A few weeks ago we had a meetup in Valencia of a bunch of ecademists and Nick Snelling turned up to regale us all with his impressions of the current situation in Spain.
Now Nick gave me a copy of his book Taking The Heat and the next day I broke my collarbone and as a result holding a book and turning pages has been, let us say, a challenge. So I finally finished it a couple of days ago and I have to say it does exactly what it says on the tin. A really funny account of an incompetent's life at Casa Desolada. Now to all of us who went to the dinner, Nick didn't seem too useless, I think his own character assassination may well be ever so slightly exagerrated, but exaggerating to make a point has always been a favourite of mine, so these bite sized chunks of incompetence in the full glare of Spanish life are great fun and if you want a stocking filler this Xmas Amazon have it here
Showing posts with label Valencia property. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Valencia property. Show all posts
Thursday, 18 December 2008
Tuesday, 16 December 2008
50th Post so IKEA time again
IKEA has been umming and ahhing for a long time now. The Valencian regional government has been doing the same as they are worried about the giant Swedish multinational putting greater pressure on Valencian furniture manufacturers, of which there are lots. Finally, it seems that IKEA has plumped for the new Alfafar Parc area to the south of Valencia. Completion will be sometime in 2010 apparently and the huge park already has 91% of its surface area agreed on for new outlets, mostly furniture, that will create 3900 new jobs. More good news from Valencia.
Friday, 5 December 2008
Good News in Valencia
Thanks to my friend Robert Burns for the info. If you have a pension you want transferred outside of the UK he can help you.
Despite all the bad news we are still seeing investment and infrastructure projects into the Valencia Region. Recent announcements include:
# The Alicante Trade Fair (IFA) is to invest 360m euros including a new multi purpose sports and events pavilion.
# The opening of a "Short Sea" connection between Valencia and Sardinia. Expected 25 percent increase in traffic between Spain and Italy.
# Hits Mobile jointly owned by a Kuwaiti Group and Metrored from Valencia are setting up a base in Valencia to target international mobile calls.
And if you want a Hits phone to get cheap phone calls to the UK and elsewhere then sign up with me here and I will get back to you
# Molino Real are to donate 15m euros for the rehabilitation of the Paterna area of Valencia.
And finally, to quote the Chamber of Commerce, the Air Cargo Center in Manises Airport "is a strategic area for multimodal transport since Valencia is situated in a privileged location in the Mediterranean Rim."
It's the place to be...the Generalitat de Valencia.
Despite all the bad news we are still seeing investment and infrastructure projects into the Valencia Region. Recent announcements include:
# The Alicante Trade Fair (IFA) is to invest 360m euros including a new multi purpose sports and events pavilion.
# The opening of a "Short Sea" connection between Valencia and Sardinia. Expected 25 percent increase in traffic between Spain and Italy.
# Hits Mobile jointly owned by a Kuwaiti Group and Metrored from Valencia are setting up a base in Valencia to target international mobile calls.
And if you want a Hits phone to get cheap phone calls to the UK and elsewhere then sign up with me here and I will get back to you
# Molino Real are to donate 15m euros for the rehabilitation of the Paterna area of Valencia.
And finally, to quote the Chamber of Commerce, the Air Cargo Center in Manises Airport "is a strategic area for multimodal transport since Valencia is situated in a privileged location in the Mediterranean Rim."
It's the place to be...the Generalitat de Valencia.
Thursday, 20 November 2008
Misleading Title but Great Conclusion
Under the title Is the Sun Setting on Solar Power in Spain" The Scientific American Magazine has answered the question in the negative. Have a read of the article here which talks about the advances already made and the plans for the future.
This is one of the areas that Spain will be able to lead the World because of the simple reason that the sun shines here and the will is in place.
Friday, 14 November 2008
Finding my Feet in Córdoba
A friend of mine, Amanda Hamilton, runs a boutique B+B in Cordoba, Iznajar to be exact, if you look online you will find it here. She has written an article for the Website www.womeninspain.com and I thought it might light your fires.
"I'm the owner and manager of Casa La Celada, my beautiful guest house, micro hotel and B&B on the outskirts of stunning Iznájar in Córdoba, Andalucia. I am also a published artist and I practice healing and reflexology in my "spare" time.
