Art and Sports 07 – Rugby

NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW

www.mikidegoodaboom.com

NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW…NEW

Rugby 01 – by Miki

Like most people, I regularly call my parents, and they always ask me what I am painting right now. Last week I told them that I was working on a series of sport art works, in a technique I had developed for the Tour de France in July this year (2011). My father, with his 86 years, being a huge fan of the internet, went at once to have a look at my gallery online, and called me back, telling me that he loved the style and that I should do some rugby themed paintings. He said, it is the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand right now, and he is getting up at 5 in the morning every time there is a game to follow it live. As I was young, I loved rugby, and hated football. I found rugby much more fascinating, with so much more action and diversity. Also, it’s a much tougher game, something for real men… well, then I moved to Germany, and they were more into football there. This is when I started gradually ‘changing the camps’. And then, much later, I fell in love with my English guy, one of those who are totally fanatical about football: no way I could ever mention rugby again! The result being that I have totally lost my relationship to rugby and am now a big football fan.. almost a hooligan even, at least psychologically.. you know the kind – wishing the mortal enemy -in our case Nottingham Forest- the worst things in the world, using all these nasty and ugly words the English language is full of… I LOVE IT! I was never allowed to use bad words when I was young, and never got used to it even later, even surrounded by people who used them all the time. But in football, my God, what a pleasure to swear and send the B*stards to Hell!

What a shame, in fact, considering that I was born in the South-West of France, where we are so famous for rugby! I do feel as if I am denying my origins…

Anyway, being the good daughter I am (what a lie!) I listened to my father and “played” some rugby, starting with the All Blacks. And because my father is really fascinated by them, especially when they perform their ritual Haka, I even tried to make an artwork featuring the Maori Haka… it was not that simple though…

I am not sure if I will do some more rugby, I am sure that my Dad would wish me to paint the French Rugby players… but I don’t know….I don’t really like our national Bleu/Blanc/Rouge (blue/white/red) colour combination, and I do need to love the colours of something when I should paint it… we will see…

These paintings are available directly online as Giclee prints in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting cards. Just click on the widgets below to access my FAA store

And more generally you can see all the stuff I paint by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Art and Sports 06 – More Wintersports

Skiing 02 - by MIki

The other day I made a first post about winter sports in my art, saying also I would do some more works these days and present them here. So here they are. Not much to tell about them though, except that I had fun, and felt the urgent need of going skiing again!

Skijumping 02 - by MIki

Skijumping 01 - by MIki

Snowboarding 02 - by Miki

All these paintings are available directly online as Giclee prints in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting cards. Juts click on the widgets below to access my FAA store

And more generally you can see all this stuff I paint by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Jimmy Page and Robert Plant

Jimmy Page and Robert Plant - by Miki

I thought I would dedicate my post today to that duo of musical giants, Robert Plant and Jimmy Page. In the artwork above they are featured in the classic era of Led Zeppelin. Since I painted it about 2 years ago, this artwork has been a hit and given much pleasure  to the Led Zeppelin fans…. and good business for me of course! In fact, I did the painting because Kevin had asked me to. I personally didn’t know Led Zeppelin very well, had certainly never seen them live. But well, their fans love the painting, I cannot ask for more!

Some fans comments

“…  gorgeous style, I’m your fan )…”

“… thats true!!! they are Zepps!!! it reminds me their song: baby, im gonna leave u love it!!!!!!!…”

“… Saw Led Z. in concert in the seventies…love this…it is gloriously colorful and full of energy,,,…”

I did another artwork featuring Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, interpreting the piece “Stairway to Heaven”, that divine song! An artwork in a very different style from the first one… just tried to paint both as if they were in heaven, not quite defined somehow… like angels perhaps?

Jimmy Page and Robert Plant 02 - by Miki

In the meanwhile I know Robert Plant much better, and I am waiting for the chance to go to one of his gigs, next year probably. But I have seen him on the TV and DVDs on many different stages, have heard interviews, and I think I like the guy. I mean, the musician of course is fantastic and I love him. But it seems to me that the human being behind is a great person too, even humble, considering his stratospheric success… it always fascinates me when famous people stay humble…

Robert Plant 01 - by Miki

Robert Plant 02 - by Miki

I also did a painting of Jimmy Page alone, but Kevin says one does not recognize him. Well, I don’t mind really, I wanted to try another style, and the painting was more meant to represent a guitarist alone in the night. lost in his music..

