Playing with the Moroccan Light

So, I am back to my series of Fantagolf, which I started last Autumn. Our champions from the European PGA Tour are playing in Morocco this weekend (Trophée Hassan II, Royal Golf Dar Es Salam), and I hope to get some inspiration for new art works. It is quite a difficult thing with golf paintings not to get too repetitive, and especially for me not to get bored after a while. But well, golf courses are generally beautiful landscapes, and each one has its own peculiarities, which are surely worth a painting. And anyway, each golfer has his personal swing, generally a beauty of movement, and it is always a pleasure to paint them.

Making a fast psychological analysis of my golf paintings, it is easy to see that I mainly react to a beautiful light on the golf course, to colourful outfits and to elegant or dynamic movement. With regard to painting above, which I did tonight, I was basically inspired by the light on the tree trunks… it was just wonderful! Then I added to the composition the spectators and the golfer and a ball flying around… some might argue that the light falling on  him does not correspond to the light on the trees, but really, I don’t care, it is my artist’s freedom… It just looks so transparent like that, almost spooky… but happy spooky, like the trees, so in this sense, all fits together.

PS: And if you want to see my last golf portrait and read about Men in The Pink…

Golf in Scotland: The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

My favourite Sportsmen, The European PGA players, are golfing this weekend in Scotland, on the legendary Saint Andrews course. It had always been my dream to golf in Scotland, but it never came true, although some concrete plans had been made. But today I must say, after my 4 weeks experience in Scotland 2 years ago, where it was raining cats and dogs all the time, I have abandoned this dream. And to prove me right, the third day of the Championship yesterday, has been cancelled because of

“Gale forces winds across the north and east of Scotland have forced the abandonment of Saturday’s planned third round in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship…”

Anyway. I made some sketches on the first 2 days, and here are some of the resulting paintings. I am aware that this European PGA golf series, which I started about 4 weeks ago now, are not in my current style, less wild, more classical. But somehow if I want to feature the  golf courses where the tournaments take place, I have to stay quite realistic in my painting style. There would be surely a less classical way, but I would need more time for that, and I haven’t got it: first because there is a tournament each week, and I have other things to do  (like for example following the tournaments!) than to reflect about a golf painting style, and second and more importantly, because I never reflect about how to paint something, I just do it, following my impulses and inspirations.

For example, I loved the following scene, but I am not sure that the putting player in the background loved it too… it is well-known that golfers are very sensitive to any kind of noises… I am sure they would classify pipe music as noise too when they are trying to concentrate themselves.

Well, this really very classical painting, I wouldn’t believe myself that it comes from me! Although, when one looks closer, it looks quite messy in some places… I had neither the time nor the patience to take more care of it!  🙂

So, I am gone now, I have to see if the weather is better today in Saint Andrews and if yes, I will sit down in my wonderful armchair (that we bought as surplus from a new Lap-Dancing club) and watch golf for hours and hours… Heaven!

Golf in Austria

Faithful to my golf addiction and my intention to make a series of the golf courses where the European PGA tournaments take place, I have spent the last few days in Austria, in the Golf club Fontana, by Vienna. Well, I was not really there, but in front of my computer, enjoying the game and making sketches. Unfortunately my favourite, an Englishman, didn’t win, but a young Spaniard did, who seems to have a great career in front of him. At least he has a divine swing, and also seems to have the necessary humility and wisdom to become a big golf champion. I just wish he would relax and smile a little bit more when he is playing…

Anyway, here are 2 of the paintings I did, based on the sketches. I might do some more, as I found the course design very inspiring, and due to the lovely weather some of the players were wearing artistic shirts. I never chose to feature the golf celebrities in my paintings, I just follow the colours…

Apropos colours: it is a big challenge for me me to paint golf motifs, as I hate the colour green!!!!

Golf in German Land

Here we are again, the weekend has started and with it, a new tournament from The European PGA Tour. This week all my heroes are playing in Germany, at Gut Laerchenhof, next to Koeln. In fact the tournament started already on Thursday, and yesterday I did a golf painting of it. As I said before, my aim is to make a series of paintings featuring all the tournaments of the Tour, for the year 2009/2010. Simply a new idea which occurred to me last week.

