WHEN YOU KNOW WHAT YOUR LOOKING FOR

Its all there. This realisation happened as soon as I started this drawing for the new painting. I don’t know why this should be such a revelation to me. I think Mexico has accelerated my progress and given me a few gifts in terms of compositions and opportunities that I hadn’t seen in the UK, though I am sure they are there. I hope it will be blindingly obvious to me when I return. There is hardly any information in this photo, it is mostly in silhouette but I think this is the key to my way forward. I have got to invent far more.

A distant headland, Mexico. Day 1

WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE?

I have said in the recent past that I want to make paintings that are unfamiliar to me, paintings that I may not understand, but paintings that are compelling and cannot be easily dismissed. This fulfils all of those objectives. Where I go from here I don’t know but the intention is to follow this course and the next painting gives me another opportunity to see where this is all heading.

A line of clouds, Mexico

I COULD NOT HELP MYSELF

This scene is so extraordinary I have taken the executive decision to produce the photo as evidence. The mountains have had a little doctoring in photoshop but the clouds are untouched.

A line of clouds, only in Mexico!

NO CIGAR

Its resting on the easel, ready to be lit. More repainting of the sky and clouds and only one cloud left that is putting up resistance, the central one. It has been improved upon but is not quite there yet. It has the aspect of a seated figure with twisting head. It reminds me of some Michelangelo figures but mine is a baby made of jelly. I am often rephotographing these paintings, I can only get good photos at night so some versions of this painting are a bit poor, this is the best photo so far.

A line of clouds, Mexico. Day 7

ALMOST THERE

I thought I would finish this picture today. Painting these clouds using the ‘right level’ of comedy balanced with a serious technical application has taken longer than expected. You would think that painting small figures would not take long but size doesn’t seem to enter into the equation. Anyone who says painting small pictures shows no ambition should give it a try. I believe this holds true whether you are painting abstract or figurative pictures. This painting is almost finished, it has really got me thinking about my approach going forward.

A line of clouds, Mexico. Day 6

THE HAND IS STAYING

Its not really meant to be a hand, its my simplified version of a palm tree that was already there. Running along the bottom of the picture are the tops of a variety of trees, the rest are not so ambiguous. Of all the issues of painting in an apartment by a bright ocean getting good photos of these paintings is proving to be the most tricky. As is normally the case the painting is better in reality. May do a little more with the foreground but the last part is the clouds.

A line of clouds, Mexico. Day 5

IF IN DOUBT, PAINT

The day was slipping away from me and I was bored. It takes 5 minutes to put together my pop up studio so the plan was, set up and then paint for an hour. Three hours later and some very good progress, the above is always sound advice. This painting is lending some very interesting results, both in terms of imagery and technique. Not sure I would describe it as a breakthrough painting but it has pushed my work into new territory. If my only priority was painting I don’t think I would return to the UK!

A line of clouds, Mexico. Day 4

IF YOU DON'T LIKE BLUE SKIES

You could have a problem painting here, because thats what you get everyday for 3-4 months during the winter dry season. So for me, I have to invent my own, and this always leads to unexpected results, as with this painting. Only a short session today, going to the mythical Zihuatenejo, the fishing town where Tim Robbins was escaping from jail to meet up with Morgan Freeman in the Shawshank Redemption. A bit of local culture with a music festival.

A line of clouds, Mexico. Day 3

A TRANSFORMATIVE EXPERIENCE

Now I know why so many artists migrated to the south of France in the 20th century. I hadn’t appreciated that such a dramatic cultural and climatic shift would also have such an impact on my painting. Watching whales jumping out to sea when having breakfast, iguanas walking around whilst having lunch, being drenched in bright sunlight and dazzling colour, these are all things that can’t be found in the north east of England, especially in January. This painting is following that mad Mexican vibe and my colour is migrating towards Raoul Dufy mediterranean.

A line of clouds, Mexico. Day 2

STRANGE HAPPENINGS

Reading left to right, a flexing bicep, a large naked figure seen from behind, a flying snowman, a large unidentified cloud, R2D2 and a poodle. All of these characters have been cast as they appeared. They were sitting on a line as if drawn by a ruler. There is a mountain range that runs down the pacific coast of Mexico and even under a clear blue sky there is normally a line of clouds gathered at the top. We were on our way to lunch when I saw this extraordinary sight, so I rushed back to get my camera.

A line of clouds, Mexico. Day 1

WHO NEEDS A STUDIO?

