Road back in Time

The Road to Mandrakia, 24x36, oil on linen SOLD

I have been working on 5 larger paintings simultaneously these past several months, and possible as long as a year! Finally, one of them I am considering done. It has been a long haul. I am going to justify the length of time it has taken me because it isn't that I am a slow painter. The weather here has alternated between gray and rainy and very hot and sunny. Since I prefer to paint without artificial light in my studio, the gray days make it hard to do anything but start a new painting. The hot days drain me, as my studio is on the second floor and I do not have A/C. I do have a ceiling fan, and for the most part that does the job. Yet when it is close to 100 outside, that isn't enough. The difference is temperature when it goes from 60 and rainy to almost a 100 with no segue or steps in raise or lowering in temperature does something to the body, or at least it does to mine. Now that I have justified myself to myself, saying I am not lazy (well maybe just a bit) I will get on with this painting and why I wanted to paint it.

Five years ago I was invited to join my sister-in-law on the island of Milos in the Aegean Sea. This is the road to one of the many little spits of land that jut out around the island. Some have houses, some do not. This particular cove is famous for its Syrmata, or boat garages, which I tried not to highlight, as this painting/ story is not about them. For me it was about the road to the sea. Mandrakia is a little village down on the spit of land, even having its own little church. There is also a Taverna...naturally! The water there is so amazing. Changing colors while you watch. Each little cove or inlet has a unique feel to the water and the beach. I had never experienced anything like it before. In the intervening five years it has experienced much growth as it has been 'discovered' - I have been told there are now more houses in this view than when I was there and took this photograph.

I really got into the rhythms and pattern of the surrounding landscape while doing this painting. The land goes up and down and winds around. I hope you can follow the road that winds to the right and then again to the right by the little memorial then finally to the left and Mandrakia. It is a place special to my heart. I was there in April, and hope to go back this October if all goes accordingly. 

Marbled Water

Marbled Water, 30x30, oil on linen, available

Last spring I was in Greece for a few weeks, staying mostly on a small, non-touristy island. Yes, there are a few still in existence. This was our first day on the island and we were checking out various coves and beaches to see what we liked for possible return visits. The beach here was tiny and there were locals living (illegal, I believe) in a few of the syrmata's (boat garages) so it wasn't a place we returned to after this initial visit. But sitting on the natural stone 'walkway' away from the beach and the locals was amazingly tranquil and rejuvenating for the soul. One of us even went swimming. I preferred to sit with my feet in the water being nibbled by small fish, until the jellyfish arrived. I was mesmerized by the patterns made in the water. I had never experienced anything like it before. As the light shifted so did the patterns and reflections. I took a series of photos as the patterns evolved until this marbled effect showed up. It was the last photo I shot in the series and my favorite. Suffice it to say, whenever near water I studied it and was continually enchanted by the way it was a living entity ever changing before my eyes. I hope to do more water scenes I encountered to show how distinct the different areas of the island were and how the light impacted the designs in the water. I have been to  many beaches around the world and have never seen anything like what I saw in the Aegean.
Enjoy!
If you have a better idea for a title, I am always open to suggestions. I lack creativity in naming paintings...

Syrmata or Greek Island Boat Garages

Boat Garages, oil on linen panel, 12x12

Here is the first painting completed from my recent trip to the Greek island of Milos. I painted it small to see if I might want to paint it larger at some point. This is in the little village of Mandrakia, which if you Google 'Greek boat garages' most of the images that come up are from this particular bay. Mandrakia is a collection of mostly vacation homes but it does boast its own little chapel and a part time/quasi legal Taverna during the summer.  I picked this particular boat garage to highlight because the 'owner' is one of the local fishermen whom my friend knows. Stellios is one of the few year round residents of Mandrakia. He takes it upon himself to paint all the steps down to the water every year. His is the black boat, painted black after the loss of his wife. His 'garage' is open as he was working on someone else's boat on this particular day.

We were fortunate to have coffee with one of the other boat garage owners from whose garage I took this photo. Yannis has more of a man cave thing going on although his boat is berthed inside as well. He fixed us fresh coffee in his tiny kitchen and brought it out to his little patio. I took this still life that was set up where we enjoyed our first afternoon on Milos.

These boat garages are grandfathered in, as technically you cannot own water front property on the island. So people like me are free to wander around since it is considered public property. No new garages are legal to build.

This is the long view from where I was staying and it looks right down onto this little cove. At the end of the gully there is a small beach, which when we were there we had to ourselves.