When I look at golf, I am not only concentrated on the players. I do love the golf courses as landscapes too, they are generally beautiful places. This time in Germany I was shocked to see some red/orange trees already… autumn is coming! Something like autumn is a very strange feeling when one lives in Andalusia, it simply does not exist. The glance of the autumn colours in these countries where I once lived (France, Germany) always fills me with some kind of nostalgy. But honestly, on Thursday the sky was grey there and it didn’t look very warm… this surely is not somethiing I am longing for!

This is why, I suppose,  this painting has become especially vibrant in the coulours, I couldn’t help it!

This tournament is called “The Mercedes-Benz Championship”, this is why you can see the well-known logo everywhere on the tee. I hope also that there will be a Mercedes to win for a hole in one at some hole, as I would love to make a golf painting including a Mercedes… I love to paint cars!!!

Golf obsession

Yesterday it was “only” Love, now it’s Obsession! I had so much pleasure this weekend in watching the golf tournament in Crans-sur-Sierre (Switzerland), and finally to make a painting  of it, that I decided to do some more golf art work, featuring that fantastic golf course. I might even do a whole series of paintings featuring all the courses and tournaments from The European PGA tour. I love the idea, but I am not sure I won’t be bored  before I reach the end! Well, I’ll do what I can.

The idea is to make at least one picture which evokes the tournament in a slightly different way to showing fairways, bunkers, lakes, etc.. Last weekend, in Crans-sur-Sierre, it was The Omega Masters, and I thought it would be nice to make a painting featuring the tee of the hole where the players had the chance to get an Omega watch if they managed to get a hole in one. Anybody following the tour, by looking at this painting, will understand what it is about, where it is, and even which hole it is (I have forgotten it!). I also found that a watch is a great element to add on a golf painting, knowing that time, and more specifically timing, is so crucial to get good results!

And no, before you ask, I’m not paid by Omega…(Though I’m open to offers! 🙂  )

Golf Love

Last week, searching for a way to be able to watch our Football Team Derby County live via the internet, I stumbled upon a site which promised, after paying a very low fee,  to be able to watch live the big golf events of this world, especially to follow The European PGA Tour. I spoke about it at some different points in this blog, I have been a golf fanatic, playing golf myself, but also often travelling to the European PGA games to see my heroes live. And also, to be able to see great golf swings, as the golf swings one generally sees on golf courses are not exactly from the kind one aspires to have oneself… 🙂

Due to important changes in my life, my golf activity has much diminished over the last few years, but always, when I have a glance at a golf course, on the screen or in the real world, I feel a deep yearning inside.  This always makes me understand how much I, probably unconsciously, miss golf.

Anyway, I have paid the fee, and on Thursday, I waited with big impatience to see if I would really be able to follow the actual  PGA golf tournament, this time in Cran-sur-Sierre, a wonderful golf course in the Swiss Alps. I have been there myself, right at the beginning of my own golf career, and this is where I saw for the first time the big names of the golf world, such as Sam Torrance, Colin Montgomery, etc…

The people on the golf channel fulfilled their promise and I was indeed able to follow the whole tournament, from Thursday to Sunday. a great coverage, with on top of it, good and humorous comments, I just loved it! I know, I spent perhaps too many hours in front of the screen, omitting to make my work, but well, I have  to deal with heavy problems in the family at the moment, problems which in fact break my heart, and this was certainly the best way to relax and take my mind off it.  I could not resist to make some sketches and inspired by one of them, I simply made this digital painting this morning. A lot of people, used to my fantasy and wild stuff, will probably be amazed to see this kind of work from me, but the fact is that I love golf, and more generally any kind of sport. One shouldn’t wonder that sport is an art motif for me, and always has been . By the way I gave an interview about this theme some time ago, look here if you are interested.  You will also see there a water colour self portrait of me golfing.