Boquer Valley Vision

Boquer Valley Vision (Oil on canvas, 30 x 30 cms)

Despite being a January baby, I have never responded well to this month. I hate the cold, the miserable grey light, the short days, and my wheels grind exceedingly slowly throughout the month and for some time afterwards.

As a consequence, it takes me a while to crank up the painting engine and other things steal my attention. In this case, it's been activity on the cartooning front and some consideration of where that might lead. My earnest wish has always been to use my creativity in all its forms, so my resolution for the year (and I have to admit that, actually, I don't believe in making resolutions, so this is purely for the purposes of illustration) is that I will continue with my love of painting while trying to make something of my cartooning and illustrative techniques.

So this is the first painting of the New Year. It's based on a photograph I took in Mallorca in 2008 on a walk from Porto Pollensa to Cala Boquer. Although the general topography remains fairly accurate, the colours are not and I felt as I was painting that something of a visionary nature was coming into the work. I rather hope that might happen again in the future.