Description

I’m very familiar with this part of Andalusia, with the majestic Sierra Nevada mountains looming in the background. In the past, I’ve walked, shot, drawn and painted this landscape many times.

I started this canvas off with an abstract underpainting, intending to paint something hardcore for my next exhibition in June. However, when my imagination unfurled on the canvas, what I got was more like sweetcore – if that’s even a thing?

Some loose lines very quickly lead me into depicting this old dog walk of mine. The Paseo del Nacimiento, Vélez de Benaudalla, is always so beautifully kept and leads to the source of a spring. Tropical fruit trees thrive all around and especially in that well planted forest garden below – banana, tangerine, olive, pomegranate, lemon, loquat, fig, avocado, chirimoya, and orange. I used to love watching the trees change over the seasons – coming into flower, growing their fruits and sometimes even getting gifted some.

This scene is so ingrained in my mind that I could paint it without looking at any reference photos – it’s all conjured up from my memory!

I suppose this painting is about comforting nostalgia or maybe it’s because I haven’t connected so deeply with the new landscapes in my life – yet!

Fauvism

I found that the #4 synthetic chisel tip paint brush makes an excellent square mark on the canvas, reminiscent of a pixel. I decided that would be a great device to use in order to simplify the scene.