My Curatorial Debut!

Through my position as an IMAF Drawing Centre Assistant in London’s Courtauld Gallery, I was given the opportunity to curate a works on paper display to accompany a major Piet Mondrian and Ben Nicholson exhibition, Mondrian || Nicholson, In Parallel. The theme (the “grid”) and the centrepiece (Linda Karshan’s Untitled, 1995 ) were predetermined, and my role was to compose a coherent display on the grid using works from the Courtauld drawing and print collection that reflected the theme while also complementing Karshan’s impressive graphite “grid” drawing.

Figure 1. Linda Karshan, Untitled, 1995. Graphite on Paper.

The resulting display, entitled Lines Crossed: Grids + Rhythms on Paper, contains 17 works on paper that reveal different ways the grid has emerged from the 16th century to today. I have found the experience of preparing this exhibition to be incredibly rewarding, and thought it would be apt to post an article I have written on the display…even though it isn’t exactly suitable for a Travel Blog! This article is part of a Courtauld Gallery teachers’ resource pack, and is therefore intended for all levels of readership.

Just a few preliminary notes: This is written in the Queen’s English and all images not included in the article are linked to the Courtauld Gallery collection website. The information on the objects on display as written about in my article is based on current research and may not be entirely consistent with Courtauld Gallery website (which will be updated soon).

Lines Crossed: Grids + Rhythms on Paper

“Measure is the basis of beauty.” Plato

A grid is defined as a network of repeated horizontal and vertical lines that cross each other to form a series of squares or rectangles. “Lines Crossed” interprets this definition while investigating how the grid establishes proportion and balance, and helps create and measure space in drawings and prints from the Courtuald Collection. The display contains seventeen works dating from the 16th to the 21st century and represents both preliminary drawings and fully finished works. The pieces are grouped into five different categories corresponding to the various ways in which the grid has emerged in art production and include: mechanical, perspectival, design, narrative, and mise en page. This essay will explain each of the categories in more detail while elaborating on the works themselves.

Linda Karshan’s Untitled (Fig. 1) serves as an aesthetic and conceptual bridge between Mondrian || Nicholson and “Lines Crossed”. All three artists portray grid forms in their work – but to different ends. Mondrian’s compositions display a more apparent grid through the intersection of black lines on the surface of a predominantly white canvas. Nicholson was more involved with rectilinear shapes in space– or the square created by the grid. Karshan’s grid is not an appropriated or intentional form but instead, a manifestation of her internal rhythm; the marks she makes on the page correspond to the reach of her arm. Each artist also placed importance on the connection between rhythmic body movements (dance, sport, and heart beat) and art making and felt that keen natural intuition was key for successfully balancing their grid compositions. Mondrian specifically theorised that in order to produce a successful composition, all of the components of the image – each vertical and horizontal line, colour plane, and negative space – must be equally dominant in order to reach, what he termed, “dynamic equilibrium”. The importance of rhythm and movement in Mondrian and Nicholson’s work is further discussed in Christopher Green’s entry in the Mondrian || Nicholson catalogue.

Art critic and theorist Rosalind Krauss’s 1979 article “Grids” defines the grid within a Modernist, 20th century lens and describes it as an unnatural, non-narrative, stagnant structure. This provides an alternative definition of the grid as being an intentional, solitary form that developed in abstract art as a result of society’s attempts to scientifically organise and classify the natural word. While appropriate to consider in context to Mondrian || Nicholson, the majority of the works within this display do not fall within Krauss’ relatively contemporary scope.

Mechanical Grid: Squaring

Squaring is a transfer method where a measured grid is drawn on top of a preliminary drawing. The grid on a drawing proportionally matches a grid made on the final surface onto which the drawing will be transferred. The grid acts as a guide for where to place elements of the drawn composition on the final surface and is not a direct or exact transfer method. In squaring, the grid truly is a tool, an objective mechanism that guides two-dimensional replication. Mechanical squaring is still used today and the long history of the method can be traced back to the 18th Egyptian Dynasty (1550-1292 BCE), where sketches on papyrus, stone, or wood were transferred to the wall and painted. While squaring drawings presents one method of transfer for painting, squaring compositional drawings are often associated with the process of producing large-scale works such as frescoes, murals, and tapestries.

The 16th century depiction of Jonah and the Whale represents the most traditional and widespread application of the squaring grid in preparatory drawing. It is a completed composition that the artist invented and developed from imagination; it does not represent an actual event. The image derives from a popular biblical narrative and portrays the moment at which the repentant Jonah is ejected from the belly of the whale. In the background, Christ is shown resurrecting from the tomb – a miracle that Jonah’s story is commonly thought to foreshadow. As was common practise in the Renaissance, a carefully composed drawing such as this one would likely be drawn by a master artist while the actual transfer might have been undertaken by a member of the artist’s workshop.

Figure 2. Gasper van Wittel, View of Tivoli, 1700-1710. Graphite and ink on paper.

In both Gasper van Wittel’s View of Tivoli, 1700-10 (figure 2), and Frank Auerbach’s Studies for Oxford Street, 1957-59, the images represent observed landscape and urban scenes and are associated with finished paintings. These drawings are not a part of the same workshop tradition as the earlier Jonah composition and the artists themselves would have likely undertaken the actual process of transferring the sketches to the painting surface.

Squaring is the clearest use of a pure grid in the display and the only example where the grid bears no significance to the formation of the drawing it is transferring – it is purely a tool. The squaring grid places an objective measurement on top of a subjective image. In the process of transferring, the image will lose its coherence and each square of the grid will acts as an individual piece of the compositional puzzle. The grid then gives order to an otherwise complicated transfer process.

Perspective Grid

In a perspective drawing, the artist attempts to create the illusion of three-dimensional space in a two-dimensional image. In mathematical perspective systems, known as linear perspective, the grid acts as an exact measure for determining the relative size of objects as they recede into space. In Circle of Canaletto’s Parlatorium in a Venetian Convent , 18th c, for example, the underlying perspective grid is made clearly visible as structures that establish depth and volume, while simultaneously portraying the balance, proportion and accuracy of single vanishing point linear perspective. Although the Greeks and Romans had devised a perspectival system, the development of linear perspective is attributed to the Florentine painter Filippo Brunelleschi and was described in the writings of Leon Battista Alberti in his 1435 treatise, De Pitura.

Figure 3. Circle of Canaletto, Venetian Nunnery, with linear perspective lines superimposed by the author (Allison Wucher, 2012).

The basic concept for one-point, or single vanishing point, linear perspective is as follows: First the artist must establish a horizontal line that signifies the horizon in the image. The artist picks a vanishing point along the horizon line (typically in the center), and then diagonal lines are drawn from the edges of the picture to the vanishing point. Perpendicular lines are then drawn across the diagonals to create a structural grid that serves to organise the image and determine the scale objects within the illusionistic space. (Figure. 3)

The measured harmony and balance achieved through accurate perspective is exemplified in three of the four works included in this category. Pier Leone Ghezzi’s Palazzo Sacchetti, 1735, and Hans Bol’s Jerusalem, 1575, can be considered a pairing; both use a birds-eye linear one-point perspective to represent extant and celestial architectural formations on the land below. Bol’s representation of Jerusalem as a symmetrical, balanced grid coincides with the description of the holy city in the Book of Revelation, while Ghezzi’s drawing records an actual villa in the seaside city of Ostia, outside of Rome, built by architect Pietro da Cortona from 1626-9. The symmetry of the villa itself corresponds to ideals of Italian Renaissance and Baroque architecture while also incorporating functional fortification elements necessary to fend off occasional pirate attacks. The grid of the palazzo’s layout is one of aesthetic and functional design.

Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Gothic Arch, Etching on Paper

In opposition to Bol, Ghezzi, and Circle of Canaletto, the etching Gothic Arch (Fig 4) by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, from his series of sixteen etchings titled Invenzeioni Carpricci di Carceri (or Invention of Imaginary Prisons, 1745), presents a disorientating architectural calamity. The balance and measurement of linear perspective is ignored and there is no perspectival grid recessing into the distance. Instead, Piranesi created “impossible objects”, where the multiple corridors and brick archways produce an irrational, vast space without indication of a vanishing point. The Gothic Arch is summed up well by art historian Malcolm Campbell, who stated that the cacophony of architectural elements, “…conspire to underscore Piranesi’s assault on perspectival convention and to mock our ocular – and intellectual – efforts to rationalise this space as ‘real’ architecture.” The grid within the Gothic Arch is seen in the repetition of architectural forms that are informed by accurate perspective but actively avoid following it.

Design Grid

The grid, as a network of horizontal and vertical lines, is the underlying structure necessary for coherently organising and drafting preliminary, instructional designs for the production of material objects. In this context, the grid is the objective foundation from which the innovation of design is developed. The grid reflects the physical and structural restrictions necessary to produce a functional object, and it is scaled proportionately to the size and shape of the final product. Of the design drawings in this display, three are plans for ceiling ornaments, and one is a decorative design for a domestic object.
While the origin of architectural design drawings can be found in ancient Greece, it could be argued that technical architectural drawings, specifically those based in geometrically accurate scaling and proportion became common in the Gothic period. Design drawings were then further developed with linear perspective during the Renaissance. Technical drawings of luxury objects run parallel to the history of architectural drawings and there are many examples of extant design proposals for commissioned objects from Renaissance workshops. However, when considering the grid as a design element it can certainly be found in prehistoric civilisations that incorporated geometric design into their adornment and possessions.

The three ceiling designs (by James Thornhill, Alfred Stevens, and another attributed to Marco Pino) on display all have unique characteristics but their common feature, besides the fact that they are all ceilings, is that they elaborate upon the ornamental embellishments of a larger structure. The fourth design, a tray design from the Omega Workshop, is different in that it presents a design for an entire object. However its function, similar to that of the ceiling designs, is to describe a decorative surface design rather than the construction of the object itself.

Narrative Grid

The narrative grid utilises vertical and horizontal lines to divide a single page into multiple pictorial spaces that can be viewed together, regardless of whether or not the series of scenes are narrative. The grid organises the space and provides an elegant solution to static pictorial imagery by enabling artists to not only portray a sequence of events across a single page, but also use different sized boxes within the grid to create a hierarchy of relative importance. The history of narrative art can be considered the history of art itself and the partition of a single surface in order to create narratives has continued through the centuries. The use of narrative friezes and scenes are found in Ancient Egypt and Greece, a more grid-like formation of space is seen in early Christian frescoes and icons, and continued into illustrations of biblical texts and interior decorative painting in the Renaissance. Today, we can see the narrative grid the most clearly in mediums like comic books, but the grid as a way of organising space is also visible in the typographical design of websites.

Of the two examples of Narrative Grid on display neither is an example of a continuous narrative “storyboard”, but both function as part of larger narrative publications. The first is a preliminary drawing for an engraving by Johann Jakob von Sandrart, 1680s, and represents half a page of scenes from the Old Testament books of Kings and Chronicles. Because this drawing is intended as a design for an engraved print, the images are actually reversed. When printed, the image reads as a partially chronological sequence of events from the Book of Kings (the top row depicts chapters 23-25 of the second Book of Kings) and the Books of Chronicles (the bottom row shows chapters 20 and 10 from the second Book of Chronicles and chapter 22 from the first Book). The purpose of these images was to perhaps remind the readers of the most important events from each of these chapters. The decorative, faux architectural elements framing each of the scenes provide windows into the individual pictorial spaces, while also allocating a small space for the corresponding biblical verses to be written (the small rectangular boxes beneath each image contains a verse in the final print). The grid here allows for illusionistic and flat, two-dimensional space to coexist.

Anton Joseph Prenner and Frans van Stampart, Prodromus page 24, 1735. Engraving on paper.

The other example of narrative grid is in Frans van Stampart and Anton Joseph von Prenner’s engraved page from the Prodromus (Figure 5), 1735, which is an early type of presentation catalogue reproducing highlights from the Imperial Habsburg collection installed in the Stallburg Gallery in Vienna. Prodromus means “introduction,” and, as such, this publication offered an introduction to the collection. The Prodromus is directly linked to a tradition established by David Teniers who “originated” the illustrated catalogue through the publication of engraved reproductions from Archduke Leopold Wilhelm’s Italian collection in his Theatrum Pictorium, 1660. These same Italian works became part of the extensive and significant Habsburg collection, and were again reproduced in the Prodromus. The orientation of the paintings in the engraving is completely fictive, but the Prodromus still reflects the installation style of the 17th century, which was to blanket the entire wall with as many objects as possible. Rigid symmetry and balance were also ideal when hanging paintings, so much in fact that many were ruthlessly “formatized”, meaning they were either cut down or another piece of canvas was stuck onto them, to allow them to fit the trend of symmetrical hanging. Of the Stallburg collection, 40% of the pieces were apparently “formatized” in this manner. Also, paintings were hung with consideration for how their pictorial space related to neighbouring paintings. For example, two pieces with figures that were scaled in differently, or had conflicting horizon lines would not be hung next to each other.

The Prodromus page reflects the same ideals and considerations of hanging a physical gallery, but only represents the most important objects in the collection. The central image depicting Explosion from the Garden is flanked by two reproductions of paintings based on Michelangelo’s famed presentation drawings, The Dream (in the Courtauld Collection) and The Rape of Ganymede, and is topped by Titian’s Rape of Europa, now in the National Gallery. The grid used in the Prodromus is created by the frames around the paintings and allows them to be organised, categorised, and recorded in a systematic and coherent way. The grid is not narrative in the sense that it delineates a series of events, but instead narrates trends in picture collecting and the history of these paintings as significant objects worthy of reproduction and distribution.

Mise en Page: Compositional Grid

Mise en Page is French for “placement on the page”, and describes the way an artist lays out forms across a two dimensional surface. It is applied specifically to drawings that are not worked up into a full composition but are rather an assortment of multiple doodles floating in space. It is argued that Mise en page originated in the late 15th century when paper became more widely available and drawing developed into a process of artistic invention and freedom rather than a necessary technical step for the design of paintings (squaring), luxury objects, or architecture (design drawings). By the 18th century Mise en page was an aesthetic ideal that was perfected by Late-Baroque French artists. The term Mise en page in the context of this display describes works where the placement of forms on the page is not bound by a visible structure and instead appears to be purely intuitive. However, the grid is still intimated, especially in the Stefano Della Bella Studies of Animals, mid-17th c, and the Sheet of  Nine Figure Studies attributed to Giovanni Battista Piranesi, mid-18th c, in how the forms are composed in an orderly, balanced, equally spaced manner across the page. It is as if a grid frame is invisibly transcribed onto the negative space in the image, creating boundaries between Della Bella’s Animals and Piranesi’s Figures. The function of both of these sheets is perhaps as a collection of models to be used as minor characters in the engravings by the respective artists.