Lost in music, Jimmy probably lost his face too!

Jimmy Page lost in music – by Miki

These art works are available directly on-line as Giclee print in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting card. Just click on the widgets below to access my FAA store

And more generally you can see what else I paint by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Rodeo Time

NEW…NEW…NEW…          Miki’s new artist’s website   www.mikidegoodaboom.com           NEW…NEW…NEW…   

Rodeo 01 – by Miki

(Painting in mixed technique of pastel and digital technique.)

Being specialised in bullfight paintings, I have been asked many times in my artist career to paint rodeo scenes. But to be honest I was never really attracted by that motif. Why not? Well, all the ingredients to inspire me artistically are present: the movement, the colours, the tension, the contrasts…

The reason might be that I have never attended a rodeo myself. Last year as we were in the States, especially in Texas, Kevin wanted to invite me to a rodeo show, thinking I might enjoy it. Possibly…., but we were only one week in Texas (Austin) and we could not find a rodeo show corresponding to our time there.

Also, Rodeo seems so far removed from my culture, I cannot really “feel” it. And I need to feel my subject to be able to paint it in such a way that I am able to put my name under it. Everything else is  fake, kind of!

But well, I have been asked again recently, by different people. So I thought I would give it a go. Of course I enjoyed doing it, and I might do some more, but I don’t know. I kind of feel like a “thief” painting something so quintessentially American, not even having attended one show live! I really feel as if I am stealing their cultural patrimony to the American people, especially to their artists. Probably that feeling is due to my psychological discomfort when some Russian artist, for example, is painting a bullfight scene. Although I must say we have so many Russians around in Spain, they are almost like natives here! But most of them have never attended a Corrida,, the entrance fee being too expensive probably… often they paint bullfighting scenes to try to earn money with it, not because they love it. Well, I won’t blame them. In these difficult times, better to earn the money through art than stealing it from innocent people.. I mean really stealing, not symbolically stealing as I am doing here with my rodeo painting!

By the way, I was quite amazed to hear, the other day, that rodeo shows are regularly broadcast in the UK. I wonder if people there feel closer to that tradition, than for example, French or Spanish…. and if yes, why… I should research it perhaps…

Anyway, this art work is available directly on-line as Giclee print in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting card. Just click on the widgets below to access my FAA store

And more generally you can see what all I paint by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Art and Sports 05 – Watersports

Water Fight - by Miki

(Watercolour painting)

It is Sunday today, and the Sports Art week is coming to an end. I will finish with water sports, which is certainly one of my favourite sports categories, to practise and to paint. I love the water,  I love to move in the water, and I love the way I feel after having been in the water, so fresh one feels newborn…. well, at least I suppose one feels quite fresh when one is resuscitated… might depend on as what we come back as though!

Unfortunately I had no time this week to make some water sport painting in the new technique I used for cycling and skiing, but I will probably do some next week and add them to this post. For now, I will present only older paintings here.

The painting above was one of my most successful, having been chosen many different times for websites and magazine covers.

Love is The Seventh Wave - by Miki

(Pastel painting)

Surf and Windsurf are certainly my favourite water sports. With swimming of course, and scuba diving,  but it is not that easy to paint, with almost everything being under water.. in fact I have never tried, Perhaps I should one day!

