Dear
Diary
Feliz
Navidad!
Waking
up to a Christmas morning in Spain can be quite exciting and I was really
looking forward to the day. As I rushed to the studio at 10AM (yes, I took the
liberty to get up late, and I missed my walk at the beach), the festivity and
spirit could be felt in the air. I was surprised to see people walking down the
street wishing me ‘Happy Christmas’ as well!
While
it was officially a holiday, we had decided to paint till the afternoon and
then head for the much awaited extravagant Christmas feast! We had planned to
learn abstracts today. To be honest, I was nervous. While painting on the
canvas for the first time was actually very exciting, abstract painting is very
challenging.
As
a kid, I remember when my sister used to make an abstract design, I’d find it
extremely hard to make a head or a tail out of it and I took my own time to
start appreciating it. For most people [I realized this when I was showing my
paintings to my (left brained :P) friends as well], they said “abstract art is
probably not art.” “Does it serve a purpose?” “I can put any stroke on a canvas
and say it’s abstract. Then what?”
So
while I took on the herculean task to work on my first abstract painting, I was
thinking about what I wanted to show, what colour combinations I wanted to use
(bold or pastel or a mix), how I wanted to go about it. But unconsciously,
throughout the process, I think it was this day when I truly learnt about ‘art’
and about ‘YOU’ being in a painting.
Abstract
art, according to me, definitely has more freedom and shows a lot of passion
and energy. But it’s not without rules or limits. Trust me, there is a lot of
theory there too. And I got notes to read on it!
And
more importantly, what’s the fun of painting what you see everyday? Real
artists paint new pictures. They try to bring their artistic talent in what
they do. And each of us needs a form or expression which is more than plain
simple words! Are all of us artists? Well, maybe yes! We creatively express
ourselves when we speak, when we write, when we tell a joke, when we decide
what to wear, when we dance, when we paint.
Phew.
After
the enriching lesson, we went to Beckitt’s Bar and Restaurant (a favourite
among Marbellans). And, quite a feast it was. I will always marvel at the
amount of time people spend on a meal (and a special 4.5 hours on Christmas)
and relate it to the 10 minutes deadline dinner I’ve had in the first few days
of my MBA.
3
things I learnt:
(a) English on the menu should not
be taken for granted. It is rare, possibly a Christmas blessing
(b) Vegetarian is not a word in the
European dictionary
(c) Good food plus great
presentation equals half a day of eating
Now
follows my exotic feast
Duck
Liver Paˆte΄ with toasted Brioche, apricot and cranberry compote
Fillet
of Free Range Chicken with a cream pepper sauce and spring onion potato pure΄e
Christmas
pudding with brandy sauce
By the
end, I was just bucket full, hoping I would reach the studio on time the next
day!
Nicely written Kalra :)
ReplyDelete