Sunday, January 27, 2013

Guatemala, A Little Larger

I received a couple of requests to print these larger. So here they are.

Dockside at the Posada

We spend a week near Santiago, at a posada at the edge of Lake Atitlan. This was a quick painting trying to show the mist on the mountains on the distance. It was a bit of a struggle, but in the end I was pleased. This was our view while sipping a Moza, the local dark beer.
Dockside Evening

Same viewpoint as above, only looking a bit to the left.
The Church of Santiago Atitlan

This painting was a bit of a struggle. Architectural subjects sometimes slow me down. But the most striking part of this was I was often surrounded by school children. It was the first day of the semester, and about halfway through school must have left out. Cultural boundaries are tighter there, and some times I could hardly move my brush because of the crush. I was kind of crunchy by the end, but now I look at the scene and smile.
The Fountain at Quinta de las Flores

This was the first painting I did, while a bit jet lagged. Our hotel in Antigua, the Quinta de las Flores had a wonderful garden. Though a bit foggy-headed, I couldn't resist the fountain
Lavanderia 1

A couple of hundred yards from our posada in Santiago was the village lavanderia. The following three paintings were all from the same area. I didn't include the women washing (although if you look above those white figures are women washing clothes) because it seemed a bit invasive. But the setting was quite pleasant and a peaceful place to paint. After three days, even some of the kids knew me.
Lavanderia 2

Lavanderia 3

Poolside at the Quinta

This was the final painting, again from the Quinta de las Flores. Overall, a great trip.

Outside the Quinta

This was just outside of the Quinta in Antigua. I lasted about fifteen minutes out there. There was so much traffic, including buses spewing diesel fumes, that I had to finish it inside. As a result I forgot to add some windows on the church, but overall it gave the feeling of the street.

12 comments:

  1. Great pictures, next time I want to paint these landscapes with you, beautiful.

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  2. They look wonderful, Michael, the light is so different to here in the UK, but similar to the Mediterranean area. It allows you to use the shadows so well (being a mono-man it's all about shadows with me). I love the water and the reflections.

    Looks like you had an amazing time.

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  3. Thanks Sergio, and John. I'm with you, John, about the shadows. I sometimes tell students that it's all in the shadows. I'm a native Californian, and the light here is similar to the Mediterranean, so you're right about that.

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  4. All your landscapes are such an inspiration! Thank you, Michael.

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  5. Oh I do love your artwork , so inspiring!

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  7. These are all soo beautiful Michael. Thank you for posting them. The design of the Church of Santiago painting is gorgeous, and you absolutely nailed that green water in Lavanderia 3.

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  8. Thanks Jan. As a matter of fact, the large foreground cross was almost right in front of the church. I moved it way to the right to improve the composition (as well as to create an unimpeded view of the main subject).

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  9. These are all so amazing! I work mostly with pastels but I enjoy seeing watercolor paintings so much! Your work is fantastic!
    Congratulations.

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