Workshop of Charles Le Brun, Figure Studies. Chalk on Paper.

The Figure Studies by the Workshop of Charles Le Brun, mid-17th c, (Figure 6) suggests the grid in a slightly different way than Della Bella and Piranesi. This drawing could either be a page of practise sketches or a result of the artist working out aspects of a composition. The grid in this drawing is enacted through the rhythm of repeated forms across the page. Within the drawing there seem to be couplets of forms; two outstretched arms grasping a cloth, two female busts with their elbows held high and forefingers grazing their lips, two thumbs clutching fabric. The artist is searching for the perfection proportion and placement in their renderings and rather than erasing or throwing away the paper, they simply repeat the form and draw another line.

The Le Brun Workshop Studies is very much connected to Linda Karshan’s Untitled, 1995 (Figure 1). Karshan’s drawing is also a search for balance and perfection, but instead of searching through figurative renderings, her drawing is an expression of her own body’s rhythm and measurements. The drawing was made by marking the page as she literally walked around it, turning each corner after counting to eight, a count that represents her internal tempo. Each line Karshan draws corresponds to the reach of her arm and the placement of the lines is a reflection of her body’s position in relation to the page. Nothing is measured using a ruler or external tool. Every line drawn is deliberate and aims at accurately transcribing her body’s balance and proportion onto the surface. The final product of her movements reveals the form of a grid. Karshan, like the Le Brun Workshop Studies, did not intend to produce this exact image, this is just the image that came out of her creative movements.

Mise en page seems to reveal a true compositional grid; an innate tendency artists have for placing forms on a sheet that always seem to reflect the nature of the grid as a repetitive, organising, underlying structure that balances and makes sense of the image on the page.

-Allison Wucher, 2012.

Bibliography:

Krauss, Rosalind, “Grids”, from October, Vol.9, 1979
De Baranano, Kosme, Linda Karshan, Institut Valencia D’Art Modern, Valencia, 2002

16th Century map of Nicosia from the Leventis Museum showing its Venetian 'petal' walls

An art nouveau style door from 1909 in Nicosia

Today M and I took the bus to the capitol of Cyprus: Nicosia/Lefkosia.  The capitol is divided between the Greek south and the Turkish north and is known locally as Lefkosia. Since the 4th century AD the city had some form of the name Lefkosia.  When the Lusignan Crusaders from France arrived in the region  the name Nisocia (Nicosie in French) was also given to the city. The city is literally divided by a wall that can only be crossed by pedestrian traffic via Ledra Street (which M and I did). In comparison to the Turkish portion of the city, the Greek side is much more affluent and heavily populated with a number of commercial shopping areas. The primary attractions in Nicosia/Lefkosia are the Cyprus Archeological Museum, the St. Sophia Church (which we missed), the 16th-century flower/snowflake shaped Venetian wall surrounding the city, and the border crossing between the Greek and Turkish side.

Just a glimpse of the Venetian Wall

The bus ride to Nicosia was easily accessible (with a bus stop just outside of where we are staying) and very affordable (7 euros each for a round trip). It was a largely uneventful hour-long journey in which both M and I promptly fell asleep with open books and ipads on our laps. Based on the fleeting seconds in which I could keep my eyes open during the drive I can say that we didn’t miss much in terms of scenery. Rolling hills that were not particularly attractive flanked the freeway. The cities we passed or drove through could have been any city in Europe/America with the ubiquitous Ikea, malls, and car dealerships. We arrived in Nicosia through the New City, the newer expanse of the Nicosia outside of the Venetian walls. The street we drove down was lined with typical middle to upscale brand shops and department stores. The bus dropped us off at Plateia Solomou, located just outside of the southwest Venetian walls of the old city.

Upon exiting the bus we shook out our sleepy bodies, donned our sunglasses, and made our way to the first stop on our itinerary: The Cyprus Archeological Museum. The museum is located outside of the Venetian walls, to the west of the old city (and a 10-minute walk from where the bus dropped us). Fittingly, the architecture of the entry to the museum is a portal of white columns with iconic capitals topped with a simple marble pediment. The Museum, founded in 1882, contains the largest collection of archeological finds from the island. However, many of the more significant pieces have left the island and can be found in the US, UK, and in other major collections in Europe. The most extensive smuggling of artifacts (around 35,000 pieces) was by US Ambassador, Luigi Palma di Cesnola in the 1870s. A number of these objects became a part of the then newly established Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. Also, some of these smuggled pieces were part of the collection of Stanford University but were destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. (oops!) The darling of the collection is the Aphrodite of Soli, 1st century BC, which is a classic and exquisite example of Roman sculpture (and typical in that it is missing its arms and legs). Another highlight is the army of 2000 terracotta figures from Northwest Cyprus from the 7th-6th centuries BC. M and I had our own favorites (as seen below), but since photography is technically not allowed in the museum, I could only capture hurried, and therefore blurry, photographs. The museum was mostly empty apart from a tour group of about 20 middle-aged Germans. M refreshed her German language skills by shadowing the group of fanny-pack-clad tourists and relayed to me some interesting tidbits of the tour guide’s commentary. We learned which pieces were particularly unique to Cypriot art and which were influenced by other cultures. Also, the guide informed the group about how the Romans would simply replace the heads of the imperial statues as opposed to constructing a completely new portrait statue every time the ruler changed. Smart. Whoever came up with that idea had a good head on their shoulders (Zing!).

Terracotta figures. They are arranged the way in which they were found in excavation

One of my favorite busts in the museum

M's favorite: ancient masks

memorial (?) niche statue

The Cyprus Archeological Museum took about an hour to view. The orientation of the rooms is such that the visitors are directed chronologically and thematically through the 14 rooms. The collection, while it did contain a few gems, was relatively standard as far as archeological museums go. It is apparent that Cyprus lost many of its most impressive artifacts to other collections. This is not to say that we did not appreciate the collection in the Cyprus Archeological Museum!

M and I then made our way to the Old City, over the relatively well-preserved Venetian moat and walls. We wandered up Ledra Street, one of the larger pedestrian commercial streets of the city, lined with clothing stores and tourist shops. We headed to our lunch destination, stopping in a few shops on the way and taking note of the old doors fronting many of the buildings on the side streets (see header photo). Following lunch and a walk through more side streets we came to the Leventis Municipal Museum. This small museum, which was nicely organized and appeared to be well-funded, traced the history of Nicosia from 2000 BC. It cataloged the history of Nicosia/Leftosia’s rule and status through paintings, prints, household and luxury objects, and local craft. While we were in the museum clouds suddenly converged, the sky darkened, and buckets of rain fell from the sky. Luckily it all cleared up by the time we finished with the museum…perfect!

