Gays and Guns and Roses...

And the story goes on...
Yesterday we had a good and funny lunch in Benidorm with my parents and other members of my family.
The same day as the Mayor was shot, I had dinner with my parents and I had spoken with my mother about the case. She was not as shocked as me, perhaps because she is older and wiser. She hadn´t even given the thing such an importance.

In the middle of the lunch the case came to mind again.
"By the way... do you know that the Mayor finally died?"
I asked her.
"Yes... and do you know why?"
"Well... There were some suspects at the beginning, a French couple and an English couple, all because of some property disputes around a new road...
"Nooooooo!.", corrected my mother, "the suspect French and English couples were not even there when it happened... no.... the Mayor´s wife, 5 years ago, after finding her husband in bed with a man, tried to commit suicide by throwing herself out of the window. She survived, but in a wheelchair, and they divorced. Now they say that it is only a story of jealous gays..."
I couldn´t believe my ears and almost choked on my food!
"How do YOU know that? from the TV?
"No... from Isabel..."
Isabel is my mother´s cleaning lady, an enormous 50 year old, local Spanish woman who always knows everything about everything.

As soon as I was home I made some research on the Internet and couldn´t find anything concerning Isabel´s theory. It seems that The Guardia Civil still hasnt´a clue what happened. But I wonder: if they had, would they say?

Now I don´t feel comfortable with my exhibition in memory of the Mayor, Not that i despise gays -I don´t care-, but a murder between jealous gays is surely not worth an exhibition of my work!

Anyway I don´t take any responsibility for the theory postulated in this entry!

Solo un recuerdo... Just a memory!

Just a memory... the title of a song written and composed by Kev Moore!
Solo un recuerdo, my first contribution to Kevin´s Music Career as we met: I translated "Just a memory" into Spanish... but this is another story, and he might tell it to you one day, and even sing the song to you then... in Spanish of course.

In honour to the dead mayor and its beautiful town Polop, I have totally changed the theme of the exhibition which I will mount on Friday in a local German Eye Clinic. (It´s not just for German eyes, it´s an eye clinic run by Germans)

I decided to exhibit landscapes from the region, of course some views of Polop itself, some of Altea, another beautiful town by the sea, a tourist centre but still with its own charm. A town of artists too... And some views of others villages in the mountains.
All painted in pastel and ink, the basic drawing in ink made in situ, and the colours -my colours, nothing real- having been added at home later.

I hope the doctors from the eye clinic do their job well and their clients will be able to see, that they feel compelled to take them home... at least as a souvenir from their wonderful time in the clinic...

Don´t´believe this exhibition is a commercial trick, it is not. i just feel the need "to exhibit my feelings" about the tragedy in my own way. All these paintings have neither been exhibited nor shown to anybody before. Just to you, 2 days ago, with the first sketch of Polop, and now today, this view of Altea Harbour.
This is not about selling paintings, it´s solo un recuerdo...

Back again on Planet Goodaboom!

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Planet Goodaboom, Saturday 24th March 2007


Yes, we are back home, and this is the way it looked as we entered Spain on the 21st of March in the middle of the afternoon. And you won´t believe it, but some hours later, as we drove through a region called "El Maestrazgo", about 300km south of Madrid, the car thermometer was showing - 6°C outside! So people, if you consider moving to Spain because of sea and sunshine, better stay home... anyway, already too many people are living here, it´s becoming insane! Better regularly read our diaries and get the taste of Spain from a distance!

Kevin will surely soon make a word and photo reportage of our travel to Germany and to France, so keep an eye out for our travelogue.

The first thing I saw when I entered the Art Studio was three half finished kiddies anxiously waiting for me with wide open eyes... oh God, I thought, I had completely forgot them! Of course, two weeks before we left I had started 3 portraits on commission - one English boy, one English girl, one Dutch girl- and had to leave before I could finish them...
It will be so difficult now to go back to them, I have completely lost the personal relationship I had established with them while I was painting them, absolutely necessary to make a good, lively portrait. But well, I am not so worried, I just need to make the first step, sit in front of one portrait, empty my mind concentrating only on the child and start. But well, this tiny step, at the moment, appears to me like a giant one! But it will be wonderful to paint again, after 10 days artistic inactivity. I deeply miss it.

