Like a Bull in a Pharmacy…
10 May 2012 Leave a Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, Spain, tauromachie, travel
JMCP cover – May 2012
I am pleased to announce that my painting “Toroscape 03″ has been chosen for the cover of the May 2012 edition of JMCP. I had been contacted some weeks ago by email:
“…I am very impressed with your art, especially the Toroscape 03 painting! My name is Sheila Macho, and I am the Cover Editor of a non-profit pharmaceutical magazine titled JMCP (Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy), whose parent organization is AMCP (Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy) of Alexandria, Virginia, USA. The magazine is published nine times per year, and we feature a different work of art on every cover (similar to what JAMA [Journal of the American Medical Association] does). Our audience is mainly pharmacists and physicians…
We are interested in using the image of your Toroscape 03 painting for our May 2012 magazine cover. You’ve really captured a power bullfighting scene with your painting, and I admire the bold brushstrokes. I have submitted the image of your painting to our editor-in-chief, Fred Curtiss, PhD, and he has enthusiastically approved the selection for the May 2012 JMCP cover…”
“
I want to thank you Sheila and the whole magazine for featuring my art on the cover and for the great article about myself and my art accompanying the cover. My Art has been featured in quite a lot of magazines and event promotions around the world, but I must say that from the many that have appeared worldwide, this one probably represents me best. More than anything it shows a deep respect for the artist, and this means the world to me!
If you are interested to get more information about this organisation, please visit their website www.amcp.org
You will also find there the online version of the magazine.
And here the link for the article itself
Toroscape 03, as well as nearly all my bullfight paintings and artworks, are available directly online as Giclee print in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting cards. Just click on the widget below
Angry Little Bull
22 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, Spain, Tradition, travel
Angry Little Bull - by Miki
I found that angry little bull this morning in one of these enormous drawers where I put the paintings I haven’t framed or sold yet. I was alerted but some noises inside the drawer and thought I better have a look. Well, as soon as I opened it, the little beast jumped at my face, apparently very impatient to get out!
When he had calmed down, I looked at it deep in the eyes, but I did not recognise him. I mean, I could not remember having ever painted it. Might be this the reason why he was so angry? Anyway, I went to my bullfight gallery, and suddenly remember. This was one of the paintings I had digitally altered. I do that sometimes. I paint some bullfight scene in watercolour, and when it is finished I don’t like it, or I get bored with the tender colours, or with the evanescent look so typical to watercolours. Then I put it into my computer and worked on it with the more vibrant digital tools and structures. I call it “Toroscape”, the ending “scape” being in my work always a sign that the paintings have been created partially or totally digitally. And this is what happent to that little bull, he had been digitally treated.. well, when I look at the original painting today, I must understand his anger: he was quite nice as he was! This is why I have decided to present it as such today, exactly the way he first came to world !
Some people will moan again, that I make bullfight appear nice, soft and tender. I would agree with them, bullfight is everything else! But I can’t help for my paintings, I can’t hardly take the responsibility for them! They are the result of a very intuitive impulse, and what comes out comes out, I have no control about it. I could also argue that at that point of the corrida, when the guy is fighting with his yellow and pink cape, no blood has run yet! So at least I cannot be accused of hiding the blood here! And also I must think of the business: I had many clients, mainly women, who wanted a bullfight painting by me, but they didn’t want to see any blood on it… I have to please these delicate souls too, this is my job! 
This painting is available directly online as Giclee print in many different dimensions, on paper or canvas, and also as greeting cards. Please click on the widget 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”. Just click on my face… but be tender please!
Tikujanka and The Bulls
20 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, Spain, tauromachie, Tradition
Toro calendar 2009 - by Miki
Some years ago I was contacted by a young man from the Czech Republic , wanting to make a Christmas gift of one of my Bullfight Calendars 2009 to his Sweetheart
“… she who loves the topic of bullfight. Your pictures of bulls are just amazing and we both like them very much…”
I loved these simple words of admiration, reflecting an honest appreciation of my art work. Also, I was quite amazed that somebody from that country was interested in Bullfighting. Well in fact, I had already been amazed one year previously as a Slovakian company had contacted me, wanting to publish a 2009 calendar featuring my bullfight art (which they did, exactly the calendar in question). 2009 was the year of the bull according to the Chinese, this being the reason behind the decision to create the calendar… a reason as good as any other, but to my mind,quite exotic nevertheless!
It is a weird thing, you know, I already mentioned it on different occasions, but 95% of my clients for my Bullfighting Art are NOT from Spain or any other country where the bullfight tradition comes from and is still practised. Quite sad somehow… Now, one could argue that foreigners tend to see only the romantic and ‘folkloric’ part of it. But I have had a great deal of contact with these foreign aficionados, and most of the time I was surprised how deep and sincere their love and knowledge of the Spanish fiesta is.
Anyway, I sent the calendar with following dedication, as requested :
“”Greetings to Tikujanka from the queen of the planet Goodaboom.
Miki”
Tikujanka obviously being the Sweetheart… I was curious about that name, and in fact meant to ask, but then I was caught up in many projects and I forgot…
Some weeks ago – it was Christmas Day and I was just celebrating with my parents on the Costa Blanca, having come back from a Morocco trip the night before- I received the following comment to one of the posts in this blog, the one where I was publishing and translating a very ugly letter (judge for yourself! ) written to me by one of the French anti-bullfight fanatics.