Ledra Street...

Leventis Museum: a book published when the British took control of Cyprus

Unique pendant with 4 different male faces depicted. It is possibly meant to represent the four winds in the Leventis Museum.

The different faces of the above pendent.

Traditional belt buckles in the Leventis Museum

Unfortunately by the time we finished with the Leventis Museum many of the other sites we could have visited were closed. For some reason everything closes before 3:30 in the off season (meaning before May and after October). So instead we meandered through the narrow winding streets of the city, eventually making our way to the pedestrian border crossing on Ledra Street. It was a bit strange to be walking down a street and suddenly hit a dividing wall, built up of debris and cement and topped with sirens and barbed wire. The Old City as a whole, outside of the more developed avenues like Ledra Street,  could be described as cluttered. There were plenty of instances of “beautiful urban decay” which did make for some pleasing photographs (which may be considered “poverty porn” or perhaps more accurately: “ruin porn“). Granted, we didn’t walk through the ENTIRE Old City but it seemed that it was a consistent mix of interspersed  tourist shops, industrial fabrication buildings, boutiques, restaurant, corner shops, and private residences.

This is apparently the symbol for Nicosia. It is embeded in the sidewalks. We don't really understand why there is a person walking on a diving board? or maybe it is a DIVIDING board...

Piles of things around the sidestreets of South Nicosia

A wall in south Nicosia

Witty: a Berlin Wall "Checkpoint Charlie" restaurant next to the bufferzone...

Crossing the boarder was straightforward and we heeded the advice given by our host’s and had a loose paper stamped instead of our actual passport. I don’t think this precaution is completely necessary anymore for US passport holders but I suppose it is better to be safe than sorry!

The Turkish side of Nicosia was not terribly different or impressive in comparison to the South. We literally just walked around for about 30 minutes, bought a bag of roasted chickpeas, and went back across the border. It was apparent that this side of the city is not as mainstream commercial or as wealthy as the South, but the side streets were essentially the same. The most visible difference was the  number of Turkish flags flown high alongside images of the great Atatürk. Yep, this is Turkey!

North Nicosia is proud to be Turkish... the Ataturk is over on top of the building on the right.

A medical supply shop with a sense of humor in North Nicosia

Kids playing in a downpour puddle in North Nicosia

After crossing back over the border we headed towards the Syrian Arab Friendship Club for dinner (read more about this DELICIOUS meal in the Cyprus Food Post!).  The restaurant was located outside of the Old City through a wealthy area that seemed to have a healthy ex-pat population (as indicated by the American School, Viennese bakery, Ballet studio, and various other international institutions). There was certainly a stark contrast between the clutter of the Old City and the open suburban sprawl of this section of the New City. We boarded our bus back to Limassol around 8:30 and reflected on our day exploring the last divided Capitol with tummies full of Meze.

M enjoying the flowers of the New City of Nicosia

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Kolossi Castle

Me in an archway of the Basilica in Ancient Kourion

View to the Rock of Aphrodite.

Today I visited some important sites around Limassol with my hosts, J&R. They were very nice to take me around and will be taking me to a couple of other sites around the island. This is incredibly helpful because there are very few public transport options in Cyprus so the alternative is taking the big bus tours, which certainly is not as personal or comfortable!

Our first stop was Kolassi Castle. It is,”a fine example of military architecture originally constructed in the 13th century and subsequently rebuilt in its present form in the middle of the 15th century. It served first as the Grand Commandery of the Knights Templar, and after the fall of Acre in 1291 for some years, as the headquarters of the Knights of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem.” (read more at CyprusCastles.com)

The square fortified castle only has a few embellishments, including one fresco of the crucifixion with the Virgin and St. John the Baptist, several fire places with carved Fleur-de-lis,  on the exterior there is a metal coat of arms, and there are several other carved bits here and there. In the basement they stored wine and outside they had a storage warehouse for sugar, both of which they made on the premises. The light sand color of the stone of the castle gives it a much “warmer” feeling than those of Western Europe. From the roof of the castle you have a 360 degree view of the surrounding region. Luckily it was a sunny day so the view was great! The area is FILLED with orange groves and vineyards. The trees are full of oranges and the orange season is almost over (which is why the Kean Factory next door to the flat is running constantly!)

Crucifixion Fresco

View from the top of the castle looking onto the sugar refining facility/storage

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Following the Kolossi Castle we visited the ruins of ancient Kourion. Kourion was likely settled in Neolithic times and occupied until the 13th century. The ruins include the House of Eustolios (much like the Slope Houses in Ephesus) which contain several well preserved mosaics from the 5th century A.D. There is an incredible view from the House of Eustolios onto the Kourion Beach and nearby bluffs (bluffs where apparently the British house their military personnel and families for the nearby British base). It certainly would have been incredible to see the House of Eustolios when it was in tact, view and all. Seeing this view made me to consider what the view would have been like from the Slope Houses in Ephesus if the bay had not silted over.

Mosaic tiles and a view of the sea

figurative imagery, text, and geometic shapes. I am a fan of the box.

View of the sea and of the structure protecting the Eustolios House

We walked up to the amphitheater, which still occasionally holds concerts and plays (and has been retrofitted to do so, for better or for worse). The view from the amphitheater was equally impressive and it would be very exciting to see a concert there! Next we walked to the Agora (market) and Early Episcopal Basilica, one of the earliest and most important on the Island from the 5th century A.D. Here there were a few standing columns and arches. I am now always skeptical as to what was actually standing when the ruins were excavated and what was reconstructed (and how/why they decided to reconstruct it that way). However this didn’t stop me from enjoying the general organization of the structural elements with the seemingly “natural” spread of spoila.

Amphitheater

the Agora (market)

Leaning on a column in Kourion

View from the Basilica Site. You can see the Kourion Beach and the bluffs where the Brits live.

Our last few stops were the house of the gladiator (with some nicely preserved mosaics of armored figures) and the bathes. Overall I was very impressed with the ruins, which was certainly heightened by the view and SUN.

Back in cat country!

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Following the ruins we had lunch on the Kourion Beach and then continued on to Aphrodite’s Rock. The scenery around Aphrodite’s rock was excellent and I was very excited to see some white rocks and turquoise sea. The beach near the famous rock is covered in tennis ball size white and light gray smooth rocks. Many couples use the rocks to write out their names and encircle them with a rock heart formation…for good luck in love. This practice is much more appealing than the toilet paper and plastic bags that people have tied to the surrounding bushes and trees which represent wishes (I think). It is pretty unfortunate to see trash tied to trees in such a pretty place. Nevertheless,  I was very impressed with the natural and historical beauty surrounding Limassol and I am looking forward to exploring other parts of the island!

White and Blue near Aphrodite's Rock

Ahhhh.

Ice cream while you enjoy the view?

I enjoyed this composition of colors and shapes!

Just hanging out.

There's the rock! I don't see much beach foam for her to crawl out of though...

J and me posing on the beach of Aphrodite's Rock

Trashy

The rock of love minus Bret Michaels

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The sunny beach of Limassol!

Hello! After a long hiatus from travel blogging I AM BACK! I have been living in London since the Fall of 2010, attending graduate school, and I have another blog which is dedicated to my London experience soon to come: Londinner.com. I will also add something about London to this blog.