Having had a 15 year dream to live in Spain, alongside a violent and drug infested marriage, the thought that I would ever realise my Dream seemed like a stupid pie in the sky idea. But with a lot of support from family and friends and many court cases later, I departed the shores of England on 12th May 2006 - ironically my wedding anniversary, with my then six year old son, a motorhome packed to the hilt, and a lot of hope in my heart.
We spent our first year in a mountain village called Rubielos de Mora, in the Teruel area of the Aragón province - about an hour and a half from the beautiful city of Valencia. But it wasn't our "home". We were strangers, and worse still, I was a "loose woman" - no husband to reduce the threat perceived by the locals. It was time to move on.
So I packed up our lovely motorhome again, sold and gave away probably 70% of my possessions, and we headed south towards Andalucia, finally stopping in Cazorla after many kilometres and a lot more adventures. Then, when my son went to spend August 2007 with his father, I spent the first two weeks of my August paragliding, canyoning, and exploring the vast province of Andalucia in a tiny little hire-car . and I started to fall in love.
Within days I found Iznájar. Iznájar comes from the Moorish and means Happy Castle - and it truly is a happy castle - teetering atop a huge rocky outcropping that juts out into the vast lake called the Embalse de Iznájar - 999,000 hectolitres of water when full . and my heart was stolen for good.
Within a matter of days I had found a property that would be perfect for us - Casa La Celada - right in the heart of a gorgeous little white sleepy Andalucian village called La Celada with it's own tiny school, shop and divine eight sided church, just 2km from Iznájar itself. I didn't want to buy within the village of Iznájar because, magical though it is, it is all hills and very narrow streets which means that the views are limited mostly to your neighbours' windows unless you are lucky to be able to afford a lake view, to say nothing of the damage you'll do to a car while you get used to the tiny roads. Instead, I have the delight of seeing Iznájar every time I need the bank or post office - a drive that thrills me every time I make the journey.
And our house in La Celada is HUGE! We have five, arguably six bedrooms, three of which are on the ground floor with luxurious bathrooms - it was immediately obvious to me that I could set myself up as a B&B Guest House owner, work from home where I could also paint, and therefore be "there" when my son came home from the local school and be a Mum. WHAT a luxury after the six jobs I held down in the UK!
My son is totally accepted, loved and integrated into our community, as am I. Thankfully we can both speak Spanish which in my view makes the difference between surviving and "going Native". He can play outside in the street on his bike, roller blades, or playing football with the other children without me ever having to have concerns, and I can work on marketing and PR, painting a new commission, practicing healing and reflexology knowing that he is safe, loved and happy in our sleepy little village.
And when we need "action", we are an hour's drive from three of the most important cities of Andalucia! To the South we have the beautiful city of Málaga and the Costa del Sol beaches, to the East we have Granada and the Science Museum, ski resort and the world famous Alhambra Palace, and to our North we have possibly my favourite city - Córdoba - once the capital city of Europe (a LONG time ago) - absolutely steeped in history, flamenco and beautiful winding streets festooned with flowers during May when the huge fiestas begin.
And speaking of fiestas - well Spain is famous for them! A long siesta in the afternoon prepares you for a night of revelry, paella, local sangria and a lot of dancing and games. The Spanish really do know how to party and have welcomed us into their party fold with open arms - I couldn't have possibly asked for more.
But it does get better. House prices were great when I bought here enabling me to buy a second house which has the most exquisite views over the huge Lake and our mountain range, the Sierra Subbética. So my longer term dream is to bring this lovely but abandoned house to the reaches of people who want even more than Casa La Celada offers - I will renovate it so we have little cottages around a huge pool with the view that you could happily die gazing across ...
And when I consider that just six years ago a doctor put me on tranquilisers to survive my marriage, and I used to hide under tables when it was all unbearable, and I look at the successful, motivated, happy and dynamic woman I have become, I say one thing : Follow your Dreams, and NEVER be afraid to make changes - If I can do it, ANYONE can .."
"I'm the owner and manager of Casa La Celada, my beautiful guest house, micro hotel and B&B on the outskirts of stunning Iznájar in Córdoba, Andalucia. I am also a published artist and I practice healing and reflexology in my "spare" time.