Probably the most important lesson of this first artistic exploration into Mexico is firstly not to be in the UK during these dark and cold months, December - March. As with all simple creatures, I respond well to bright lights and warmth. So much so, that agreements have already been made that we need to evacuate, post haste, the UK, around mid November 2025. I think Mexico gives me a very positive environment and I will certainly discover new elements to painting, just from being here. This painting is finished.

Man and maguey

ST GEORGE AND THE DRAGON

The oddness of this scene, dominated by the maguey, reminds me of the exquisite little painting by Uccello in the Musee Jacquemart-Andre in Paris. He using the dragon, does that make me the damsel in distress?. I have been able to navigate this rather complicated painting quite well. My conclusion about my little studio in Mexico is that it does not force any compromises on me that diminishes what or how I paint. I could even continue painting the existing size paintings that I was doing in the UK. Very happy with this painting, being the first one ever in Mexico.

Man and maguey. Day 5

STRANGE CREATURES IN A STRANGE LAND

I feel right at home here, in fact the landscape and myths seem more aligned to my odd approach to image making and surrealistic bent than does the UK. When viewing paintings online they always lose something in the process. This appears to be a watercolour, in reality it has much more substance and richness. I have cut away half of the maguey, its left side this gives it an unnatural appearance as if it were a crab about to scurry off. I like the effect and will not add any more limbs to it.

Man and maguey. Day 4

PRETENTIOUS AIMS

I am taking the artist poet route into Mexico rather than the iphone wielding tourist. This sounds incredibly pretentious and that is exactly how I want it to sound. The longer I stay here the more I understand what kind of paintings I want to make. My feeling is it will be the old mystical Mexico, especially around its landscape. This is the kind of Mexico that is even unfamiliar to me because I have not been looking at it as a painter until now. I am less certain of how to make these paintings but it is in the struggle and invention that interesting things emerge.

Man and maguey. Day 3

MEXICO IS

open for business. I had many reservations about how successful this painting project could be. Firstly going from a big permanent studio separate from the house back in the UK to finding a couple of square metres of space in our apartment in Mexico, shared with my hyper sensitive to smell wife. Well, the heat, sun and food have proved adequate distractions for her. Other potential issues were painting half sized pictures and wondering if all the distractions of a Mexican ocean side resort may have on my motivation. Well, I am happy to report, its business as usual for me, so the next 10 weeks will be interesting. Good start for this painting.

Man and maguey. Day 2

MAN AND MAGUEY

A man eating cactus?, if I stood still long enough I am sure it would absorb me. As soon as I saw this I knew if I stood in its jaws it would make for a good painting. This is in the neighbourhood of my parents in law, just outside Mexico City, where we stayed for a few days. Now we are on the west coast of Mexico grilling under a relentless and unforgiving sun. I have just set up my ‘studio’ in our apartment, bought my painting supplies and have thrown myself into this rather complicated and very Mexican scene. I have not exaggerated the scale of the plants, they are monsters, and I am sure they are being watered by some of the neighbours as they are rampant and growing into the road!

Man and maguey. Day 1

PUT DOWN YOUR BRUSHES

and step away from your easel. That’s it, time has run out, even if I get up at 4am tomorrow morning in a desperate attempt to finish. I fly to Mexico tomorrow and the last thing to pack is the paints and brushes. I have reached my goal, making the painting interesting enough so when I return at the end of March I will want to finish it. I have some paintings for Mexico in mind, one that stands out is a night time view of a big bay with a fishing town. Lots of sparkling lights, I hope it works, I have always tried to photograph it, unsuccessfully.

The big house. Day 6

NO SIGN OF THE FINISH LINE

This is one of those pictures that doesn’t give itself up easily. I have been bashing it about today with only a notion of what I want out of it. I was chasing a more fluid and tonal painting, for some reason I had Roualt in mind. It has moved in that direction and it is better but I am not sure if I have arrived at where I want to be. I suspect not, time is running out.

The big house. Day 5

ODD JOBS

Changing hinges on a door when you have got a painting to finish and your off to Mexico for 3 months next week? That is what I decided to do this morning. I have also got to pack. With my inability to prioritise and make rational decisions I don’t think this painting will be finished before I leave. What I want to do though is get it to a near finished state, at least good enough that when I do return to the UK I will be interested enough to finish it. After today, there are some decent areas of painting although this picture is putting up a fight.

The big house. Day 4

REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL

Its quite a long list, thankfully. More painting in 2025 is towards the top of that list and that’s not just a hopeful thought. The very long list of outstanding garden projects I made since moving here in 2022 has been reduced by around 75%. This means I actually do have more time for painting and I think a return to drawing after a short 20 year break. I have started to record in this website the first stage of every painting, ie the drawing, to see how this develops.

The big house. Day 3