Category Archives: istanbul
Picturing the homes of two heroes (kahraman (Tr): hero)
I often have occasion to pass by the pink yali on the Bosphorus where Argonauts one of my recent Istanbul paintings now lives. Paying the painting and the home of its discerning collectors, the Kahraman family a visit I was … Continue reading
Posted in art collecting, boats, bosphoros, cities, istanbul, painting, ships, Turkish interiors, visual arts
Tagged Argonauts, Arnavutkoy, Bosphorus, istanbul, Istanbul interiors, Ottoman interiors, painting, Turkey
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Thinking about Running and Painting
Sometimes I run to my studio along the Bosphorus. A way to get my vision tuned afresh. The fishing boats are out casting their yellow spirals and pitching their tents on the silvery plains. Hot sepia tea is being served … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized, bosphoros, istanbul, city, artists studios
Tagged Alex Katz, istanbul, painting, Running
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Drawing the line
Heading back into the studio, pots of glaze lined up on the table, all geared up to paint Jane’s pots; what a treat. Another good way to get back into things if you got out of them is to go … Continue reading
Posted in artists studios, cities, drawing, istanbul, journey, Uncategorized, urban
Tagged Antonio Lopez Garcia, city, commuting, drawing, istanbul, journey, metro, neo rauch, sketchbook, studio, walking
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Dreaming with the giantesses of the Acropolis
Still dreaming with the giantesses on the Acropolis. In the vast, contemporary space of the New Acropolis Museum, the Charyatids, now freed and 12 feet tall, powerfully transmit their magic for all time. What is it about their marble contours … Continue reading
Posted in bosphoros, cities, istanbul, journey, passage, poetry, sketchbooks
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Shifting shapes on the Bosphorous
Its been a while since I’ve been here. Most days find me walking next to the Bosphorous or working in my new garden studio. That sounds rather too “World of Interiors” for this particular space which lies somewhere between a … Continue reading
Walkabout in Istanbul
Tomorrow I conduct a “walkabout” of my exhibition “Ships and Dreams” currently showing at Arnavutkoy Gallery in Arnavutkoy, Istanbul. Where I come from it is fairly common practice to return to your exhibition after its opening, at a designated time … Continue reading
Posted in bosphoros, damascus, don maclennan, drawing, grahamstown, istanbul, journey, mosques, poetry, ships, Uncategorized, visual arts, yorkshire
Tagged ancestors, bosphoros, bruce chatwin, city, exhibition istanbul, istanbul, journey, painting, ships and dreams, songlines, walkabout, walking, wandering
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In Praise of beauty: Susan Sontag on Howard Hodgkin’s paintings
Revisiting my art books scattered in various homes across the land, I come across this gem from Susan Sontag on the Venice paintings of Howard Hodgkin, and it immediately takes me back to Istanbul: Venice once again. Imagining the imagined. … Continue reading
Posted in cities, istanbul, journey, painting, Uncategorized, visual arts
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A fresh look at a beautiful city
I was recently asked to write something about “beauty” for the January edition of the IWI International Women of Istanbul) magazine Lale so here it is… Venturing into landscape painting in the climate of contemporary art making is a perverse … Continue reading
Posted in bosphoros, city, drawing, istanbul, painting, sketchbooks, visual arts
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