Strawberries forever

Strawberries, 10"x10" (25.4 x 25.4 cm), oil on linen. 2011

As a rule, I don't release paintings for sale before they are fully dry and cured, which, for oil paintings, may take anywhere from six months to a full year.  Over the same time, the paintings go through several rounds of "internal reviews" – as they evolve, in my mind, from immediate impressions to memories, and I can look at them "from the outside" and see if the paintings work. The painting's process of curing and my process of gradual detachment and evaluation feel to me like almost the same process, two banks of the same river.

Since so many of my paintings derive from seasonal impressions, they may seem out of tune with the time when released. Like this one, for example, painted during the last year's strawberry season and released now, as we are still waiting for the next one. But then, the expectation of a strawberry season, intermixed and enriched with memories of all the previous ones, might be a better time for a painting like this.

After all, although this still life has been painted from life, with real strawberries overflowing both the bowl and the canvas in direct summer sunlight, it also carries the childhood memories, when strawberry seasons marked the beginnings of eternal summers ahead (aren't the summers always eternal when we are children?), and strawberries tasted and smelled of sunshine and infinite vacation.

April Studio News

First nine sonnet paintings together

April was full of work, and play, and events. As before, most of my studio time – as well as my thoughts – were devoted to my "Sonnets in colour", which will probably be the case for the next three years. I dedicate a full week to each sonnet: playing and replaying it my mind, and trying to see and feel its "translation" into painting. This series proves to be an even more remarkable adventure than I expected, and it surprises me at every turn.

As planned, I began sharing the sonnet paintings in a new blog on my website, "Shakespeare in colour". Please subscribe to this blog if you would like to follow this series.

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Tomales Bay: sunset effects, 18"x24", oil on linen. 2012

In mid-April, we spent a weekend on Tomales Bay, in a rented cottage which afforded me a rare opportunity to paint en plein air without leaving the terrace. The surroundings of Tomales Bay are a very serene place, full of fleeting and subtle light effects.

I completed three smaller studies right there, and brought two larger ones for further work in the studio. This is one of them, after some studio work.

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I participated for the first time in Google+ "Virtual Photo Walk" initiative, intended to share our experiences with people who are home-bound for one or another reason with the help of Google+ "Hangouts". For me, it was a "painting hangout": beginning and completing a 60-minutes still life painting, with webcam trained both on the canvas and the set up. This is a rough phone photo of this 14"x11" painting right after the hangout.

Another first was Philip Hartigan's interview with me, published on his "Praeterita" blog as a part of his "Six of the best" series.

And last but not least, we started preparing for my first open studio on June 9th, 2012. There is lots to be done yet, but there is no way back. Please come if you are in the area!