I have had some other small travel excursions since I moved to London: a weekend in Paris, a hellish 36 hour return flight to the US during the snow dusting of Western Europe in order to have much needed friend and family holiday time, and a class trip to Belgium. However I have chosen my next two trips to include on the blog: Cyprus and Spain. For the second week of April I am spending the week in Cyprus with my roommate, M. We will be staying with family friends in Limassol and visiting various places around the island and relaxing. The reason I decided to visit Cyprus is: the possibility for good weather/beach, the Byzantine icons, and Meze (Turkish/Greek/Syrian/Lebanese/axis of evil version of Tapas…see my Turkey posts for more on this). Also I enjoy the family friends we are staying with so that was another reason to visit!

Limassol: Day One

We arrived in Limassol/Lemesos late in the evening on the 5th of April. After enjoying a fabulous welcome meal of ratatouille and spanakopita made by our hosts we slept soundly and awoke to a sunny day! It was about 74 degrees and we promptly put on shorts and decided to take a leisurely walk to the old part of town.

We are staying in a flat about a mile or so away from the old town of Limassol, located next to an orange juice factory called Kean. The facility simultaneously exudes the pleasant aroma of oranges and the undesirable odor of decaying fruit, depending on which part of the apartment complex you are in. Luckily the flat we are inhabiting is positioned in the former category. So after a very nice breakfast (oh yes, Greek yogurt) with our hosts we headed on a long walk down to town. Also, like Turkey, Cyprus is a Cat Country…which I am a huge fan of.

The oranges popping out the the roof of the Kean Factory. Apparently there used to not be a roof at all!

View of the mountains from our host's flat.

There is a very nice promenade along the beach which we were able to take full advantage of. We walked as far as the Medieval Castle and decided to scope out eateries. My first impression of Limassol is that it isn’t terribly aesthetically appealing. It is a mix of decaying older buildings with some personality and new developments that largely lack a soul. There is a very large and wealthy Russian population here so there are then many buildings and shops that reflect a more Russian mode. There is a small pedestrian shopping strip along St. Andrew Street that has souvenir shops and a few nut/olive oil/Cypriot food product shops (which I will return to to buy large amounts of nuts and dried fruit to cart back to London).  The old town is a network of narrow streets where most of the (older) structures are covered in a layer of ocher dust that one would expect of a Mediterranean seaside town. There are not many white buildings like there are on other Greek Islands. Limassol has a Turkish part of town which we didn’t explore much. After exploring various side streets to check out the cafes, bars, and eateries to which we may return at another point in our stay, we ended up eating at Meze Taverna. It was one of the first small, seemingly authentic Cypriot restaurants that we passed. Which, as it turns out, is one of the better restaurants for authentic Meze in the city. (Read more about this in the Cyprus: Food post). It was excellent and SO MUCH food.

Classical Statue, Mannequin, and Human on St. Alexander Street in Limassol.

A bike repair shop in the old town

Trompe l'oeil doors and windows on St. Alexander Street

After lunch we slowly made our way back up to the flat. We walked on the beach enjoying the sand and surf on our feet. Oh, it has been so long! We stopped for coffee at the Limassol Nautical Club, located right on the beach across the street from where we are staying. We then returned to the flat and spent the evening relaxing with our hosts.

This man is pushing a stroller in a speedo.

Ahh....the beach!

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Mango truck

3/28-3/30

My final days in Lima were filled mostly with eating and running errands around town. The day I returned from Cusco I got very sick and ended up bed ridden for 24 hours. I must say that I am very surprised that I didn’t get TERRIBLY sick at all over the past 9 months of traveling. I guess I just have some good luck! I also visited various friends that I have made in Lima to say my farewells to them. And, of course, I packed. It took me a little while to figure out how to get all my frames from Cusco into a proper bag! I accomplished most everything I wanted to do in these final few days before my FINAL DAY IN PERU!

Beetle wing earrings I ran across while running my final errands at Las Pallas

Beautiful!

3/31/10 LAST DAY OF GELMAN

Last morning! This is what I have seen every morning waking up in Lima! I will miss this!

Last day in Peru!

Today was very hectic (obviously). Tonight I catch a red eye flight from Lima to Newark. I will arrive at 7:30 AM tomorrow morning!
This morning I got my hair done (I have to look nice for my return to the USA!). Then I met Karina for our last lunch! Awww! After eating pesto pasta together at Karina’s house (just the two of us) I was able say goodbye to the rest of the family and visit Fina in her office. It was great to see Karina, Fina, and the rest of the family one last time. I was so appreciative of ALL OF THEIR HELP AND HOSPITALITY!!  After this I met Renee for a final farewell. I will miss Renee! She has been a great friend! After all that visiting I got back to packing and then around 6 I went with Anita to get some final groceries (snacks for the plane ride!) and sandwiches for dinner.
At 7 I finally finished packing and Gloria finished cleaning my room (there are new guests here to fill my room already! Although I guess I can’t call it my room anymore…). Everything was ready and all we had to do was sit and wait for the cab. The cab was 20 minutes late but I had a nice time sitting and chatting with Anita and Gloria. I will miss Gloria and it was so nice to meet Anita! Goodbye Casa Retablo!! I will miss you! On the way to the airport there was a lot of traffic and we arrived at 9:10… which I thought was cutting it a little close. But it allll worked out. I got on the plane and everything was fine. No hang ups. AND it only cost $25 for my extra bag (as opposed to the $170 I paid when I left Russia)!! Excellent!!!
As I flew away from Lima I reflected on the three months I spent there. In the end I feel it was very successful but also a lot of fun. I am looking forward to coalescing my Gelman experience when I get back to the USA. GOODBYE PERU!!! GOODBYE GELMAN!!!
The plane ride back to the USA was largely uneventful and I landed safely. My Aunt met me at Newark Airport and we drove to my grandparents house where I was reunited with my family and my plump cat, Phoebe. Now, it is time for a nap. I have had quite a journey…!!!

Last Sunset!

Santiago hanging out on the patio with me with all the luggage (only some of that is mine.. the rest belongs to the new tenants!)

THAT is my load... Not TOO bad for 3 months... right?

Goodbye room! (this is my tea corner)

Goodbye Room!

Goodbye Lima!

Hello America (we are over North Carolina I think?)

Here I come!

Almost there!

About to touch down: ending my Gelman!

Right before my post-Gelman nap: A welcome back to the USA card from my mom (who is in California.. I am in Connecticut) and my very happy cat..

AMAZING TACU TACU FROM PUNTA AZUL

Great group shot at AlmaZen for my last meal!

3/20

Iara and I went for lunch at Via Via, a “gringo” restaurant that is run by Pauline, the woman who helped me translate with Julia yesterday evening . I had a nice vegetarian Causa and a passion fruit juice and orange fresca.

View from Via Via

My Causa!

mmmmm canchita

Iara's Chicken

In the evening I got a vegetarian Pizza from a small pizzeria that wasn’t too bad at all! I brought it back to the room and ate it with the basil I brought from Lima.

Personal veggie pizza

3/21

Today Iara and I went to have lunch at a vegetarian place that was pretty decent. I had Lorco de Zapallo (Squash stew with rice), salad, yogurt, and a minty drink.