Having had a 15 year dream to live in Spain, alongside a violent and drug infested marriage, the thought that I would ever realise my Dream seemed like a stupid pie in the sky idea. But with a lot of support from family and friends and many court cases later, I departed the shores of England on 12th May 2006 - ironically my wedding anniversary, with my then six year old son, a motorhome packed to the hilt, and a lot of hope in my heart.
We spent our first year in a mountain village called Rubielos de Mora, in the Teruel area of the Aragón province - about an hour and a half from the beautiful city of Valencia. But it wasn't our "home". We were strangers, and worse still, I was a "loose woman" - no husband to reduce the threat perceived by the locals. It was time to move on.
So I packed up our lovely motorhome again, sold and gave away probably 70% of my possessions, and we headed south towards Andalucia, finally stopping in Cazorla after many kilometres and a lot more adventures. Then, when my son went to spend August 2007 with his father, I spent the first two weeks of my August paragliding, canyoning, and exploring the vast province of Andalucia in a tiny little hire-car . and I started to fall in love.
Within days I found Iznájar. Iznájar comes from the Moorish and means Happy Castle - and it truly is a happy castle - teetering atop a huge rocky outcropping that juts out into the vast lake called the Embalse de Iznájar - 999,000 hectolitres of water when full . and my heart was stolen for good.
Within a matter of days I had found a property that would be perfect for us - Casa La Celada - right in the heart of a gorgeous little white sleepy Andalucian village called La Celada with it's own tiny school, shop and divine eight sided church, just 2km from Iznájar itself. I didn't want to buy within the village of Iznájar because, magical though it is, it is all hills and very narrow streets which means that the views are limited mostly to your neighbours' windows unless you are lucky to be able to afford a lake view, to say nothing of the damage you'll do to a car while you get used to the tiny roads. Instead, I have the delight of seeing Iznájar every time I need the bank or post office - a drive that thrills me every time I make the journey.
And our house in La Celada is HUGE! We have five, arguably six bedrooms, three of which are on the ground floor with luxurious bathrooms - it was immediately obvious to me that I could set myself up as a B&B Guest House owner, work from home where I could also paint, and therefore be "there" when my son came home from the local school and be a Mum. WHAT a luxury after the six jobs I held down in the UK!
My son is totally accepted, loved and integrated into our community, as am I. Thankfully we can both speak Spanish which in my view makes the difference between surviving and "going Native". He can play outside in the street on his bike, roller blades, or playing football with the other children without me ever having to have concerns, and I can work on marketing and PR, painting a new commission, practicing healing and reflexology knowing that he is safe, loved and happy in our sleepy little village.
And when we need "action", we are an hour's drive from three of the most important cities of Andalucia! To the South we have the beautiful city of Málaga and the Costa del Sol beaches, to the East we have Granada and the Science Museum, ski resort and the world famous Alhambra Palace, and to our North we have possibly my favourite city - Córdoba - once the capital city of Europe (a LONG time ago) - absolutely steeped in history, flamenco and beautiful winding streets festooned with flowers during May when the huge fiestas begin.
And speaking of fiestas - well Spain is famous for them! A long siesta in the afternoon prepares you for a night of revelry, paella, local sangria and a lot of dancing and games. The Spanish really do know how to party and have welcomed us into their party fold with open arms - I couldn't have possibly asked for more.
But it does get better. House prices were great when I bought here enabling me to buy a second house which has the most exquisite views over the huge Lake and our mountain range, the Sierra Subbética. So my longer term dream is to bring this lovely but abandoned house to the reaches of people who want even more than Casa La Celada offers - I will renovate it so we have little cottages around a huge pool with the view that you could happily die gazing across ...
And when I consider that just six years ago a doctor put me on tranquilisers to survive my marriage, and I used to hide under tables when it was all unbearable, and I look at the successful, motivated, happy and dynamic woman I have become, I say one thing : Follow your Dreams, and NEVER be afraid to make changes - If I can do it, ANYONE can .."
Sunday, 26 October 2008
Another Excellent Times Article
I have reproduced this one in full but if you want to see it in its original form go here.
