The start of painting #2

I've started the underpainting to painting #2-a still life with paint tubes and brushes.  The goal in this painting will be to lead the viewer around the painting using repetition of color and directional line.

Completed Painting #1

It's finally finished!  This is my first still life painting that I've done while studying abroad.  It's taken quite some time and I've made several revisions, but it's finally finished.

Oil on canvas 330mm x 550mm 

St. Patrick's Day...in Ireland!

Yes! I celebrated St. Patrick's Day in Ireland! For as long as I can remember it's always been something I've wanted to experience and after a full day in Wexford, Ireland, I couldn't have asked for more.
My fellow travelers included fellow international students, Anna Meeks, Costa Lau, Ana Milojkovic, and Wil Lewis.  And back in February, we set out on a plan to travel to Ireland in particular Cork. 

Unfortunately travel plans didn't work out to make it to Cork and we ended up staying in Wexford however, this proved to be a very good decision.  Instead of a hostel we stayed at the Maldron Hotel which turned out to be somewhat of a resort complete with sauna, jacuzzi, and pool.  Being that we arrived early in the morning, the fact that they let us check in early was an excellent way to start the trip.

After time in the sauna and pool to relax and a long nap to unwind from the long ferry ride from Fishguard to Rosslare, the group set out to experience St. Patricks Day with the people of Wexford.  We had some delicious food from a restaurant whose name escapes me and then were met with a bit of a downpour which produced one of the most beautiful rainbows I've ever seen.  If you've seen the YouTube video of "Double Rainbow Man", our reaction was very similar.

After dinner it was on to the night life.  Being that it was still early in the evening, places weren't crowded just yet.  We had just finished watching Ireland's Rugby game in which they suffered a horrible defeat, and were looking for drink, music, and overall a good time but things just weren't happening.  But thanks to the suggestions of a few, we ended up at a place called Metro 17, the same place where we watched the Rugby game, and had an absolutely amazing time.  There was live music including a band that played music we all recognized and an atmosphere of people who were just looking to have a good time.

Our trip was soon coming to an end and by 9am the following day it was time to board the ferry back to Wales.  Overall it was an experience of a life time and one that I wouldn't hesitate to return to and experience all over again.  After all, we are all young and have our whole lives ahead of us.  If we think of it as the only opportunity we'll ever have to travel, then we are limiting ourselves already.  Never eliminate possibilities in the future that haven't even happened.  It would be a real waste of time.

Dinefwr Park and Cardiff in two days...

It's nearly impossible to see everything there is to see in Dinefwr and Cardiff in just two days but you can still see quite a bit.

Dinefwr is a combination of things.  It's a 12th Century castle that's been destroyed and rebuilt over time and conquered by more people that I can count on one hand, and it's also an 18th Century landscape park with the Newton House as it's anchor.  Unfortunately the group didn't have enough time to visit the castle-that will be remedied very soon-but we did get to tour the Newton House and it was amazing!

At ever corner was a piece of history, from the beer cellar and distillery to the the dank basement rooms where the servants were once quartered.  Perhaps the most incredible view was not the ornate furnishings of the house or the exquisite artwork in the paintings of the family, but the landscape and architecture of the garden and outdoors of the land surrounding the house itself.  Don't get me wrong, I've been out of the landscape business for several years but if you paid attention carefully, you could pick out what plants and trees were planted by man and not indigenous to Wales.  Nevertheless, it was convincing enough to induce several jaw-dropping moments and camera battery draining photo opportunities.

The following day, the full group of international students from both the Carmarthen and Lampeter campuses traveled to Cardiff but made a stop to visit St. Ffagans to explore an outdoor style museum meant to mimic the past.  How far in the past? The dates escape me but are easily found on the internet.  We had the chance to see everything from the outer walls of a former fortress to the dark and dreary woolen factory basements.  The added smell of farm and old wool only added to the effect.  It in no way made me cringe and scrunch my nose in disappointment.  We did however visit the gardens where flowers will be in full bloom come spring and summer and several out buildings and pagodas in which a few of us inscribed our legacies for eternity.

And finally we traveled to Cardiff, Wales.  Cardiff, compared to Carmarthen, is much more city like and metropolitan.  Several hordes of people walked in the streets thank to the Wales vs. Italy rugby match-Wales won easily 27-12-and the town was spotted with arcades or 'malls' with shops similar to those found in malls in the States or even in Carmarthen.  Unfortunately we only had a short amount of time being that the game started at 2:30pm and most time was spent in a pub watching the game, but I wouldn't trade the time for anything.