Personally I have been doing some windsurfing, and just adored it. I learned it in Congo, Africa, in the bay of Pointe Noire. I was on holiday there by my parents who were living there, and a friend of theirs had a windsurf board. He taught me the basic technique and I was invited to use the board as often as I wanted. It was tough to learn, I continuously fell back into the water. but I am quite focussed when I want something.. not to say stubborn! But what a feeling the first time I could glide on the water!!! From that moment the learning process went quite smoothly and I surfed every time further and further from the beach. I couldn’t stop really, never thinking that I would have to come back. And one day what was bound to happen happened: I almost lost my life there! I was some kilometres away from the beach, and in the meanwhile, a strong wind had come up, parallel to the coast. Of course  I had not learned how to surf in these conditions! Luckily for me, I have got a brain, and I am quite fit, so I was able to find a way to come back, after hundreds of turning manoeuvres. It was almost dark as I reached the beach, totally exhausted. There had been a moment out there, where I had stopped to do anything, had laid down on my board and decided to let myself die, physically and psychologically unable to go on. But it is not that easy to die when you have decided to, and the way I tried that day was really very boring! Anyway the survival instinct won out, as you can see! After that day I was a little bit more prudent … but not much really, I suppose I felt invincible!

Some years later I was surfing in Spain, and again far away from the beach, a strong wind was blowing and my mast broke.  I had to bring my board back to the beach, about 2 kilometres away, swimming against the waves.. it was tough! This was in fact the last time I surfed. Many years later, in Germany, I bought myself a surfboard, but  I was working very intensely these days and somehow I could not find the time to go and surf! The thing is probably still there somewhere…

Windsurfing - by Miki

(Watercolour painting)

All these paintings are available directly online as Giclee prints in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting cards. Just click on the widgets below to access my FAA store

And more generally you can see all this stuff I paint by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Art and Sports 04 – Wintersports

Down The Hill - by Miki

(Watercolour painting)

Once upon a time I was born in the middle of the French Pyrenees. Now, you would think that I was born with skis attached to my feet… but NO! In fact my parents loved the sea and sunshine, and as soon they had some free days from work, they packed the whole family into the car, crossed the border and drove down the Spanish Mediterranean coast so far that people there had never seen rain or snow in their life!

It was not until I was 20 years old that I stood on skis. I immediately loved it! What a pity, I thought, so many years wasted by the sea instead of the mountains!  I was anyway in love with snow itself, and skiing was such fun, even the falling down was fun, especially on the fresh soft snow! At that time I had already moved to Germany to be with my boyfriend who was a ski instructor. In the winter he took me to Austria, to Obertauern to be exact, and put me on skis. With that private teacher, and me loving it, I learnt fast and soon I was able to go down some steep hills. Most of the time on my bottom though, or even in the air, especially after a glass of Slibovitz (the local and among skiers, most praised Schnapps) but really:

WHAT FUN!

Later on I also went skiing to the Dolomites in Italy, in Switzerland, In Germany and eventually in my beloved French Pyrenees. And now I wonder if one day I will be able to go and ski in the Sierra Nevada… we live so close! But I guess, the probability I will ski in the Rocky Mountains is bigger.. the Don Quijote Syndrome!

I did the painting above many years ago, as I had started a watercolour sports series.

Ski Jumping 03 - by Miki

This week I went back to the snow and tried the technique I used for my Tour de France series, a mix of pastel and digital art. I am quite happy with the result, the theme of winter sports works well in that technique.

Snowboarding 01 – by Miki

As I was young, I loved to skateboard. And I am sure I would have loved snowboarding the same. Will I ever try? It is certainly not too late…

All these paintings are available directly online as Giclee prints in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting cards. Juts click on the widgets below to access my FAA store

And more generally you can see all this stuff I paint by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Art and Sports 03 – Motorsports

Formula 1:Teamwork 01 - by Miki

 (Watercolour painting)

Now again, as with golf, many people might not consider the motor sports as real sports. But often I suppose it is simply a question of definition. If one considers a sport an activity which involves a big physical effort for a certain amount of time,  then yes, motor sports are sports! Well, according to this definition, dock workers for example, or farmers, or  musicians who gig all the time for little money,  the ones who have to carry all their equipment around all the time, could be considered as sportsmen too.. in fact almost everybody is making sport.. great, the world is healthy!!! 