So what's the story. Well not many Brits are getting too drunk on their holidays in Spain. Maybe they are getting to respect the place. Interesting use of stats here.
Article Starts Here.
Spain's Costa lager louts sober up
by Tom Chesshyre
British tourists visiting Spain are shaking off the image of drunken lager louts on the Costa del Sol and are better behaved than ever, according to the British Ambassador to the country.
Embassy figures show that the number of detentions for alcohol-related offences and admissions to hospital were “minuscule” last year. Altogether 1,931 Britons were held by the Spanish police, which works out at 0.001 per cent of the 17 million annual visitors from the UK. There were 748 people admitted to hospital, 0.0004 per cent of all visitors.
Denise Holt, who has been the British ambassador in Spain for 18 months, said that there were parts of Spain, such as San Antonio in Ibiza and Magaluf in Majorca, that still had trouble from drunken British visitors. She told Times Travel: “This is usually the starter market of holidaymakers: 17-year-olds on a rite of passage. It's their first trip away from Mum or Dad and sometimes they take it too far.”
But she believes that extensive reporting of incidents at these resorts has affected the image of the country: “People love to hear the stories of over-indulgence - they love to thrill their imaginations. The same stories happen every year.” Holt, who is the former British Ambassador in Mexico, added that there were probably more people detained in Southampton on a Saturday night than Britons in the whole of Spain.
“When you look at the figures, it's amazing how many British people come to Spain and how little trouble there is,” she said. “With 17 million visitors to Spain each year, that's like the entire population going every four years. About one in every four aircraft from Heathrow flies to Spain.”
Many of these are filled with expat travellers rather than tourists. There are one million British expats living in Spain, making Britain the fourth-biggest group of migrants to the country after Ecuadorians, Romanians and Moroccans.
Tourists from the UK going to Ibiza for nightclubbing holidays probably do more damage to the reputation of Spain than any other group. “People come on cheap holidays,” Holt said. “They don't have proper accommodation. They try to propel themselves through the weekend listening to music and popping pills.”
She recently went on a trip in a police car with the Ibiza officers: “They know who the dealers are, and they are making sure it does not get out of hand. They will pick them up if they start dealing on the street corner.
There is a slightly different attitude towards drugs in Ibiza: if you get stopped at the airport and it is personal consumption, the police will simply take the drugs.”
One continuing problem is lost or stolen passports: consulates and embassies issued more than 6,000 emergency documents last year. Many visitors are also neglecting to buy travel insurance. But Stephen Jones, the British Consul for the Canary Islands, said: “I think our image abroad has changed. The numbers getting in trouble are tiny.”
So what's the story. Well not many Brits are getting too drunk on their holidays in Spain. Maybe they are getting to respect the place. Interesting use of stats here.
Article Starts Here.
Spain's Costa lager louts sober up
by Tom Chesshyre
British tourists visiting Spain are shaking off the image of drunken lager louts on the Costa del Sol and are better behaved than ever, according to the British Ambassador to the country.
Embassy figures show that the number of detentions for alcohol-related offences and admissions to hospital were “minuscule” last year. Altogether 1,931 Britons were held by the Spanish police, which works out at 0.001 per cent of the 17 million annual visitors from the UK. There were 748 people admitted to hospital, 0.0004 per cent of all visitors.
Denise Holt, who has been the British ambassador in Spain for 18 months, said that there were parts of Spain, such as San Antonio in Ibiza and Magaluf in Majorca, that still had trouble from drunken British visitors. She told Times Travel: “This is usually the starter market of holidaymakers: 17-year-olds on a rite of passage. It's their first trip away from Mum or Dad and sometimes they take it too far.”
But she believes that extensive reporting of incidents at these resorts has affected the image of the country: “People love to hear the stories of over-indulgence - they love to thrill their imaginations. The same stories happen every year.” Holt, who is the former British Ambassador in Mexico, added that there were probably more people detained in Southampton on a Saturday night than Britons in the whole of Spain.
“When you look at the figures, it's amazing how many British people come to Spain and how little trouble there is,” she said. “With 17 million visitors to Spain each year, that's like the entire population going every four years. About one in every four aircraft from Heathrow flies to Spain.”
