Description

The Seven Eye Bridge – Órgiva

I went out landscape painting with a student. It was fun even though there were 25km winds, it was cold and it was a bit drizzly. I thought to myself, “We just have to get on with it, otherwise landscapes just won’t get painted if we wait for the weather.”

I am always looking out for good views to paint and settled on this piece of eye-catching and familiar architecture, nestled in amongst nature.

I wandered around looking for the right spot to rest our easels (I also had with me a stool to sit on, a small canvas and a shopping bag full of paint, brushes, a palette, rags and thinners). I chose to huddle us by the inadequate protection of a wild oleander bush, which helped only a little as a windbreak. Once I was painting however, I didn’t notice the weather, except when my palette blew away – luckily it landed like a cat, the right way up!

Painting From Nature

I love responding to the subject right there in front of me when I paint, even though the light changes constantly with moving sun and clouds – I find it doesn’t matter. I had some pink in the underpainting, and on periodically stepping back to see the painting’s progress, I was inspired to keep the colour prominent.