Salad, yogurt, and my mostly finished Lorco de Zapallo

Yogurt looks good!

Iara's Egg on rice

3/22

At 1 Anita and I went to meet Renee, Carey (Renee’s Father), and Cassie (Renee’s Room mate) to go to lunch at Aioli to try to the Lomo Saltado (Peruvian beef stir fry) that our friend Jose raved about. It was pretty good Lomo Saltado I guess… but a little too salty and the steak was a little over cooked.

Aioli's Lomo Saltado (typically you will have this with Tacu Tacu or potatoes... but they were out of Tacu Tacu so I got a salad instead!)

Renee and her fish!

Renee, Cassie, Me, Anita, and Carey!

In the evening Renee, Anita, Carey, and I had two for one Pisco Sours at the Thunderbird Hotel’s Sky Las Americas Restaurant and Cocktail lounge on the 21st floor with a view of the sun setting over Lima. It was very pleasant had good conversations. We convinced Carey to come to Cusco with us! We then continued on to Ono Sushi (where they also had a two for one deal on Sushi) . We got SO MUCH sushi. It was fairly yummy and not too expensive (which is always nice).

View from Sky las Americas on top of the Thunderbird Hotel in Miraflores!

Another view

Setting sun

Pisco Sours

Locuma sours!

Anita and Carey!

Renee and Me!

Well... we destroyed that sushi!

3/23/10

Breakfast: fruit and yogurt. Here you can see papaya, mango, Island bananas, grapes, watermelon, and prunes. (no I didn't eat all of them at once).

check out those island bananas!

Today I finally was able to go out for lunch with Karina! I met her in Park Kennedy (in Miraflores) and we walked to the Pardo’s Chicken in Larcomar (the huge tourist mall on a cliff overlooking the sea in Miraflores). Pardo’s Chicken is a chain chicken restaurant that has locations all over Lima. It is very popular and they serve HUGE portions of chicken. I am happy to say that the chicken was actually pretty delicious and I was impressed! (I got this) It was very moist and affordable (excellent combination). It was also great to see Karina again and I hope I get to see her again before I leave Peru next week!

View from the Pardo's Chicken in Larcomar

Hey shadowy Karina!

Chicken, fries, salad, and chicha. Looks good to me!

3/24

Erin and I went for dinner at the restaurant Aldea Yanapay Restaurant and Café (which is a restaurant associated with the Hostel I am staying in. It is a charitable restaurant that gives its proceeds to orphanages). We had falafel, tuquitos, and salad that we shared. It was decent food! The restaurant itself has some pretty eccentric decor. There are stuffed animals and things hanging from the ceiling and all sorts of bright colors all over. It definitely has the feeling of a kid’s room (fitting with the charitable cause of the restaurant).

The Aldea Yanapay Restaurant decor

another view

HEY ERIN!

Erin and Me waiting for our meal in Aldea Yanapay Restaurant

Grub

decor by night!

Weird box for our check

3/25/10

This evening Erin, Renee, Anita, Carey, and I went to dinner at Sara’s Organic Bistro (I went here with Brian last time I was here). I got a salad and mushroom ceviche. They were both DELICIOUS but I don’t think everyone else was as pleased with their meals as I was. Renee got Alpaca steak which was also pretty tasty… so at least we were both happy! We followed this with a dessert at Jack’s Cafe, a VERY popular restaurant here in Cusco which is ALWAYS busy and filled with people from all over the world. The desserts were excellent. I just had a chocolate chip cookie but we all ended up sharing our desserts which included brownies, chocolate cake, and carrot cake. This was followed by some drinks at Bullfrogs Bar where there was a band playing pretty good covers of rock and reggae songs.

Window display at Sara's Organic Bistro

Honestly pretty darn good Caesar Salad

Erin's pasta salad

mushroom ceviche... YUM

Renee's Alpaca

CARROT CAKE SO GOOD

RENEE LOVES HER CHOCOLATE CAKE

ERIN LOVES HER COFFEE (and brownie)

Renee, Gloria, and friends at Bullfrogs Bar (where they have decent Mojitos)

Band playing at Bullfrogs

The gang at Bullfrogs

3/26/10

Today I followed Erin to the main market in Cusco so she could eat some local grub on the cheap (super cheap.. like $1 cheap). Erin had her Quinoa soup and egg with rice. We walked around the crowded and bustling food portion of the market and saw all sorts of fun/gross/interesting things. In the evening Erin and I returned to Jack’s Café for dinner. I had Bean and Cheese Tortillas (pretty damn good) and Erin had French Toast ( absolutely amazing).  This was followed by a fun evening in the bars of Cusco (we joined a pub crawl).

Market: Bread section

Erin enjoying eating like a local

Bean and cheese dish at Jack's

Erin's AMAZING French Toast

She's happy!

Pub Crawl group.

3/27/10

We enjoyed lunch at El Encuentro, a partner to the restaurant of the same name that Brian and I enjoyed in my last visit to Cusco. Here I had some excellent quinoa soup.  In the evening Erin and I had dinner with a few friends we met in Cusco: Jonny (British) and Felix (Peruvian). We tried out an Indian restaurant called Maikana. It was ok. I shouldn’t expect too much from INDIAN FOOD in PERU though. After dinner I ended up returning to Jack’s Cafe YET AGAIN for desserts with Renee, Gloria, and Leander.

Leander, Me, Gloria, and Renee at Jack's!

3/30 LAST GREAT MEALS OF PERU!

Today I had lunch with Anita at Punto Azul where we split some good ceviche with some EXCELLENT tacu tacu made with black beans and shell fish (see photo at the top of the post).

Punta Azul Ceviche

In the evening I went out with Renee, Gloria, and Albeto for a Farewell dinner! We went to AlmaZen (My favorite!!!) and had some delicious stuffed tomatoes, artichoke soufflés, lentil curries, and risottos. Unfortunately we didn’t have an incredibly finale dessert like the one Brian and I shared at Astrid y Gaston but the meal I shared with my Peruvian buddies was excellent none-the-less. I am so happy that I could have this final meal with them! I have had a wonderful time in Peru because of all the great friends I have made here! I CAN’T BELIEVE MY TIME IN PERU AND MY GELMAN ARE ABOUT TO END!!!!! Wow. Has it really been 9 months already?

Last Meal at AlmaZen!

Yessss! Feast!

Lentil Curry

Artichoke Souffle with mushrooms and salad (the winner of the dishes!)

Stuffed tomato

Our desserts: curry chocolate cake.

Group Shot! I'll miss you guys!!!

Cleaning a St. Michael statue from the top of La Cathedral

One of the cusco school paintings and frames I purchased

detail

The purpose of this visit to Cusco was to speak to artisans and workshops that produce Colonial Cusco School style paintings. I arrived to Cusco on my own but I met up with Erin, a good friend from high school, as well as with Gloria, Renee, Anita, and Carey (Renee’s father) who arrived the day after I did. Unlike Ayacucho, I did not have an art exporter to help me find workshops so I had to go around and ask the artisans who had shops if I could see their workshops. Most of them shook their heads and said that their workshops were too far away to visit easily. My limited Spanish was also a hindrance and I depended both on my friends and people that I met in Cusco to help me communicate more smoothly. In the end I was able to visit one painting workshop which was very fruitful. I am very pleased that I was able to return to Cusco as I found it rewarding in terms of my Gelman Project and had a lot of fun with my friends as well.