Many of these are filled with expat travellers rather than tourists. There are one million British expats living in Spain, making Britain the fourth-biggest group of migrants to the country after Ecuadorians, Romanians and Moroccans.
Tourists from the UK going to Ibiza for nightclubbing holidays probably do more damage to the reputation of Spain than any other group. “People come on cheap holidays,” Holt said. “They don't have proper accommodation. They try to propel themselves through the weekend listening to music and popping pills.”
She recently went on a trip in a police car with the Ibiza officers: “They know who the dealers are, and they are making sure it does not get out of hand. They will pick them up if they start dealing on the street corner.
There is a slightly different attitude towards drugs in Ibiza: if you get stopped at the airport and it is personal consumption, the police will simply take the drugs.”
One continuing problem is lost or stolen passports: consulates and embassies issued more than 6,000 emergency documents last year. Many visitors are also neglecting to buy travel insurance. But Stephen Jones, the British Consul for the Canary Islands, said: “I think our image abroad has changed. The numbers getting in trouble are tiny.”
Wednesday, 15 October 2008
ONCE Ticket Seller Shows Total Honesty
A story has just appeared in Spain which warms the cockles of my aging heart.
The story comes from a friend of mine who is currently down in Andalucia.
"I walked down the street and saw a Spansh tapas bar and walked in. I ordered agua con gas - which predictably they had and picked up the local rag as I waited for my tapas. This is what I saw!!
What an amazing story and one which made me so proud to even be in their country even if I can't add Spanish to my passport.
A one-legged Once salesman kept a winning ticket of 35,000 euros safely for a regular customer who had been away a few days so had not paid for it. Obviously the salesman could have kept it, cashed it and nobody would have known. What an amazing story. As the waiter came over, I asked whether he had read it and he said, yes, and he knew the guy. He'd been selling in town for many years. Wow, I said, "What a gent!". The waiter nodded and smiled. I guessed he felt that a fellow Fuengirola citizen had brought honour to the town,.....and in some ways it rubbed off on him. As I was leaving, he said, "By the way, take the paper if you like, we're closing in 10 minutes."
He asks the following after being here for many years.
When did you realise that you were more Spanish than whatever it says on your passport?
The link is here in Spanish.
The story comes from a friend of mine who is currently down in Andalucia.
"I walked down the street and saw a Spansh tapas bar and walked in. I ordered agua con gas - which predictably they had and picked up the local rag as I waited for my tapas. This is what I saw!!
What an amazing story and one which made me so proud to even be in their country even if I can't add Spanish to my passport.
A one-legged Once salesman kept a winning ticket of 35,000 euros safely for a regular customer who had been away a few days so had not paid for it. Obviously the salesman could have kept it, cashed it and nobody would have known. What an amazing story. As the waiter came over, I asked whether he had read it and he said, yes, and he knew the guy. He'd been selling in town for many years. Wow, I said, "What a gent!". The waiter nodded and smiled. I guessed he felt that a fellow Fuengirola citizen had brought honour to the town,.....and in some ways it rubbed off on him. As I was leaving, he said, "By the way, take the paper if you like, we're closing in 10 minutes."
He asks the following after being here for many years.
When did you realise that you were more Spanish than whatever it says on your passport?
The link is here in Spanish.
Monday, 29 September 2008
Banco Santander. A Major Spanish Success
Banco de Santander has developed from a small regional bank to become one of the major players in European banking and the biggest bank in Spain over the last few years. It has now decided that it wants to dominate the European scene, starting with the UK, as it does the Spanish banking scene. In Spain where Santander goes the other banks soon follow and it seems that they have started to open the tap to new mortgages, a tap that has been closed now for almost a year. Expect other Spanish banks to follow.
Banco De Santander HQ in Sao Paulo
So what made the Santander strong in the current market? Spanish banks never bought into toxic debt to the same extent as other European banks as they were too busy being parochial in Spain by funding developers here, hence the huge construction boom of recent times, and also they looked to Argentina and other Spanish speaking South American countries as well as Portuguese speaking Brazil to develop their brands in new markets. So busy were they that when all of the newly repackaged toxic debt from the States was offered they didn't even bother looking at it. So now they are cash rich and picking up good deals like Abbey, Alliance and Leicester and Bradford and Bingley in a sort of Buffett way, buying in at the best time.