Anyway… I personally prefer sports without a motor attached somewhere, and this is probably the reason why I haven’t done many motor sports paintings in my life. So far only two if I remember well. The one above, which features one of the most fascinating scenes of Formula 1 for me, the tyre-changing. What impressive team work these guys are managing there! I sold that painting a long time ago to a German, he wanted to hang it in his office.  Unfortunately I haven’t got a good quality photo of it. A pity… but well, I have been asked many times  for reproductions or/and new Formula 1 paintings, so I guess one day , soon perhaps if you really insist, I will make an effort… aesthetically speaking that race is certainly worth it!

Powerboats World Championship in Portugal - by Miki

 (Acrylics painting on canvas)

And this is my second motor-sports painting, featuring a scene from the 2008 World Powerboats Championship in Barca de Alba in Portugal. We attended the event totally by accident, as we were touring Portugal. At the Championship we even became friends with one of the UK competitors, and Kevin, my English Rocker,  became his Chief assistant for the race. That was great fun! I meant to do more paintings about this theme, but I  missed the opportunity. Not that I am lazy, on the contrary, I am kind of painting all the time, when I am not taking care of my blogs and art sites, But I love to paint everything , and I always focus on what just crosses my path and attracts my artistic attention. According to the LIFO principle: Last In First Out.

That painting has been sold recently to a Spanish sports paintings collector. At least I took quite a good photo of it beforehand, so if you are interested in buying a print, available on paper or canvas, in many different sizes, just click on the widget below

And more generally you can see all this stuff I paint by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Arts and Sports 02 – Golfing

I decided yesterday to have a sports art blog week, and started with cycling. As I said, I love sports and have practised many of them. One of my favourite sports is golf. Some people might say this isn’t a sport, but they haven’t got a clue what they are talking about. When you  play in Spain on a course which goes up and down all the time and under a very hot sun, then your body bloody knows that it is a sport! I never was a fan of using a buggy, because in golf what I really love is the mix of walking in the nature and hitting the ball between.

So today is golf art on my blog menu.  “Earn Your Stripes” is one of the first I did of Tiger Woods, as he was still a real tiger, on top of his form, before all the stuff about his unfaithfulness came out. Honestly, I don’t care about his private life. And I don’t even care about him as a human being, probably because he does not seem to be the most sympathetic guy in the world… but he was a great golf champion, and whatever people might think or wish, I believe he still is. He just needs to get his act together again. Winds of marital changes are not strong enough  to blow down such a monument of a person, only some hurricane could… so I say: one day he will be back!!! And I am not expressing here my wishes, just my thoughts… I would add though that if he was a little bit more humble, he would be back earlier…  and I would like him much more as a person!  But would he be still Tiger Woods if he was humble? I guess not…

Anyway, the thing with the tiger inspired me to do the painting above, which I personally like quite a lot!

Golfing in Club Fontana 03 - by Miki

Painting inspired from a scene of the PGA tour in G0lf Club Fontana in Austria. I don’t remember though who the player is… just loved the contrast between the green and the orange of his shirt. I was also inspired by the light and shadow contrasts.

Golfing in Crans-sur-Sierre 01 - by Miki

Crans-sur-Sierre, in Switzerland,  my favourite golf course from the European PGA tour. I guess my painting of the grass is a little bit too untidy and wild, but I love it like that. Just taking advantage of my artist’s freedom!

Looking at my cycling paintings yesterday, I thought I should try the same technique in golf (and other sports too). I wanted to try quickly to see how it works on golf, and simply took a nice photo from the net to base it on. Now, I am probably not allowed to sell this painting without the authorization of the photographer, but well, I do like the result, and perhaps some others will, and it might even be that the photographer takes pity on a poor artist… if not, he/she should contact me! I will probably do some golf art in this technique these days, but based on my own material.

Golfscape 01 - by Miki

Enough golf for today, although I have dozens of art works about them. Another time perhaps. But of course, if you insist, I will show you another one.. some golf fun.. the ultimate golfer’s gift!!!

