Seeing an art exhibition always brings back memories, memories of the hands that taught me to paint, the techniques, the colours, but above all the emotion and feeling for art. When I see the work of an artist who has put that same love into art, I feel a great connection, even if it is not my artistic style. In this case, it is partly so.
When I studied drawing and painting, I did so privately in order to take an exam at an academy. We were introduced to numerous techniques and a programme to follow. That allowed me to experiment with styles and variety within art. Over time, I developed my own tastes, my own shapes and colours, but I always remember those first steps.
The same thing happened to me when I went to see this exhibition, the first part of which I have already brought you, in which I talked a little about the artist Irene López de Castro, who fell in love with a trip to Africa she made in 1989 and which inspired all these fabulous works. Beyond my taste for this type of painting, the professionalism and feeling she has put into each work is undeniable, which made me identify with the artist.
She drew from the mystery that this place represents, this space in the desert that contains so many adventures and experiences, the emotion that she then captured in many works of art, wonderful works of art.
Among the writings on the walls of the room is the legend of the place, a very interesting one in which a woman named Buctú, wise and hospitable, was the guardian of a water well and welcomed a caravan of exhausted merchants and saved them. A woman with a big smile and a peaceful gaze, which is why the place bears her name. A place full of Sudanese culture and architecture, a mixture of adobe and Andalusian styles.
This exhibition also commemorates the centenary of the death of Cristóbal Benítez, an explorer from Malaga who travelled to the Mecca of the Sahara and returned alive in 1880. A dream that the artist made her own and which reflects her connection with Mali. She sought peace and humanity, and this is clearly seen in each of her paintings, the landscapes, the faces, the depiction of everyday life in that place in her paintings.
Irene herself says that Africa is what conquers people, because the most powerful weapon is beauty. It is clear that it had conquered her and covered her with its magic.
In the previous post about this exhibition, I received comments about the beauty of the drawings and sketches on display, which also make up the artist's travel book. Even though they are small and are sketches, they are wonderful and beautiful works of art too, even though the paintings were enormous and the drawings were small.
But as I said at the beginning, it brought back memories of my chalk pastel drawings. At that time, although I don't know if they still exist today, one of the techniques was to paint with special pencils in sepia tones, several of them in different shades of brown, and those pencils had a chalky texture inside. The paintings were then smudged with a finger or with something called a blending stump or cotton swab.
These paintings brought all of this to mind and with very pleasant emotions. All the paintings were done in mixed media on canvas and came in various sizes, but most were very large.
I want to highlight the beauty with which the artist paints the fabrics, cloths, clothing, and above all the faces with their expressions. I saw the soul in the people, of that I have no doubt. But I also want to highlight the works that show everyday life or landscapes of the place, which convey a great deal of peace and harmony. The tonality in which all the works were created is perfect and harmonious.
I saw so much beauty with my own eyes when I entered the rooms of this wonderful exhibition. I had the privilege of being there, admiring the soul that the artist captured in her paintings. It was wonderful; I could feel the energy emanating from each work.
Thank you very much for joining me today. I wish you all a very happy Sunday. See you soon.
Amonet.
All photographs are my own.