I can't wait to get back to all the place the group has traveled this year.  With Easter break and St. Patricks Day in Ireland coming up, there won't be many trips left besides an excursion to London.  It's been an absolute pleasure experiencing all these destinations with fellow classmates and now life long friends.

Exploring the city of Bath, England...

This past Saturday the International Cultural Program had the opportunity to spend a good amount of time in Bath, England.  Forgive me for not being much of a history buff, but my best guess is that it's named Bath because of the Roman baths that seem to be the main attraction-I could be totally wrong, but I'm fine with my logic.  (For more accurate information, use Google)                                                                               

The Roman Baths are essentially typical early Roman architecture with mostly Doric columns, albeit it's hard to tell because of the amount of preservation and reconstruction, and houses a natural running hot spring that has been channeled into an open air bath large enough to have a family reunion and a few friends over.

Inside you'll find various private baths and cold baths for the bravely ancient and several former pieces of decor and structure that have been preserved and are now on display.

After grabbing a bite to eat, the group of guys I walked around with eventually made it to the Royal Crescent.  The Royal Crescent is pretty self explanatory.  It's a larger than life building housing many residents willing to pay a fortune for a posh yet sensibly located apartment/condo living space-hence the name Royal.  The latter is because of the shape of the building being arranged in a crescent shape.  Thank goodness it wasn't in the shape of an octagon.  But in all seriousness, it was an absolute wonder.

Finally we made our way to the Bath Abbey.  The Abbey-for those is the states it's pretty much a gigantic cathedral-is jaw dropping and dripping with Gothic architecture mixed with current renovations and updated technology.  The flat screen televisions do contrast with the vaulted ceilings and mini baldachins, but alas, it is the 21st century and it is by all means a functioning place of worship and not just a tourist attraction.

After picking up our jaws off the aged floors of the abbey, and grabbing a great cone of ice cream, it was time to head back to the university.  Although it was a very long bus ride, we had the pleasure of listening to the Wales/England rugby game.  For those in the states that may not know, Rugby is Wales' national game and the Wales/England game is a huge deal.  It was close all the way and despite a late scare, Wales came out on top 19-12 with one of the most amazing tries I've ever seen.

It was a long but fun filled and adventurous day in Bath and I wouldn't hesitate at the opportunity to venture to Bath a second time.  Next stop, Cardiff-the capital of Wales!

The beginning of a new painting...

The beginning of a painting is one of the most important parts in the process of painting.  It sets the whole tone for the project and chances are if you have prepared well enough physically and mentally, your vision will come through and onto the canvas.  For this project I have a ways to go.  I'm currently letting the under painting dry and also the color blocking dry then it's on to full color.  There will be more to come very soon.  In the mean time, enjoy the process with me!

Beginning to paint...

I've been in Carmarthen for a few weeks now and have settled in quite nicely.  Myself, along with fellow international students, have traveled to a few unique destinations including Aberystwyth, Swansea, and the Gower and while doing so have seen everything from castles to boardwalks to massive bodies of water.

Besides all of the wonderful sites to see, the main focus remains furthering my skills as an artist and concentrating on academia.  I was able to gather 99% of materials needed to begin a painting-the remaining 1% is a tube of cad. yellow that I forgot to pick up at the local art supply store.  In edition to paint, a friend of mine and university-mate Meghan directed me to a cool warehouse full of random things in order to find a piece of glass such as one found in a frame.  And the trip was indeed a success!

To make a palette from a piece of framed glass is quite easy: take out the glass, put a white paper backing and cardboard on one side, then finally tape everything down around the edges with a strong duct tape and you're set.  In short, you want to use a glass palette for oil because it's easy to clean and makes mixing paint fairly simple.

But before I started painting on canvas, I chose to make an ink wash by dropping some India Ink in a bowl of water and doing 30 minute or less sketch-paintings.  Sketch-paintings or pre-paintings are useful tools to figure out where you want your light source to be in your still life and they also help compose your painting so that you don't waste paint on the final product.

All in all I'm very pleased where this project is headed.  I really enjoy the subject matter of glass and trying different techniques and color palettes to achieve my vision.  There's a long road ahead but it's a much welcomed challenge.