Hasta La Vista San Miguel

We are home!

We decided to cut the trip short and get my ailing husband to his own doctor...which proved to be a good idea.  He is now on the road to recovery and feeling 100% better, there is a lot of comfort in familiar surroundings, especially when it comes to questions of health.

So plans change and I bring my color studies back to Florida to tackle them in a new light, literally.  Meanwhile, San Miguel remains a colorful influence and I can hardly wait to finish all the work that I started while painting from my little zen cottage on the Simple Choice farm.  I will pretend the days are dry, the mornings and evenings very cool and that I can hear the roosters crowing while I pick cilantro.

I finished my little (6" x 6") watercolor studies of some of the intriguing doors of the city.  They are matted to a 9 x 12 size and will be on my Etsy and Facebook shop during the coming week.  I just love the doors there and remember the first time I saw the area how surprised I was to discover the treasures they hid behind them.  (Framed versions can be viewed below.)

These are the blue doors of the Colmena Bakery, Relox 19A & 21, well known spot for traditional Mexican baked goods.

The green bi-fold doors are beautiful in contrast to the red walls of the city and they open up onto a lovely art gallery, La Galeria de Arte Contemporaneo at Relox 46.

This very narrow but elegant door way is the entrance to a home on Canal Street.  The little oval plaque by the door reads "Mi Casa, Canal #58."  The doors were heavy and old and ornate and had a wonderful heavy door knocker on them.  Wish I could have managed an invite inside!

I took plenty of photos and started several pieces of the Bajio Mountains which surrounded us.  I hear that the already colorful area really comes alive with blooms when the rains start...and you can be sure I am pondering a way to make a return trip during that time of year.  Meanwhile, I will re-enjoy it all via my notes and photographs.  

Here is the watercolor series framed:

Have a great weekend, I hope to be back on schedule by Friday...we appreciate your concerns about Bob and thank you for enjoying the sights and sounds of Mexico with us.

Color Fully Yours,

Cindy

The Colors of San Miguel

Color is everywhere the doors of San Miguel

                                            The pottery of San Miguel

                                               the fabric and cloth of San Miguel

Even splashes of vibrant yellow along the roadways           

                                                                   outside San Miguel

You do not have to look far for color inspiration in San Miguel...it is everywhere and contrasts loudly with the now-brown countryside.  When the spring rains begin the place will come alive with flowers and verdant green fields.  But for now I love finding the colors jumping out at me and screaming for attention against the earthy colored background.

And speaking of attention: gold stars to those of you who caught my (mindless) error in the last blog: blue, of course, is a primary color and when mixed with yellow, another primary, it makes green.  Apparently I left a bit of my brain at the health department!  Big kudos to those of you who noted the reversal and nodded in understanding for the foggy confusion I was still in!  I will do better, I will never be error free, but better!

We had a play date today. Instead of hitching a ride with fellow farm guests we took the rickety bus into town - a 50 minute bouncey ride that only takes about 15-20 minutes via auto.  I confess that I love public transportation; what better way to get a real flavor, not to mention smell, of the local populous as well as the scenery?  It was Saturday and lots of folks had time to go into town...I so enjoyed myself that they literally had to kick me off the vehicle at the end of the line!

From there we were on a walking mission to find a Rotary member Bob had connected with and to locate a door knocker for our front door.  The buildings of San Miquel come right up to the edge of the cobblestone streets leaving only about a 24" sidewalk, also of raised cobblestones and very uneven, for pedtrestrians to walk on.  The magic of the city is behind the doors which open onto the streets.  There is no way to imagine what might be contained therein....a tiny shop or the most elegant entrance to a home or hotel.  Large patio gardens sometimes precede a restaurant whose name is discreetly on the door, or it might open onto a hallway for apartments.  No clue!

                                       

So I will go to sleep tonight imagining my door photos made into precious little paintings....I just have to decide whether to execute in watercolor or acrylic....or both!

Sending you colorful dreams,

Cindy