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Click here to see a detailed view of "Old British Consulate" above.
The Consulate on Diamond Head Road was commissioned by its owner, Nellian Sen, Ramsay’s first patron, who provided the artist’s studio space at this location for 15 years.
| Born in Lawrence, Kansas, and raised in Greentree, Pennsylvania,
Ramsay demonstrated outstanding talent in the arts at an early
age. In 1958, the Penn Township School District enrolled her in
the Summer Art Program for Exceptionally Talented Children. She
has won two Gold Key Awards from the National Scholastic Art Competition,
and art scholarships from Carnegie Museum School and Carnegie
Mellon University. Since the days of selling her prints by the Lahaina seawall, Ramsay has become an internationally acclaimed artist in the pen and ink medium. She became Hawaii's first member of the National Society of Illustrators, a group that includes luminaries such as Salvador Dali and Norman Rockwell. |
Ramsay has helped preserve Hawaii's cultural landscape by her renderings of Lahaina and old Koloa Village for it's 150th anniversary. Her drawings, "Memories Under the Monkeypod" and "Diamond Head (A Portrait of Princess Ruth Ke'elikolani)" depict a special regard in preserving Hawaii's island heritage.
| Using a traditional crowquill pen, India ink and without drafting
aids, her works display an intricate array of microscopic dots
and fine lines that is notably captured in pieces such as her
"Hinode rice bags in Hasegawa General Store." She has also been
commisioned to make renderings of numerous historical buildings
such as the White House (for its bicentennial), the Plaza Hotel
in New York and Preservation Hall in New Orleans. In 1988, the mayor of Honolulu proclaimed "Ramsay at the Rotunda Week," commemorating her one-person exhibit of Hawaii landmarks at the U.S. Senate Rotunda. The governor of Hawaii likewise honored her by acknowledging her commitment to make Hawaii's heritage known to an appreciative nation. |
 Princess Ruth by Ramsay |
Ramsay's commitment to historic preservation has also been of exemplary distinction. In 1981, she opened an art gallery in the historic Tan Sing Building in Honolulu's Chinatown district. She displayed leadership in her efforts to save the Hawaii Theatre from demolition by purchasing an option that gave community organizers precious time to raise funds and buy the theater outright.
In January, 1996, Ramsay Galleries celebrated its 15th year in business and its 150th art exhibit. The Galleries have been and continue to be a tour de force in promoting Hawaii's local artists. Her work in the arts and as a world citizen is testament to her efforts to better the human environment.
In Honolulu, Ramsay serves on the board of the Hawaii Heritage Center and on the Mayor's Downtown Task Force. She is a Paul Harris, John Warren and Maurice Sullivan Fellow of the Honolulu Rotary Club, Life Member of the National Society of Arts and Letters, and Honorary Life Member of the Association of Hawaii Artists, of which she is past president.
Biographical reference are found in Contemporary Graphic Artists, The California Art Review, American Artists, International Directory of Arts, and the World Who's Who of Women.
In the yeat 2000, the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau presented a special award to Ramsay "for her body of distinguished work and committment to the preservation of the Hawaiian culture which has allowed people throughout the world to appreciate Hawaii's history."
As a Charter Member of Historic Hawaii Foundation and to commemorate 30 years in business, Ramsay launched an Art Loft demonstration project at the Ramsay Museum to encourage adaptive reuse in the historic heart of Honolulu.