Art
Big Band Concert – pen and ink drawings
These were done in the audience at Palau de la Musica, Big Band Concert May 2017
Couple on Sofa
Couple On Sofa
Another in the Enamorado Con Amor/In Love with Love series. Part of love is intimacy, but of course not all intimacy denotes love. Here it does, and the couple sparkles in the play of light and shadow and smoke in a turn of century setting based on a scene in Downton Abbey.
At the Cafe
Palma is a major tourist destination for beach goers in the millions. Germans, Russians, even the Spanish come here to luxuriate in the the beach resorts that line vast sections of the island’s coast. But for a more serious tourist there is art, architecture and history, plus a neat one hour train to Sóller, a small, charming and tourist-overrun village in the mountains, in vintage wooden cars. There are galleries for the upscale buyer and for Miró fans there’s his museum and studio on high with fine views of the coast. (continued below the paintings)
After the the Iberians came the Phoenicians and Greeks. The island was ruled from Rome no later than 123 BCE. Then the Arabs arrived, whose fleet moored in the harbor and convinced the islanders to submit to Islamic rule while allowing residents to maintain their religious preferences. Piracy was a significant source of wealth in the Islamic era, most likely largely due to the strategic location of the island. The city was reconquered in 1229 by Jaume (James) I of Aragon. His son built Bellver Castle and started the Cathedral. In 1391 anti-Jewish killings were widespread. Those who did not leave the island and survived were forced to convert. Two gangs ruled the island in the 17th century, when piracy was again widespread, while the Jews suffered tremendously thanks to that lovely chapter of Spanish history, the Inquisition.
The Cathedral, called La Seu, was started in the 13th but not finished until the early 17th century. It is a Gothic structure and by no means is its exterior among the most attractive of that style.
The view of the Seu was from the roof of our hotel in the old center.
Couple Snuggling in Bed
Another in the Enamorado Con Amor/In Love with Love series. Part of love is intimacy, but of course not all intimacy denotes love. Here it does, and the couple sparkles in the play of light and shadow.
The pigments used in pastels are the same as those used to produce all colored art media, including oil paints. The binder has a neutral hue and low intensity.
Pastel is challenging because it is mixed and blended on the paper or other surface. Colors cannot be tested on a palette although with the new powder pastels you can. This work was done with sticks. Changes are not easy to make, as you can not just paint over things.
In use since the Renaissance, they were very popular in the 18th century. My favorite pastel painter is Renoir.
No Solo Mia
No Solo Mia — Not Just Mia.
Mia is our friends’ Chihuahua , on our model’s lap, pen ink, A3, 8.25 x 11.7″
More drawings from my little notebook
I always carry a small notebook with me. If I am sitting around and see something or someone interesting, I give it a go. Here are some recent ones.
These miniatures are just $50 each. Prints too.
Zambia: Watercolors from the bush
We visited the village where our nephew Travis worked as a Peace Corps volunteer. It was a fabulous visit despite the primitive conditions- the people were just so loving and friendly. These are the only ones I still have and I am offering them for the next week at special prices. See blog on Zambia for further accounts of this special journey.