WATERBABY'S CIRCUS

There's a neighborhood in the old part of Bahia called "2 de Julho". It's old and funky and has a lot of falling down buildings, some inhabited and some not. I finally found a small art supply store here that carries a few watercolor items, like Cotman watercolors. But also some Maimeri. The small supply of Canson paper is ridiculously expensive, and there's a limited selection of poor quality brushes. Everything is imported, so the cost is quite prohibitive for the average Brasilian. I still haven't found any other watercolorists here, and the owners of the store couldn't refer me to any clubs or organizations. So after I bought a few tubes of paint, I wandered down a sidestreet and stopped to do a quickdraw of this old building. The windows are all bricked up, there's no telling how long since it's been lived in. Sad to see all these once-beautiful old mansions. But I can't get carried away feeling bad that there's no one with the desir

Yesterday I went to visit a very old fort that was built to protect the city of Salvador, Bahia in Brazil. I didn't have my camera and there wasn't an opportunity to sketch. Today I found this old photo of the fort online. Other photos of old Bahia are at this link . There isn't a date but I'm guessing it was taken in the '40s or '50s, judging from the clothes. The fort itself is that oval-shaped structure in the upper righthand corner. It has only been the last couple of years that it has been open for tours, following a major recuperation. The different levels and curves and angles make it a very interesting place to sketch, even if historical landmarks aren't your thing. I hope to get back with more time and my sketchbook.

OK, it's a repeat, but it's still YELLOW! These yellow flowers grow near my veranda and all over here in Salvador. First I painted one, then took a picture.

Nene' had a friend over for dinner. It did not end well for the friend.

The house on the left behind the wall is where I've been for the last two months. A lot of work is going on behind that wall: plumbing repairs, patching and plastering walls, cleaning up a huge lot that was badly overrun with weeds, replacing broken and worn out ceiling fans and showers, getting the microwave and TVs repaired, adding a laundry sink in back, and an outside shower in front . . . . The list is endless. It's a great old beach house, but it's suffered from years of neglect. And anyone who's lived close to the sea knows how salt air damages just about everything. So that's my excuse anyway for not painting more often and/or posting. Not that I'm doing it all myself, but still, it's a huge time-suck. Oooh! And doing it all in tropical heat with no car! OMG! The horror! Would I rather be back in the winter of my American discontent? Not freakin' likely!!!

Slamming Door, Sleeping Cat

I miss painting the usual spring flowers like tulips and magnolias, so I paint what's here, in this case some cactus flowers. There are a lot around here I guess because they make great natural security fences. I know. I got too close taking some pictures. Nasty little stickers attach themselves to everything that gets too close. And have hideous little barbs on the ends that won't allow you to simply pluck them from your skin. This is watercolor in my sketchbook, then photo'd with my Panasonic. I have trouble with the light here in Brasil - it's bright and tropical, even early in the morning. Glaring actually. So a lot of colors just wash out. The flash of course does the same thing. Indirect interior lighting is too weak. So the actual painting values and colors are probably somewhere in between these two images.