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Danish Artist Sif Nielsen Parks Her Longboat by the Gallinero for Three Weeks
What to do while your partner is doing a month-long professional navegation course in Gibraltar?
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“I didn’t feel at home on the Costa del Sol so after a week I googled ‘printmaking courses in Spain,'” says Sif, “and up popped Maureen.” (Why “Sif?” Because in Norse mythology Sif was the wife of Thor.)
Sif, studied architecture but never practiced. “I just wanted to be an artist,” she says apologetically. She currently lives on an island in the Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland, Sif spent most of her time with us drawing and exploring. After her first two weeks she decided she would like to stay a bit longer. During that time she helped me print up some plates for a commission. We sometimes went entire days without seeing her. The Spanish call this reflexive state “ejercicios espirituales,” “spiritual exercises.”
One day Sif said to Mike, “Would you mind if I used some of your firewood to make a sculpture?” We didn’t know what to expect. You can see the delightful result in the photograph above.
“This has been a unique experience, “said Sif as she was leaving. “Although I’ve done lots of printmaking courses, there’s still so much I need to learn about printmaking and Maureen is the one who can teach me. And I love the Gallinero. I’ll be back.”
Mila Galán — Looking at the Past
Mila Galán, a teacher from Badajoz in Spain’s western region of Extremadura who works in three languages (Spanish, English and French) left yesterday after a week’s solarplate and liquid metal workshop in my studio. What was refreshing about working with Mila was that she arrived with a clearly conceived project. She wanted to capture in prints some aspects of her own early life and that of her family. She based her work on a collection of black and white and sepia photographs from her family album, but not in the usual “photocopy the photograph” solarplate mode. Mila rendered her photographic memories in freehand drawings on acetates, which we then burned onto solar plates. “I wanted to do homage to my grandparents, including some text from my grandfather’s letters to my grandmother,” says Mila. “And I wanted to acknowledge the things I’ve learned from my father and my mother. Doing so has given me a tremendous feeling of fulfillment.”
The last photograph in this brief album shows some of Mila’s results. I like very much what she achieved.
Come back and see us when you can, Mila.
Almond Blossoms for Nevine
Thanks, Nevine, for liking the glistening eucalyptus trees from the last post. Here’s a panorama of almond blossoms from the opposite side of our valley, taken from the terrace of the Gallinero at 9:00 a.m. this morning. I hope it inspires you.
Click on the image to see it enlarged.
Morning after Rain, Everything Glistens
Granada, February 6, 2014–Even the eucalyptus trees on the opposite side of our valley. This photo is taken from the terrace.
Print Room Renovation: Welcome to My New Micro Gallery
When our son got married and left home we inherited his bedroom, a place with a separate entrance at the west end of the house. For years we used it as an overflow area and called it “the Print Room,” because I stored some prints there. Mainly it was home to my paper cutter. (That black artifact on a wooden stand behind my right elbow in the photo is a cast-iron guillotine built around the end of the 19th century in Leipzig, Germany. It still cuts paper, cardboard and solar plates beautifully.) With time, however, the roof began to leak and the Print Room became a cold, damp, unpleasant place.
After last Christmas we finally got around to fixing it up and I confess I’m delighted with the results. The idea was to clear out alll the junk, put on a new roof on it and convert it into a mini gallery for showing some of my prints and paintings. We just finished hanging the work a couple of days ago and I think it looks great.
A Drugstore Like You Never Dreamed–In Granada, of Course
All pharmacies should have cherubs and angels hovering overhead! This one on Granada’s Calle Reyes Católicos sets the pace.
Autumn in Granada–Make Prints, Pick Your Breakfast from the Vine
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Autumn is a wonderful time to work in Granada. The summer heat has passed, the nights are cooler, the occasional rain has refreshed the atmosphere, and the days are delicious.
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I took the summer off this year, except for doing a bit of my own work, a few new liquid metal prints of the Alhambra and some editioning. I love the liquid metal technique for a dealing with a subject that has been done to death. The epoxy medium dries quite quickly so you have to work fast and working in gunk on a plate is necessarily loose, so the results always look fresh and original.
I’ve got another Australian artist coming to work one on one for a month–the last half of September and the first half of October–but after that I’m free to work with other artists. And my Gallinero residence is available from October 15. We’ve just painted the interior (with old-fashioned Spanish-style live whitewash, which not only gleams white but also sanitizes and imparts a squeaky-clean aroma to the place.)
The grapes on the arbor over the Gallinero terrace are ripening, so guests staying there can just reach out through the louvered doors and pick their breakfast. It’s a delightful experience, especially if you don’t have grapevines over your breakfast table at home.
Looking forward to seeing you and making some prints together!
2013 Summer Sale of My Printmaking Master Classes Videos
Take Advantage of Friendly Prices Now to Complete Your Collection of My Printmaking Learning Videos–Offer good till August 26, 2013
I’ve met a few printmakers lately who didn’t even know I had made a series of printmaking learning videos. I was shocked. So I decided to offer a big discount and announce them on all the printmaking sites. You can now download any and all of the videos at a discount of 40%. So you can now buy a single video, normally $19.95, for $11.97. And all six of them are just $71.82, down from $119.70.
I had a lot of fun making these videos with video producer, Juan Carlos Romera, and they have received a warm reception from the printmakers who have downloaded them thus far.
To take advantage of the offer you’ll need this discount code: 486Q9512. When you reach the payment stage of the order process on my Printmaking Master Classes site, introduce this code when prompted. And don’t forget, once your order is processed I’ll send you the secret links that will permit you to see your videos on YouTube from any internet connection, anywhere.
I’d love to hear your comments after you use my videos. Were they clear, helpful, or even inspiring?
“That’s Inked Up” Features El Gallinero
We just ran across this little feature on El Gallinero published last year on That’s Inked Up, a wide-ranging, thoughtful and attractive blog for printmakers published by Chicago-based Artist,Curator,Educator,Writer, Teresa J. Parker. This is her website: http://www.teresajparker.com/
And this is the Gallinero article on That’s Inked Up. Thanks so much, Teresa.
This Morning in the Garden
It’s one of those mistish mornings when the sun isn’t sure whether it’s going to shine or retire, with that shifty light that most people consider bad for making photographs. Our cold rainy spring has started to ease up and things in the garden have begun to sprout. Mike, who has one of those whatever-shall-I-do-this-morning mornings, picked up a camera and headed into the bush. This is what he came up with. Read more…
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"El Gallinero"--An Artists' & Writers' Refuge in Granada 