So why is the Spanish housing market dropping so much, just like the UK market? The major reason that transactions in Spain are down 26% this year is the lack of availability of credit. The 33% drop in mortgages given out is one of the proofs of that. People still want to buy but cannot because of the restrictions on lending and therefore the market in dropping in price bringing in even more people who want to buy. Obviously there is an oversupply of two bed two bathroom flats in coastal areas but the latent demand for the larger conurbations (Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Bilbao) is still there as the population grows year on year and rural depopulation increases as people look for opportunities in the cities. If the Santander open the taps again expect the Spanish market in the major towns and cities to perk up, especially if, and that is a big if currently, it coincides with a drop in interest rates from the European Central Bank.
So what will be the next target for Santander in the UK and when will the Competition Commission start looking into their adquisitions?
Banco De Santander HQ in Sao Paulo
So what made the Santander strong in the current market? Spanish banks never bought into toxic debt to the same extent as other European banks as they were too busy being parochial in Spain by funding developers here, hence the huge construction boom of recent times, and also they looked to Argentina and other Spanish speaking South American countries as well as Portuguese speaking Brazil to develop their brands in new markets. So busy were they that when all of the newly repackaged toxic debt from the States was offered they didn't even bother looking at it. So now they are cash rich and picking up good deals like Abbey, Alliance and Leicester and Bradford and Bingley in a sort of Buffett way, buying in at the best time.
So why is the Spanish housing market dropping so much, just like the UK market? The major reason that transactions in Spain are down 26% this year is the lack of availability of credit. The 33% drop in mortgages given out is one of the proofs of that. People still want to buy but cannot because of the restrictions on lending and therefore the market in dropping in price bringing in even more people who want to buy. Obviously there is an oversupply of two bed two bathroom flats in coastal areas but the latent demand for the larger conurbations (Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Bilbao) is still there as the population grows year on year and rural depopulation increases as people look for opportunities in the cities. If the Santander open the taps again expect the Spanish market in the major towns and cities to perk up, especially if, and that is a big if currently, it coincides with a drop in interest rates from the European Central Bank.
So what will be the next target for Santander in the UK and when will the Competition Commission start looking into their adquisitions?
Sunday, 3 August 2008
A Story About Falling in Love With Spain
Here is a great story illustrated with art by Lynda who writes the story about her development as a painter. She has a three week exhibition coming up in Barcelona so if you are around at that time then get yourself there, Lynda will be delighted to see you.
A Love Affair with Spain and Horses
By Lynda Cookson
Having emigrated from South Africa to Ireland in 2001 I found I missed hot-country colours. I had visited Spain as a twenty year old backpacker way back in 1974 and would quite happily have stayed there if life's path had let me, so I snapped at the chance to exhibit my work in Spain at Barcelona's Sala Barna in 2005. Selling a painting was just one of the highlights of my two-week trip - I lost six kilos from spending eight hours each day tramping the streets, getting lost and loving the places I found by accident, gazing at the architecture and absorbing the sights, sounds and language of the city … and still I didn't see everything I would have liked to see.
The markets in particular are my favourite places. Bustling, colourful and noisy with non-touristy everyday life. They're a people-watcher's haven and I ate like a queen - fish, salads and fruit. One day I was amazed to come across a wooden box teeming with live snails for sale! That's not something I had seen in my life before.
Jose, the art director at Sala Barna became a temporary mentor to me and taught me much about abstract work. How, I'm still not quite sure because his English was a few words only, interspersed with many 'um's' and 'er's' and my Spanish consists largely of the sound of dictionary pages being madly turned in search of each word. It must have been the telepathy of abstract artists!
The turning point in my career as a painter happened in Barcelona that week. I found the most amazing book, in Spanish, rich with images of wild and spirited horses. I fell in love, knew I should try and find the same book in English somewhere, but was unable to put the book down until it securely belonged to me.
I went home, picked up my brushes and stopped trying to be a conventional painter. I acknowledged that art comes from the heart and soul, switched on the music which makes the blood in my veins sing … and now happily paint free-spirited horses which charge around the canvas in rebellious and powerful colours. I paint other things too, but the horses are my love and my life as a painter.
