Over Two Weeks Passed

Over two weeks have now passed since our arrival in Barcelona. It's turning out to be such an inspirational trip filled with museum and gallery visits, long walks around the various areas of the Catalan capital and quality time spent with friends over long lunches and the occasional Vermouth!
But don't get me wrong it's not all fun and games!

Since I last wrote my concentration has been on getting all my equipment and further materials gathered and prepared in order to concentrate solely on the development of my studio painting here.
With the help of a skilled designer and his work shop machinery I now have seven top quality large canvas stretcher frames made. I've been preparing the linen that I stretch over them with three coats of glue sizing - stretching and re stretching as I go. It's a lot of work, but a process I really enjoy.

Five of my stretched canvases are made from a very fine Belgian linen and the other two from a courser Spanish linen. I'll write more about my painting process and this considered body of work as it develops further.

At home in Ireland I have seven canvases of this size that I've been working on for some time in near or total completion. Right now I am close to resolving three pieces here in the studio but I'm never quite sure when these pieces will be 'finished' as they are less to do with a technical or conceptual finish and more about a deep intuitive feeling or perhaps a surprise as the work unfolds and announces itself.

I'll leave you now with this image of the studio space taken earlier today as well as a couple of pics from this weeks trips around the city of Barcelona.

-RH

Studio Space, Barcelona, January 13th 2015.

A pot of Glue Sizing with some raw umber powered pigment mixed in.

Outstanding guitarist Mariano Olivera in Park Guell.

A sneak peek over the city of Barcelona from Goudi's Park Guell.

Streets in light and shade close to Barri Gotic.

Detail of a work included in an incredibly frightening but alluring exhibition entitled The Passion according to Carol Rama at the Musey d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona, MACBA.

Life size video projection piece as part of an exhibit entitled Nonumental at MACBA which tackles the whole idea of the imagery of historical events that occupy and many times vulgarises our urban landscapes with it's inherent ideological and symbolic power.