A half baked version of the place where I am staying.

I don’t usually post stuff that I am not proud of….why bother? And the last thing that someone wants to hear is an artist whining about how they re are not happy with a piece they are posting WHILE ON VACATION. But I figure the journey is as important as the destination, and that is an integral part of what this blog is about, so here goes:

The above image is half-baked. I wasn’t happy with the direction, and started moving it in another. I have not written it off yet, but Frustration is an integral part of doing art. If you are never frustrated, then maybe you need to get out of your comfort zone. I spend most of the the time hating what I am doing, and by the end I usually manage to beat it into some semblance of likeability. Part of it is reconciling the “Expectation Gap”: The difference between what you expect or desire a painting to be/look like, and what it actually is. When you start from what the painting “wants” to be, rather than your preconception of it then something can start to happen.

The expectation gap that I am dealing with is that the view I am painting is sublimely beautiful. Arlette’s cousin Gabi and her husband Ron have graciously opened their cottage up to us for almost two weeks. The property is 15 minutes outside Sao Luis in Southern Portugal. Rolling hills of grass and cork trees. Sub tropical fruit and palm trees dot the property. The light is special here. Very clear. I am painting from their porch that looks over the rolling fields with clouds marching shadows over them. The light shifts as darks and lights glide over the landscape. The bright flowers of many varieties and the vivid foliage of orange and lemon trees give way to the dusty greens of cork and olive trees. The rustic buildings mark time. Character exudes.

Sometimes when I draw a model that is particualry stunning my first few drawings suck. That is what is happening here.

Like I said, I haven’t written the painting off. I will still give it another few hours. And then maybe a few more if all goes well. But I think I want to approach that same view from another angle: Do a drawing first. Nail the composition, and abandon the alla Prima technique (painting wet on wet). There is something I want to capture that this painting will not be able to. It will take a more methodical approach.

It is slower in this part of Portugal. Mostly rural farmers here. Tourists like me are few and far between. I can’t keep up with the pace of drinking.

Today I pick up Arlette and Giacomo at the airport! We will spend the night in Lisbon, which I hear is a fantastic town. Can’t wait to check it out. And I’m so psyched to have Giacomo experience Europe for the first time.

Sao Luis, Portugal