I guess, the best thing is to start at once! Also: write to you soon again!

A Baby in a Rose

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Planet Goodaboom, Tuesday 6th March 2007


I told you it was a successful day 2 days ago in the Street Gallery...but how successful, I didn´t even know myself at that moment! One of the clients who already bought a painting from me came today to my Gallery and bought a further three and a CD from Kevin (see his entry in his diary). It was wonderful to see how they hardly could decide which one they should buy, they loved so many... what a nice compliment for me! Above all because these people were the same who bought my miniature painting 2 weeks ago, saying that they have no place on their walls. They haven´t indeed, but they have children who still have space... I hope they will like the paintings their parents bought for them today!

I wanted above all to tell you about the old Spanish lady who bought a painting from me on Sunday. She is one of these women living in the countryside, and who normally never leave their villages in their lifetime. But some travel companies here organise cheap week-end trips to the coast for these old Spanish people and for most it is their first trip away. They accomodate them in some of the nice hotels by the beach –one of them, Kactus Hotel, is right at the corner of the Street Gallery- and organise there on the Sunday afternoon big sales of things like oriental carpets or modern kitchen appliances. These poor people get the trip cheap, but they then spend such a fortune buying all these extras! Anyway.. my old lady looked at the paintings and came to me, asking:
„Are these paintings signed by any well-known painter?“
I didn´t really understand what she meant. So I said:
„well, yes, they are all signed... the paintings are from me!“
„Yes, I can see they are signed! But I know exactly what I want!“
She sounded a little bit stressed... but whatever she wanted, and however she expressed it, I kept smiling and told her, that I am famous in the area. She was quite happy with that answer and asked me for the price.
„Which one?“
I asked.
She didn´t know. She just wanted a painting from a famous painter, I guess. As I told her the price of various ones, she looked very sad.
„Look, I have already spent too much money on the carpets... I have almost nothing left... and my husband loves paintings so much! It is for him...“
Finally she found a painting which she really loved. It was inspired by a photo from Anne Geddes, featuring a baby in a rose. In fact it was not for sale, it was just to give people ideas for personalised paintings.
But my old lady insisted so much that I gave her a price. Of course it was much too expensive, and normally I don´t let people negociate with me. But I felt some kind of sympathy for this woman. I never had that before but, after 4 rounds, and her leaving and returning each time, finally even showing me the bill for the carpets she had just bought, she succeeded in getting the painting from me for less than half of the price I had first said!
I wonder if her husband will really appreciate it, when she comes back home after having spent so much money. But she was very happy, and wanted me to make a photo of her, me and the baby in the Rose!

Art and Ice Cream

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Planet Goodaboom, Monday 5th March 2007


Wonderful day again for the Street Gallery yesterday. I guess a thousand people must have stopped to look at my paintings and I ask you: where else, if you are not a really famous painter, would you get so many visitors in one day to your exhibition? Whatever one still may think about my choice to „work the street“: it is obviously the best place to touch my clients! (Kevin: „you are such a naughty girl, Miki!“)

And as you see: even the youngest were interested in my art! That one –a lively work of art himself!, with even the colour of the ice cream matching the colour of the sweatshirt!- had really to be dragged away by his parents from my paintings, he wanted to stay there! I guess the parents were scared the ice cream would land on the paintings, and indeed I was scared too although, honestly, I think it would have been funny, somehow, to see the reaction of the parents and if they would offer to buy the painting...
It reminds me, many years ago, I was painting a watercolour landscape in nature, sitting on the ground, in Provence. Suddenly I saw an enormous tongue licking my painting and the whole landscape was transformed into a dog´s breakfast, quite literally! I glanced back and saw behind me a gigantic Saint Bernard, whose tongue, having finished with my painting, moved on to my face for dessert... By the way: the dog´s owner did not propose to pay for the painting, but thankfully kept HIS tongue in his mouth!