3/24/10

Today I arrived in Cusco! My journey to Cusco was mostly uneventful minus a minor taxi accident on the way to the airport (this is the 2nd minor accident that I have been in in 3 days). This resulted in a slightly stressful delay in my arrival to the airport.  I was met at the airport by Rocio, one of the managers of Hostel Magico, the hostel I will be staying it. She was very nice and we had a good chat on the way to the hostel.

View from the hall outside my room at Hostel Magico

The hostel is nice, although I don’t care for these shared bathrooms that require you to go outside to get to (because now in the this evening it is raining). However it is nice to be in a hostel filled with nice young people!
I then made my way to the city center and San Blas (this hostel is a little farther from the city center and artisan district in San Blas that I would like). Most of the artisans that I spoke to the last time I was in Cusco were here. And Wilbert, the artisan of Arte Sarmiento workshop who I purchased my colonial painting and frame from when I came last time, agreed to talk to me about the painting techniques tomorrow. Perfect!

Oh, the Andes.

Plaza de Armas

At 3 I met ERIN!!!!!! I have not seen her in maybe 4 years. We gave each other HUGE hugs and sat and talked for several hours in the Plaza de Armas. She has been traveling through South America since November. She has been through Argentina, Chile, and Bolivia before coming to Peru. She was originally traveling with 3 friends but they left her and she has been on her own for a month or so now. We spoke about the ups and downs of being alone. It was refreshing to be able to talk to someone about it. She has had some amazing experiences!!! Afterward we went for dinner at the restaurant Yanay Aldea.

Side Note: My hostel is on a street that is FULL of Bordados (Embroidery) shops that produce the gaudy textiles that they put on the beautiful carved statues in the churches in Cusco. I was able to go into one and check it out!

Bordados dress!

Working on a Bordados

Bordados detail

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3/25/10
This morning I met with Gloria and her friend Leander so that we could speak to a few workshops and Gloria could help me translate when I go to talk to Wilbert about painting techniques. Leander is very active in helping the communities around Cusco and you can read about her nonprofit charitable work here and here. She is incredibly nice and vibrant! It was wonderful to meet her!

Altars in one of the many artisan shops in San Blas

statues

Carpenter about to stain some frames for me with a stain called Gomalacka

Staining!

Here are a few things I learned:

We started in Alfredo’s workshop  (Alfredo has a very nice shop where he sells paintings and frames. He just works on frames and commissions painting workshops to make work for him to sell in the shop).  I was able to ask a few questions workshop organization. Apparently they don’t have workshops that do both the frames and paintings because it costs too much in taxes/social security. He said that tomorrow he may be able to show me a painting workshop! Woo! Or on Saturday… so we will see!

We then continued on to Wilbert’s shop. He had his friend in the shop painting a flagellation of Christ. I asked questions about applying the gold and it seems that it is first painted in oil and then the gold is added on top of that. It is a mix of varnish and artificial gold powder. They don’t use any natural pigments, only from the tube. I was a bit disappointed in that. Since they mine some of the natural pigments in South America I thought that they might use them… apparently it just isn’t economical!

Painting a Flagellation of Christ in Wilbert's shop

Progress on the flagellation

Archangels at Wilbert's shop

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In the afternoon I relocated to Hostel Casa De La Gringa Dos in San Blas so that everyone could stay together (Erin, Renee, and I would share a room). This hostel is OK. The floors are very creaky and the staff speaks no English. But there is a good sitting area with a view onto the city and it is in a prime location in the artisan area!

View from my Casa de la Gringa Dos (my new hostel)

Plaza de Armas by night

3/26

Set up a meeting with an painting workshop for tomorrow.

Painter in an artisan shop painting ornaments in the halo

close up!

Sneaking a photo of Alpaca Andean Ladies

Cusco by night

3/27/10

On the way to lunch/breakfast at a little Vegetarian restaurant we stopped by an artisan market where I got purchased a nice gourd with a jungle scene carved on it. The artisan even signed and dated it right in front of me. I was glad that I was able to see the tool and technique that the artisans use to make these incredibly intricate carvings!

Inca Kola

At around 3 I met with Felix, a friend I met here who agreed to help me translate, and we went with Alfredo to a Painting workshop. It was PERFECT. The workshop was exactly what I wanted to see.

When I returned from the workshop Erin took me to the Contemporary art Museum because there was a very nice and talented Argentinean artist named Juan hanging out with his paintings. His image vocabulary was largely based in repetition and undulation of parts of the human body. His technique is very good and he had several entrancing paintings.  He spoke to us for awhile (here Erin and I got a real work out on out Spanish…Erin did especially!)

Erin and her new puppy friend in Plaza de Armas!

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In the evening we had dinner with Jonny and Felix (two friends we met here). And then I had dessert with Renee, Gloria, and Leander! They just returned from the Sacred Valley where they had a great time.  Return to Lima tomorrow!

Handing down the craft to the next generation! (photo courtesy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

This Cusco Painting School workshop was exactly what I wanted to see in Cusco! I was initially very impressed by these Colonial style paintings when I came to Cusco back in February and since then I have become determined to see a workshop that produces these reproductions and reinterpretations of 16th-18th century Cusco School paintings.   My goal, as it is with all the workshops I have been visiting, is to see the technique, the materials, and find out how the workshop is organized.

The workshop is run by Elvin Taca. He studied in the Cusco Fine Art School where he learned how to paint in the Cusco style. I was surprised to learn that he was never taught how to mix traditional paints or use more historically accurate materials. This workshop is really no different from the retablo workshops in terms of the quality of the materials used. The oil paint comes from tubes and much of the glues and mineral spirits are those you find in a hardware store and could be used by any carpenter. They churn out paintings incredibly fast, and their rendering skills are very good. I was excited that I was able to watch one of the members of the studio paint the ornaments on the Virgin Mary’s mantel in a painting. I am intrigued by the way the textile decorations are addressed in colonial paintings and I was happy to get the opportunity to see them being painted and to learn what materials they use to produce the effect.

Painting gold details

Closeup

There are 6 members of the workshop and tasks are divided into 3 parts: background and basic clothing, gold detailing, and the face/flesh. To prep the canvas they paint on a ground that is a mixture of a synthetic glue sizing with an acrylic paint (some workshops also will use chalk and plaster of paris in their ground). When the canvas is being prepared they have it stretched on stretchers but after the ground dries they remove the canvas from the stretchers (this allows for more flexibility while paintings). Elvin himself is in charge of the final touches including the face and hands. If they have a deadline to meet and need the paintings to dry more quickly they will use a dryer called tekno. The gold that they use is an artificial gold dust that is mixed with a carpenter grade glue or varnish. They do not typically use any real gold on their paintings. It takes 3 people 3 days to finish an 18″ by 24″ painting.

Waiting for the final step!

