On the back road to Aranjuez- Torcas de Palancares

07/07/202406/12/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

December 6, 2016

We set off on our journey from Valencia to Aranjuez at 7am on Sunday. The train route takes you west through massive fields of grapes dotted by the occasional and equally massive wine storage units jutting some 25 meters toward the clouds, stopping in a seemingly endless number of small towns along the way. Progress is slow and the it gets much slower as then we enter the National Park known as Torcas de Palancares, leaving the farms behind.

The ravines (barrancos) along the train route from Valencia to Aranjuez dig deeply into the rocky orange soil. Because it has been raining, itself a bit of a refreshing oddity, rivulets flow beneath the train as it slows to 20 kph as we inched across trestles, looking straight over the side at the rocky bottom far below. You don’t feel confident out there in the middle. They are going that slowly for good reason.

There are more people on the train – so vacant we practically got on a first name basis with the conductor- than live in the protected zone portion of the journey, judging by the total lack of dwellings and just the occasional dirt road. A large bird, a hawk or perhaps even an owl, swoops across the tracks, looking for an unwary rabbit. The boars are too big to lift so they are safe from his talons.

Prints of pen and ink music related drawings

07/07/202426/11/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

I did these pen and ink drawings in the audience at Palau de la Musica in Valencia, Spain. The originals are done on very small paper in pen and ink. I use both hands, one for the ink pen and the other a brush with a water reservoir. I call it automatic drawing since I can not see what I am doing, between looking at the subject and the darkness of the hall. I can not work from photographs as photos are not permitted. Pricing information at the bottom.

Comments from my Facebook timeline:

“Bold”

“Powerful”

“Stunning”

“Beautiful”

Contrabass at Palau de la Musica, pen and ink, prints only

Conductor and Stage at Palau de la Musica

Contrabass Standing at Palau de la Musica

To Order

Contact me with the name of drawing using email info@garyjkirkpatrick.com, by phone (US) +1 570 832 4480 or Spain +34 658 744 302. $35/35 Euros for 8.5″ x 11″ (approx) / 21 x 30 cm $25 for 11.5″ x 17″ (approx) / 30 x 42 cm. Giclee prints ($60/60 euros for 12″ x 16″ / 30 x 40cm).

Prints of Valencian urban landscapes

07/07/202423/11/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Parque Cultural, Valencia, pen and ink on quality paper, A4, 8.25 x 11.5

Some of my favorite pen and ink drawings now available as prints.

Barat Plaza Sant Jaume (James), Valencia — Bar at Plaza Sant Jaume (James), Valencia

street arch valencia redo — El Carmen, the old town of Valencia, Spain

View from Our Place in Plaza Cisneros pen ink

xativa street scene — Xativa, a small town outside of Valencia

st john hospataller final — Igelsia de San Juan Hospital, Valencia (courtyard). There are paintings of the symbols of the Crusades inside the arch at the end of the courtyard.

Plaza Sant Jaume (James), el Carmen, Valencia

parque cultura archives — Parque Cultural I, Valencia Roman era columns and capitals

Parque Cultural II, Valencia Roman era columns and capitals

near palau de la musica — Parque Turia Near Palau de la Musica, Valencia

La Lonja Staircase-- La Lonja is one of very few non-religious gothic buildings — La Lonja Staircase– La Lonja is one of very few non-religious gothic buildings

Bellas Artes, the fine art museum in Valencia, Spain featuring the works of the impressionist and native son Joaquin Sorolla

Alcoi and La Sarga, Spain with photos of the cave paintings (rare)

07/07/202419/11/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

We rented a car Alcoi is a small town in the hills to the south of Valencia, Spain. It is best know for the rock paintings in La Sarga, just 10 kilometers away, that date to 10-6000 BCE. The Museo Archeologico there is small but very well done, especially the slide show from which these photos come. The slides show the paintings as you would see them if you walked in to the sites and then enhance them, which is what I show here, having taken these of the slide show. There is a paltry lack of these on the internet, so I am glad I took these:

Two Men Dance

07/07/202411/11/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Another in the series of the “Pareja Enamorado con Amor/Couple in Love with Love” series explores the world of same sex love and romance.

Two Men Dance, acrylics, 30 x 42 cm, 11.5 x 16.5 — Two Men Dance, A3/29. cm x 42 cm, 11.5″ x 16.5″

Love takes many forms. We should not oppress it but encourage its flowering and deepen the bonds that hold us together.

Michalet From Plaza Santa Catarina

07/07/202406/11/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Iglesia de Santa Catarina Tower From Plaza Santa Catarina

Sitting in Plaza Santa Catarina (study for the watercolor). This was the first time I joined a group of local water color artists who meet on Wednesdays. Valencia has several watercolor groups who do urban or rural landscapes.

Wines of Northern Italy

07/07/202419/10/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Wines of Piedmonte, in the north of Italy

I did not realize how complex the matter of Piedmont wine is when I became interested while in Turin (Torino in Italian). What intrigued me were the lightly bubbly wines we were getting at restaurants as a house wine. Red, not white, and not bubbly like champagne. I wanted to learn more about them so I could avoid them! Neither of us liked the ones we had and needed to know how to ask if they were going to serve one and identify them on the wine shelves. We bought a few by mistake.

I have found meager references to this style on the Internet but one thing that is helpful to know: they are referred to as ‘frizzante.’ Knowing that would have helped a lot.

