One day I was walking down a side street and this group of girlscouts was coming toward me. I begged them to stop for a photo... and I took three. I am always attracted visually to groups in uniform. Isn't the color of their shirts great?
Mexican Girlscouts Get Faced
Thanks everyone who checks my blog. I've got nine 30X40" panels going at the moment -- mostly figures -- and I'm anxious to share something finished, but all week I've been working on my technique for faces... and whenever I'm not satisfied, I start over. It's been a tough week, but I think I'm finally getting somewhere. I'm happy with the two girls on the left...and I've finished 3 others, so only 7 more scouts to go.
There are four scouts per panel, so it's my largest painting to date.
Huachinango
Back in Morelia to stay for awhile and PAINT! I'm working large on cardboard with acrylics. This painting is 24X30" It's my favorite fish dish, huachinango al mojo de ajo (red snapper fried with garlic).
The Tesoro, Ixtapa
The pool at the Tesoro Hotel at Ixtapa is a lively place hosting loads of Mexican families and lots of Canadians. What a fun painting challenge... I wish I could've stayed a week to paint all the scenes at the pool and on the beach. It's a bit of a challenge using oils in this environment, but totally worth the effort! (12X18)
(10X4")
Silla plastica ubicua
Finally got out to do some plein air painting with my friend Mimi Weisbord who always finds the best artist houses to rent in Patzcuaro. This one is part of a compound with an enormous central garden. Roaming through the garden are two white cats. And there are, of course, plastic white chairs. If there's a family who doesn't own at least a couple of these, there's another family who has several extra. The cat and I both find them quite comfortable. (20X25 cm., Oil)
After lunch I painted this tiny (5X7) oil because I had to capture the blue wall inside the neighbor's house.
Gaspacho Stand
In Morelia there is a special concoction called Gaspacho that is a mixture of chopped pineapple, mango, papaya, watermellon, jicama, and some shredded cheese. It's put in a tall glass and orange juice is squeezed over it. Then chili is sprinkled on it -- your choice pica or no pica (hot or not hot). Of course you can choose no chili at all (but nobody does that). It's delicious.
This is a typical Gaspacho stand. There are many in the bosque/park.
Acrylic on paper.
Alejandro the Bird Man
This is an old neighbor who used to sell chicken on the sidewalk in front of his house. He'd cut it up any way you wanted and pound it into fillets for frying if requested. His other business was the song bird trade. I was sad when I realized that he'd moved out of the neighborhood, but glad that I'm made this painting. Acrylic on canvas.
Estudiantes
In a photograph of children in the spring parade, I noticed this group of student observers standing in the background . They were more interesting than the paraders and, of course, I loved their red blazers.
Acrylic on canvas.
Roofscape Morelia
This is the view east from my rooftop -- typical Mexican city rooftop jumble. It's wonderful up there in the evenings. Oil on masonite, 8X10.
Pichi Afternoon
This is one of my favorite paintings because I love working on cardboard. It's afternoon at Pichilinguillo (a small/rustic beach on the Michoacan coast). Those are kids fishing out on a rock in the center. The fishermen are shooting the breeze, and the señorita in the foreground is taking it all in. Acrylic, 12X16.
Domingo en el Bosque
This is a little plein aire painting done over the weekend. I like the painterliness of it. There's a lot of action in the park, particularly on Sundays. That's the little amusement area in the background. The skateboard park is in the foreground. Oil on masonite board. 8x10. A similar painting will be in the Small Works Invitational at the Prince Street Gallery, NYC, June 17-July 5th.
Templo Carmen
I had a wonderful time painting this plein air piece in the little park next to Casa de Cultura in Morelia's centro. So many people sat next to me on the bench to watch and/or chat. One man left to go home & get a book he'd written, brought it back and gave it to me inscribed. Mexicans are so supportive of artists in general and this is such a beautiful city that I'm a fool not to paint outside every day I'm here. Oil on canvas, 8X10.
The painting will be in the Small Works Invitational Show at the Prince Street Gallery, NYC, June 17-July 5.
Pichilinguillo at Semana Santa
My daughter says this is my best painting. But I think that's because I told her she's one of the swimmers. It's a plein air of Pichilinguillo, a remote beach midway along the Michoacan coast that was written about in AIM - Adventures in Mexico Newsletter a couple of years ago. Semana Santa is the two week Easter break in Mexico where everyone tries to get to the beach for a few days. Oil on canvas, 10X14.
Painting a tinaco
My friend Bunny bought this house in centro Morelia two years ago and has been making tons of improvements ever since. One thing that bugged her was the water tank (tinaco) in her main patio. So she had me do a trompe l'oile treatment on it and now it blends in quite well. I think if you click on the images, they enlarge.
Chile Negra
This painting gave me the opportunity to try something I've been thinking about for awhile -- painting a frame on the canvas and using it to reiterate the theme of the painting -- in this case, chili negras. In the background are the mountains of Morelia. I wonder if anyone will want a painting of an older woman cleaning a chile. To me she is full of grace -- plus Mexican quisine would not be complete without chile negra. (approx. 20X24)
Oil on canvas.
Carneceria, San Juan Market
There are loads of butchers in San Juan market. That's chorizo hanging on the right. Yum. Oil on canvas. approx 10X12.
Selling Ollas
Ollas are earthenware pots for cooking beans. They are glazed on the inside, plain on the outside. Light and porous, they hold heat fabulously. 24X36. Acrylic on canvas covered plywood.
Cathedral, Morelia
This is a small plein aire oil painting of the main cathedral in Morelia. Boxed ficus trees are in the foreground, underplanted with poinsettas from Christmas. This painting has been chosen for a show of small paintings at the Prince Street Gallery, NYC this June. Oil on masonite. 8X10.
Waiting to Dance
These kids, dressed in traditional garb, are waiting to do a folkdance for their parents -- always a good opportunity to tease the person next to you. 20X24, acrylic on canvas.
Que le damos?
This is the San Juan market of Morelia. It's all abundance and color. "Que le damos?" What can we get you? 20X24. Acrylic on canvas. SOLD
Preparing Nopales
This woman is preparing nopales -- she's cleaning the spines off a prickly pear cactus paddle, something women in the San Juan market are constantly doing. One buys nopales already striped of thorns and cut into strips. They taste a little like slimy, tart greenbeans, but even better. I was pleased with the simplicity of this painting -- simple task, simple painting. It's part of a series of paintings about our local market. 18X24. Acrylic on canvas. SOLD
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