Materials for the goooooold

The members of the workshop are both family and non-related apprentices, all of which Elvin trains. This is actually one of the first times that I have visited a workshop in Peru where it IS NOT exclusively family members in the workshop.   Elvin only sells his work to Alfredo in Cuzco but he also has clients in Nicaragua, Lima, Italy, and Ecuador. When Elvin gets bored he does some other, creative pieces that he doesn’t sell.

The these paintings are incredibly cheap if you buy them directly from the workshop as opposed to from a third party/artisan shop. I was absolutely astounded when Elvin told us that one of the very nicely rendered and detailed paintings hanging in the workshop that a commissioned piece for a man in Ecuador was only around $50. Ridiculous! Elvin says that normally everything is sold through a 3rd party (like through Alfredo’s shop in San Blas). They do market themselves online! And if you would like to commission any works from them please email: elvileo@hotmail.com or kmigabriel@gmail.com

$50.... Wow.

In terms of organization between the different Cusco painting workshops, there isn’t much. Elvin says that while they all know each other there is no guild or committee or anything like that established. Because of this there is some “copying” of other Cusco painters. However since most of the paintings are already copies of previous archetypes it isn’t so much of a problem. Occasionally Elvin will incorporate other European style saints, virgins, or motifs into his paintings (typically Italianate).

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Elvin had a book, called Barocco Andino, (Riccardo Scotti, Barocco Andino: Arcangeli guerrieri, madonne e dee, santi meticci, Ananke, Torino 2009) that contained images many contemporary Cusco School paintings. It is published by an Italian author and the main page on the website actually has a fairly good summary of the Cusco School and briefly discusses the workshops that produce them. It was even helpful after translating it from Italian to English using GoogleTranslate! Here it is if you are interested in reading more about this fascinating school of painting:

THE BAROQUE ANDEAN

After the “conquest” of America by Europeans, following the missionaries, Christians and nobles came in the “New Continent” also some artists with the intent to produce works that decorate many churches were being built everywhere and the mansions of the rulers. In a few years, numerous requests for works of art imposed the need to train very quickly some local artists. Was born in Cuzco (Peru), the most important school of painting in America, producing paintings in large quantities and many important works, many unsigned and others made collectively. For obvious reasons, European-style settlement reached with Peru about 50 years late and, therefore, until the middle of the century. XVII, the model to follow was the late Italian Renaissance and later Baroque. The first important works made in American territory, however, were the paintings of Italian Mannerist Bernardo Bitti (since 1575), a Jesuit brother. Later, Matthew Perez de Alesio, born in the Kingdom of Naples, then controlled by Spain, founded in Lima a Centro Sperimentale “to obtain pigment equivalent to those in Europe with new recipes. The third Italian artist who worked in the Viceroyalty was Medoro Angelino, born in Rome around 1567 and arrived in Peru around 1600. The role models were the paintings by Spanish painter Zurbarán and Murillo, Rembrandt and then. Diego Quispe Tito (1611-1681), the most famous artists of Cuzco, was inspired to Flemish models, introducing the Peruvian landscape painting and entering its vegetation unreal figures with distorted perspectives. The “School of Cuzco”, influenced the eighteenth-century painting of the whole Andean (School of Quito in Ecuador, School of Potosi, Bolivia, in addition to schools of Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, Uruguay and Paraguay) and was the most important for the quality and quantity of works produced. Gradually, the artists of Cuzco broke away from European models and left the real world, advancing the story. So they began to paint angels wrapped in royal robes and wield firearms, naive and childlike landscapes devoid of perspective, precious decorations on all the clothes, golden rays, necklaces and jewelry on Madonnas and saints. The “Andean Baroque, also called Mestizo Style” and was characterized by a “rejuvenation” of the subjects mannered, obtained with an archaism that responded to the indigenous mentality. The Augustinian missionaries, meanwhile, devoted to the task of comparing and contrasting them to the local deity of Christ, Mary and the saints, to find a mutual identification, leading to the consolidation of an ambivalent symbolism in works of art in the Andean world. Thus, at the same time, it allowed the maintenance and transmission of religious myths original, resulting in the creation of a precise local iconography. The indigenous culture through the works of art produced by the School of Cuzco, with Mannerism and Baroque managed to fit in with the Western pattern, and through these formal expressions still survives in the nineteenth century, carrying with it the ideals of the cultural effects that were kept alive until today. In general, therefore, we are faced with myths, desires, and American ideas, expressed in a Western language. In the city of Cuzco, even today, some art shops continue to produce beautifully crafted paintings, reproducing and interpreting the classic iconography of the past. The teachers leading the various art workshops, guided groups of artists specialized in a specific part of the work, which eventually leads to the creation of collective works and, therefore, rarely signed. Thus, a responsible prepare the canvas on which you must paint, a different design path, then there are those who prepared the background colors, shadows, the rich flesh tones and golden decorations, and then the work will be supervised final before being considered complete.

Book of contemporary Cusco School Paintings by Riccardo Scotti, Barocco Andino: Arcangeli guerrieri, madonne e dee, santi meticci, Ananke, Torino 2009

Some contemporary Cusco School paintings in Barocco Andino by Riccardo Scotti, Barocco Andino: Arcangeli guerrieri, madonne e dee, santi meticci, Ananke, Torino 2009

***Recently I received some excellent images from Elvin Taca’s studio (including the first image in this entry) and I would like to share them with you!

GREAT photo of the workshop process! (photo courtesy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

Working on a large commisson! (photo courtesy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

Elvin working on a piece. (photo courtresy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

Excellent last supper! (courtesy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

(courtesy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

Another work by the studio (photo courtesy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

Great image of various angels that Elvin's studio has painted (courtesy of the artist) www.pinturascusco.galeon.com

Mari's Collection at Las Pallas Shop and Gallery: Perfecto!

Courtyard at Las Pallas shop and gallery

3/22/10
After our lunch we returned to Las pallas (Click on that to read an interesting interview with the owner of the shop, a very interesting woman). This is an amazing (AND HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) handicraft store in Barranco that has an incredible collection of pre Colombian, colonial, and recent handicrafts of Peru. I first visited this shop during the Carnival in February but my photos of it were lost when my camera was stolen. Mari, the owner, has an beautiful shop and home. Her “Gallery” sitting room is connected to the shop and visitors are welcome to come in and see her collection. I would LOVE to have a room like this some day!  Mari was a great host and answered all of my questions about the various retablos in the store (most of which are made by members of the Jimenez family).

Las Pallas!

St. Appolonia Retablo

Jimenez retablos in Las Pallas

Retablos

Amazing carved gourd

Mari's Collection: So nice!

Mari's Collection: Ceramics

Mari's Peruvian Hairless dog.

Mari's Collection: Colonial painting and antiques

Mari's Collection: Gallery View

Mari's Collection: carved stone objects.

Renee hanging out in the Gallery

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Cathedral in Barranco

Main square in Barranco

After this we went to a retablo store on La Paz Street in Miraflores called Raices Peru which only sells retablos by members of the Jimenez family. Also we stopped into several antique shops where I took some photos.

Antique shop

Antique Shop

Antique Shop

Antique Shop

3/23/10

Lunch with Karina! Mostly spent the day preparing for my trip to Cuzco. I can’t believe I only have ONE MORE WEEK OF MY GELMAN LEFT!!!!!!!

Pushing Bricks in Miraflores