Final Days at Valparaiso, Spain

The days are waning here at Valparaiso (paradise valley) which always motivates a mad scramble to finish what I started. It has been an excellent stay here - we are pampered and well fed and cleaned up after - all in the name of supporting the artist and therefore the art.  I encourage anyone to apply here - it is a class act and to top it off, food and lodging is gratis!

I've embraced cardboard now as a reliable and economical substrate, and appreciate Robert Rauschenberg's comment that there be “no hierarchy of materials”. Each is beautiful in its own way. I love the simple and humble surface of the cardboard (not to mention being plentiful) and will revisit this substrate again I'm sure.

This will be my last residency of the year, and from here I will move on to spend some weeks in Cornwall and then return to Boulder, CO for the holidays. I will chew on all that has transpired these past 7 months and then venture out again after the new year, chasing perpetual summer down to New Zealand and beyond.

With huge thanks to the Foundation Valparaiso - Beatrice, Pilar and Marie-Laure!

Flattened cardboard box - gessoed, with acrylic paint and photo transfer.