I ask you again: have you seen many times such small children in a normal exhibition? This only happens in the street. I am fascinated how such small children are really interested in paintings... and many times it happens that they start explaining the paintings to their parents! This was not the case with that one, as he cannot speak yet!

The problem with my young admirers is that they don´t buy my paintings. They prefer to spend their money on ice cream, I guess, and I must confess, in their place, I would do the same!!!!!!!

Nevertherless it was a very successful day yesterday in the older age category. I´ll tell you next time... if I can find the time to leave all my kiddies for a while!

God comes through The Wall

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Planet Goodaboom, Saturday 3rd March 2007


No, it´s not a painting from me, although I am fascinated by the likeness... it is just a fracture in the wall of a house in Villajoyosa, a small town on the coast 30 km north of Alicante. We were there yesterday, and it´s been about 7 years since I have been there.

The last time, I remember, I was there alone to sketch the old town with the rainbow houses.
A funny story... A young man came to me. He was a seaman by day and a flamenco singer by night. He said he was totally fascinated by my sketches, but somehow I had the feeling –a kind of feminine intuition...- that it was something more earthly which attracted him to me. Anyway... in spite of all my efforts, I could not get rid of him, and although he left me for a short time he returned swiftly with his 5 nephews and nieces, all small children between 3 and 5 years old. Then he insisted that I accompany them to meet his mother and say hello, they had never seen a foreign artist before and it would be a big honour for them if I would enter their house. The 50 children´s fingers were already grasping my arms and legs and dragging me, so I had no chance to say no. I had to cross the whole city with 5 children flapping around me like an insane skirt! I really felt like a big Spanish mamma! And those who know me understand the ridiculousness of the situation: I have always panicked at the thought of becoming a Mother!


Finally we reached the house. The children released me and rushed into the house to tell the good news to the grandmother (I guess they told her that their uncle was bringing his new fiancé, and not some foreign artist!!!) I used an instant of his inattention to escape from my sailor´s net and run away hell for leather. I was really panicked, I could see myself married into the bosom of a big Spanish family without even having time to realise what was going on!
I never came back to Villajoyosa then, out of fear to meet him again!

But yesterday I was not alone there, and I guess Kevin would have effortlessly convinced any seaman and flamenco singer to go away from me, if necessary....
The city had not changed at all. I have never in my life seen a place such as this where life and death are cohabiting in the same spot.
And if I had only 3 words to describe it, I would say:
„colour, chaos and romany“

Smaller than the bank note!

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Planet Goodaboom, Wednesday 28th February 2007


I was back in the Street Gallery last Sunday, after 4 weeks pause forced by the police and even more by the weather. And as I told: it was a successful day!
It seems that people had missed me and were happy to see me again there with all my paintings.
If I were arrogant I would dare to say:
„I bring the colour to that town!“


I sold that painting, called by Kevin „The Solitary Pine“. By the way, since I have know him, he is the one who gives titles to my paintings! This is the reason why they suddenly all have English titles...I hate to do it myself, perhaps because I hate to look at my paintings when they are finished: past is past!

This was the first one of a large series of miniatures I painted last year. My wise father had told me to do it, suggesting that many of my clients are older people who already have a long life behind them and have filled their house with a lot of stuff, and surely haven´t much place for a new picture on their wall!
How right he was! Many clients told me the same already. And this was exactly the point with my old Norwegian lady on Sunday. She loved my art, and wanted one at any cost, but had no place on her walls. She chose the smallest one!
Lucky for her, I would say, as the smallest also happens to be one of my favourite landscape paintings.
It was a very strange feeling, at the end, as she paid me: the note was bigger than the painting! I can tell you: this is an immense feeling of happiness, because it demonstrates so obviously that for some people, art is more important than money!

So... the solitary pine will soon hang on Norwegian walls. There are already many paintings from me decorating Norwegian walls, as these folk are my best clients. Norwegian love art, and love it with a natural simplicity. When they see a painting which they like, they don´t think twice: they just buy it, wherever it is, and without even asking who painted it.
Nice!