The Ultimate Golfer's Gift - by Miki

You can purchase prints of these paintings (on paper or canvas) in many different sizes, or a greeting card, in my online gallery. Just click on the widgets below

 

And more generally you can see many of my dreams, nightmares, passions, loves and hates by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

Art and Sports 01 – Cycling

Le Tour de France 05 – by Miki

This artwork is meant to represent only movement and colours, hence the little details, just colours stains and lines moving with high speed through the frame…

After all that dreamy esoteric stuff from my posts last week, let us come back to more real things. In fact, I think I will make a sport art weeks. As I often said, I love sports, as well actively as passively. Sport is vital for my whole well-being.. so much that if I spend one day without any sport activity, I feel like dead! I know, it sounds exaggerated, but I am an exaggerated person all over, with huge attraction to all kind of extremes… not extreme sports though!!! 

And of course, i love painting everything which inspires me passion. So here we go with the sports art week! I am not sure I will have enough sports paintings for a whole week (from different sports I mean), and I might have to create again.. But I feel lazy right now, so let us start with what I have.

In July I made a series of art works featuring the Tour de France, and they have become  quite popular. I presented the first four of the series in an earlier post,  “The Tour de France 01″, Here are some more.

Le Tour de France 06 – by Miki

It was raining that day as the bikers crossed that village in the North of France.. On the painting I wanted to feature both aspects: the grey rainy weather, and the colour wave of the racers . I did not put too many colours in that wave though, it did not look right, or at least it took over the whole atmosphere of the art work, and nothing was left from the rain.

I was asked if I would paint La Vuelta too, but well, it finished yesterday, and anyway: I didn’t really fancy. The Tour de France is for me THE RACE, I can’t think with passion of any other one. And when there is no passion, I can’t paint it. Anyway, guys racing on their bikes look all the same, in France, Spain or Italy. This would be only a repetition, and I hate repetitions! Perhaps next year, I will paint the Tour de France again, but in another style and technique, if some come to my mind.

Le Tour de France 07 – by Miki

Always loved the red dotted shirt, rewarding the best mountains climber it makes such a nice and funny contrast to all the other ones!

So, I think it is enough cycling for today, I feel exhausted! 

You can purchase prints of these paintings (on paper or canvas) in many different sizes, or a greeting card, in my online gallery. Just click on the widgets below

And more generally you can see many of my dreams, nightmares, passions, loves and hates by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”

A Nightmare

Nightmare 02 - by Miki

(Acrylic painting)

I just woke up from a terrible nightmare:

“…I was at my parents’ flat, in the ninth floor, in front of the sea. There was a hurricane, big flooding and the waves were already licking the base of the building. My old father said he would go down to pray for all the poor people who were in danger. our dog Maya followed him. I was watching the  through the large bay windows After a while I saw him from above, carried away by a gigantic wave, and the dog too.Between two waves the water was very transparent and I could see them both under water, but at different spots, fighting for their life. Somehow the dog succeeded coming out of the water, but then he git mad, searching for my father, and drowned again… My mother was screaming at me that I should go down and try to rescue them, but  I could’t move, and anyway I knew it had no sense….”

Needless to say I had a tremendous headache as I woke up, and  deep guilt feelings. Aspirin helps against physical pain, but not against guilt…

And don’t tell again

“This was only a dream, this is not real!”

because then I will engage you in an endless hot discussion about what “real” is. When a dream has such consequences, so intensely measurable  in my reality, then it must be real! At least, as a scientist, this is my position.

Anyway, here is a nightmare painting, recently created. It is not a reference to an actual, concrete nightmare, but it does symbolise very well what my nightmares are normally about (not like the one from tonight, which was quite realistic): supernatural kind of ordered nonsense, and scary like hell. Full Stories worthy of the most fantastic film scenarios.

I don’t really like this painting, but well, my art is not about what I like. I have noticed that I better sell the paintings I don’t like than the ones I like! This is why I decided, once and for all, to publish everything I do and let the rest of the world be the judge of it.

But don’t misunderstand me: if you don’t like it, you don;t need to tell me. Just keep quiet! 

So, if you like it, and like it so much that you want a print, you can purchase one directly online, on paper or canvas, and in many different sizes. it is even available as greeting card, if you want to make one of your enemies a bad surprise… Just click on the widget below

And more generally you can see many of my dreams, nightmares, passions, loves and hates by going to my gallery “Miki’s Enchanted World”