My artist's statement is part of my life's philosophy and explains my need to work with many layers of paint, whatever the subject I am painting. I am interested in what I call the 'behind music'; the masks of protection and the layers of learning people develop and build up through their lives; and how they learn to live with those masks and layers; and how they achieve their wisdom.
The 'behind music' is all the parts of a symphony concert in their separate forms, all the patterns of sound, the individual notes, the individual instruments, the emotions elicited, the energy expended and the people involved, which unite to make the complete piece of music so beautiful, soul-reaching, acceptable and exciting to the masses of people who listen to it.
Happily I have a three week solo exhibition coming up in Barcelona at the Sala Barna with the Opening Night on Friday 26 September 2008. It's the end of my contract with them and I would love to meet as many people there as possible … because the more people I meet then surely the more excuses I have to return to Spain again and again and again.
To join us at the exhibition in Barcelona on the evening of 26 September or to let me know the best places to find non-touristy Flamenco dancing please …
email me at lyndacookson@eircom.net
Or call me on +353 (0)91 571 983
Visit www.lyndacookson.com
A Love Affair with Spain and Horses
By Lynda Cookson
Having emigrated from South Africa to Ireland in 2001 I found I missed hot-country colours. I had visited Spain as a twenty year old backpacker way back in 1974 and would quite happily have stayed there if life's path had let me, so I snapped at the chance to exhibit my work in Spain at Barcelona's Sala Barna in 2005. Selling a painting was just one of the highlights of my two-week trip - I lost six kilos from spending eight hours each day tramping the streets, getting lost and loving the places I found by accident, gazing at the architecture and absorbing the sights, sounds and language of the city … and still I didn't see everything I would have liked to see.
The markets in particular are my favourite places. Bustling, colourful and noisy with non-touristy everyday life. They're a people-watcher's haven and I ate like a queen - fish, salads and fruit. One day I was amazed to come across a wooden box teeming with live snails for sale! That's not something I had seen in my life before.
Jose, the art director at Sala Barna became a temporary mentor to me and taught me much about abstract work. How, I'm still not quite sure because his English was a few words only, interspersed with many 'um's' and 'er's' and my Spanish consists largely of the sound of dictionary pages being madly turned in search of each word. It must have been the telepathy of abstract artists!
The turning point in my career as a painter happened in Barcelona that week. I found the most amazing book, in Spanish, rich with images of wild and spirited horses. I fell in love, knew I should try and find the same book in English somewhere, but was unable to put the book down until it securely belonged to me.
I went home, picked up my brushes and stopped trying to be a conventional painter. I acknowledged that art comes from the heart and soul, switched on the music which makes the blood in my veins sing … and now happily paint free-spirited horses which charge around the canvas in rebellious and powerful colours. I paint other things too, but the horses are my love and my life as a painter.
My artist's statement is part of my life's philosophy and explains my need to work with many layers of paint, whatever the subject I am painting. I am interested in what I call the 'behind music'; the masks of protection and the layers of learning people develop and build up through their lives; and how they learn to live with those masks and layers; and how they achieve their wisdom.
The 'behind music' is all the parts of a symphony concert in their separate forms, all the patterns of sound, the individual notes, the individual instruments, the emotions elicited, the energy expended and the people involved, which unite to make the complete piece of music so beautiful, soul-reaching, acceptable and exciting to the masses of people who listen to it.
Happily I have a three week solo exhibition coming up in Barcelona at the Sala Barna with the Opening Night on Friday 26 September 2008. It's the end of my contract with them and I would love to meet as many people there as possible … because the more people I meet then surely the more excuses I have to return to Spain again and again and again.
To join us at the exhibition in Barcelona on the evening of 26 September or to let me know the best places to find non-touristy Flamenco dancing please …
email me at lyndacookson@eircom.net
Or call me on +353 (0)91 571 983
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Friday, 18 July 2008
Some Good Press Finally
The Sunday Times this week has come up with a greta selection of the 22 best coastal restaurants in Spain. Do you agree with their choices? Two are in Valencia and I have had the privilege of going to both of them. One day I will get to El Bulli though. Check out the article here
Have a great day
Have a great day
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