A frizzante wine has between 1 and 2.5 times atmospheric pressure in the bottle, compared to 5-6 for a ‘spumante,’ such as the famous and not my favorite by any means Asti Spumante, from the town of Asti not too far from Torino. I have only found references to white frizzante wines- see below for their names. I have no idea what they are like, having never tried any of them.

But not too worry. The wines of this region are mostly red, and still (versus spumante or firzzante). There are many excellent ones.

Nebbiolo Grapes

Nebbiolo is considered the greatest wine from Piedmont. It’s a high tannin grape with red cherry- a very common flavor for red wine- tar – not so common and if too strong is a fault – and rose flavors with. There are some 13 DOC or DOCG (a higher certification) wines in the region made from this grape and they vary widely from one another in nose and tongue.

Barolo, made with Nebbiolo, is a DOCG southwest of Alba and not far from Torino. The only vineyards with this status are on the southern facing hills. The wine is a brick red with 13%+ alcohol. The wines are aged for at least 18 months in barrel and not for sale for at least 3 years. The Riserva is five. Best ones are 10 years old or more.

Barbaresco DOCG is located northeast of of Alba on the south-facing slopes. These wines are lighter than the Barolo products.

Other Nebbiolo Wines

Langhe Nebbiolo is a region the grows Barolo and Barbaresco without the classification status so they are less expensive. There are sub-regions:
Albugnano, Carema, Fara, Ghemme, Gattinara, Langhe Nebbiolo, Lessona, Nebbiolo d’Alba, Roero Rosso, Sizzano* *Nebbiolo is known as Spanna in these areas

Barbera grapes

Barbera is the most common red grape in Piedmont. They are dark and you should taste black cherry, anise, and herbs. It is less expensive than Barolo wines and goes with many foods. There are 2 DOCGs :Barbera d’Asti and Barbera del Monferrato Superiore. ‘Superiore’wines are aged for more time and have more alcohol.

Dolcetto grapes

Dolcetto are dark in color with flavors of blackberry, licorice and tar. The wines do not age well. They are tannic, which some producers are reducing, making the wine more fruty. There are 3 DOCGs Dogliani, Dolcetto di Ovada Superiore and Dolcetto di Diano d’Alba. ‘Superiore’wines test at 13%and are aged longer which reduces the tannic impact.

White Wines

Moscato Bianco has been around a very long time. Roses, mandarin orange, cotton candy touch the nose. Asti Spumante a very bubbly (‘Spumante’) sweet wine with only 9% alcohol. No wonder I do not like it!

Moscato d’Asti Is a Frizzante’ that’s very sweet with about 5% alcohol.

Cortese

‘Gavi’ wines from Cortese are dry with lemon-like flavors with good aacidity.

Arneis Roero DOCG, Arneis is medium-bodied with almond notes on the finish, and are grassy similar to Sauvignon Blanc white of Bordeaux.

Here’s a link to a site with a podcast:

https://www.dalluva.com/wine-journal/the-best-regional-wines-of-northern-italy/

Eric Asimov of “The Pour” in the New York Times:

Burlotto Langhe Freisa 2010, about $18: “The Piedmont region of northwestern Italy is best known for its nebbiolos and barberas, but oddball grapes like the freisa lurk there as well. Burlotto makes excellent Barolos, yet its 2010 Langhe freisa is fascinating. It’s reminiscent of nebbiolo with its combination of textural lightness, firm tannins and deep flavors, and if it is maybe more Naugahyde than leather, it’s perfect for burgers and sausages off the grill. It might even benefit from another year of aging.”

Produttori del Barbaresco Langhe Nebbiolo 2010, about $15: “Produttori del Barbaresco is one of the world’s finest wine co-ops, offering great values throughout its range. The Langhe nebbiolo is generally made from the grapes of young vines, or grapes that for one reason or another don’t go into the Barbarescos. This is a lighter gauge than a true Barbaresco but still offers all the classic leather, floral and red fruit flavors.”

These are very reasonable prices for New York City especially. I was just there and could not find anything decent from anywhere under $13 US, and that was a very good Zinfandel from California.

Panamanian Woman as Goth

07/07/202416/10/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Panamanian Woman as Goth

This is another version of my Panamanian friend. She was one of our Spanish teachers – they called them facilitators as they did not do formal teaching as much as immersion. Always friendly and in a great mood. It was only in the past year I learned she had trained as a model and was so good in front of a camera.

Panamania Woman as Goth, acrylics, 30 x 42 cm, 11.5 x 16.5" — Panamanian Woman as Goth, acrylics, A3, 29/7 cm x 42 m, 11.7 x 16.5″

[

Panamania Woman as Goth — Panamanian Woman as Goth, detail

Go, Figures

07/07/202415/10/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Go, Figures

Go, Figures started life as a regular modeling session but in acrylics, not the usual way to go. It evolved into this. The background is inspired by František Kupka’s Mme Kupka (1910). He was a Czech artist and she his wife. I saw the painting at the Nieu Gallery in NYC, at a special exhibit that included some of Klimt’s famous paintings.

Go Ffigures — Go Figures , acrylic on paper, 13″ x 20″, 33 x 38 cm

Panamanian Women in Multi Color

07/07/202408/10/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

This is another version of my Panamanian friend. The background is inspired by František Kupka’s Mme Kupka (1910). He was a Czech artist and she his wife. I saw the painting at the Nieu Gallery in NYC, at a special exhibit that included some of Klimt’s famous paintings.