!
my sincere condolances to her family
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