Friday, May 22, 2009

Fresh from the Fridge

When I knew I would have a solo at the Focaccia Rustica in Coconut Grove, I also realised that this would not be the place to hang nudes. It is after all a family restaurant. And this implied that I had to come up with a new body of work. To be honest, I went blank at first. For days I stared at two empty canvases and all that came to mind were nudes.

One afternoon my partner asked me why I didn't start painting and I replied: " Paint what? I have no other subject on my mind than nudes."

He suggested to go out and look around the house, to see if anything would inspire me. But I am not a plein air artist - ok, I never tried it and the large amount of hungry, bloodsucking mosquitoes outside doesn't make it very inviting for me to try a landscape out there.


Then he said to me: "Why don't you look in the kitchen, maybe there is something in there that will give you ideas."

And so I did, not that I am normally so obedient, but I was blank and he tried to help me. I opened the fridge... nothing yet, no celestial flash of inspiration. Then I opened the vegetable drawer in the fridge and I saw a variety of fruits and vegetables, each with their own colours and shapes... and there it was... my source of inspiration: Fresh from the Fridge.


I know it will be a great show, ....if I can save my models from being eaten.

Friday, May 1, 2009

A new painting: Summer


Last week I finished this oil painting. Actually the female nude is done in oils and the background is mostly done in acrylics.
It is not a massive painting, not by the subject and certainly not by size (10" x 10" - 25 cm x 25 cm).
Alas this photo does not show how beautifully the golden background and all the other colours highlight the female nude.
So here it is... a confession! I am not good at taking great shots of my own paintings and it frustrates me. Ok, my little digital camera - which is older than 5 years - might be partly to blame, but I know somebody who takes wonderful shots no matter what camera is in his hands.
I am able to take some wonderful shots of other subjects, just not of my paintings.
And that is one of the reasons why I keep my "focus" on painting!