Cuesta de Loreto 1

"Cuesta de Loreto  1"

14x18 in.  oil on panel
$550.  u.s.

My first painting since our move up the hill to our new abode. We went out with just one  student (Mary) on this last Monday and found a perfect scene not 200 feet from our door. We are just around the first corner to the right. This had to be one of the most enjoyable paintings I've ever done - I'm very happy with the result and the direction my work continues to take. Donna always tells her students " you have to crawl before you can walk " ................. I feel like I'm finally getting onto my feet after mostly half a century on all 4's............

I don't bother with a lot of detail anymore and make sure I only place it where it counts - when it has something to add to the theme and won't just be distracting.

This road is really steep! We keep seeing our new neighbors striding by on the uphill moving about the speed that most hominids would only reach going down. Some of these folks are well over 80 and still are not wasting any time on the incline. Donna and I are in pretty good shape but keep getting overtaken - it's embarrassing. They remind me of the Tarahumara Indians of Copper Canyon fame. Most of them have spent all their life overlooking the town of San Miguel and they don't think anything of skipping down to el centro and back with their market bolsa's.