“Hello, Miki, I wish you a lot of patience with these antitaurinos. I have a blog (sad to say, very amateur and only in Czech) about bullfighting and I have these replies too. They are the same – absolutely convinced about their “truth” and unable to discuss about it, just like religios fanatics.
Your artworks are amazing!
I don’t understand French, so thank you very much for the translation.”
and minutes later I received a personal email from the same person, with the funny and wonderful title
“Tikujanka is worried”
“Hello, Miki, I hope you remember me, you have sent me your beautiful calendar (Toro 2009) with a greeting: “Greetings to Tikujanka from the Queen of the Planet Goodaboom! Miki” via my friend. I still love your art and i keep the calendar as a relic. Now, I have only one blog, that one about bullfighting. I deleted my Tikuj blog long time ago, because I saw Tikuj too much idealized and unreal. Sometimes I miss it.
I am worried because in 2008, when I was 14 years old, i put a lot of your works on my blog – without your permission. I will delete or change those articles, please tell me if i must delete them, or if I can leave them on blog with proper links to your websites.
I wish you merry Christmas and good luck in the year 2012.
María – Tikujanka”
Of course I remembered Tikujanka, and I must say that I was over the moon! Happy to hear from that mysterious “Tikujana’, who on top of everything was only 14 years old as she received my calendar and so much loved my bullfight art. And more than anything I was immensely touched about her honesty, integrity and worries. It is very rare nowadays to see this, when the internet encourages the human tendency to behave badly if one is not punished….
Anyway, I got in touch with Tikujanka, and asked her what I meant to ask her 3 years before:
“… of course I remember you… I remember too that I was amazed that somebody in the Czech republic loves bullfight. Tell me, how is it that such a young girl, as you were then and still are, loves the corrida, so much that she makes a blog about it? I am really curious about it, please let me know. And if you give me more details I will make a blog post about you in My Toro blog, as I find this very amazing, and I am so happy about it…”
Tikujanka was very pleased about my little blog project and told me her story
“… My passion for bullfighting started slowly. When I was about 12 years old, I read Kopyto, Mňouk a tajemství džungle (Kopyto, Mňouk and the Secret of Jungle) written by humoristic Czech writer Miroslav Švandrlík and ilustrated by great caricaturist Neprakta. It’s one of many books for kids about two schoolboys and their funny adventures. In this book, their class is going to school trip to Barcelona, but their plane is hijacked and they landed in tropical Africa. After many dangerous adventures in junge, they luckily went to Barcelona. Despite their teacher’s protests, the students visited a bullfight and they were amazed.
Then, I started to search for informations in book and internet and my interest grew as a fire. In March 2009, I got a message from Václav Rákos, great Czech translator,journalist, painter and bullfight fan like me. We started to communicate, I have published many of his articles about bullfighting on my blog (Ou, they are so much better than my blog posts!). In March 2010, I with my father and Mr. Rákos went to Valencia to see bullfights. It was my and my father’s first encounter with live bullfight and it was absolutely amazing. We saw the best matadors with huge and brave bulls. Now, we are great bullfight fans. Mr. Rákos recently translated Hemingway’s book The Dangerous Summer into Czech and he also painted a cover for this book and wrote a bullfight dictionary. He is the greatest expert for bullfight in Czech Republic.
I live in Kutná Hora, a small historical town near Prague. Our town is known for medieval monuments including St. Barbara’s cathedral. Kutná Hora is openly turistic town, but if you like Prague, you could also enjoy Kutná Hora. I hope I could meet you here some day personally…”
What an amazing personal story, isn’t it? And of course I would love to meet her in person. I was in the Czech Republic for the first time in July 2011, in Brno, Prague and Loket (attending a concert in Loket by the rock Super Group “Black Country Communion”… WOW!), and really loved my time there. No doubt I want to go back, and I will certainly find a way to meet Tikujanka. Somehow I like that girl, as simple as that!
I asked her if she could send me a photo of the book cover, and here it is
And also she sent me the photo of her in the Arena of Valencia. A wonderful picture! It reminded me that I too, attended a bullfight in Valencia, I was probably the same age as Tikujanka… a long time ago!!! But the bulls keep us young, don’t they Tikujanka? .
Tikujanka in Valencia bullring
For the aficionados interested in the technical details, here is what Tikujanka saw in Valencia
“The foto of me is from 17th March. It was before my 2nd bullfight. The first was 16th and it was a friendly mano a mano between Enrique Ponce and El Juli. Ponce was pretty good, but El Juli was absolutely amazing. In the second bullfight were fighting El Cid, Daniel Luque and Ruben Pinar. Luque was injured. Both El Cid and Pinar were good. When I was in Valencia, I saw three another corridas de toros, one corrida de rejones and one concurso de recortes, where men were jumping over bulls. My favorite bullfighters are El Juli and especially Sebastian Castella. I saw him in two bullfights, first time with Ponce and José María Manzanares and second times in the great finale of celebrations with six other matadors. In both bullfights was he fantastic.”
Well, when I was her age, I had a crush on Jose Maria Manzanares!!! I had seen him in Alicante as a novillero, and had fallen in love at once. Every time I was in Spain I tried to see him fighting, and did see him many times. My brother was teasing me all the time about it… and still does, about 40 years later! But I guess my Manzanares is not the one Tikujanka saw.. mine was the father, hers is the son!
And last but not least, I asked her if she wanted to become a bullfighter. Well, one never knows… there is the amazing story of Marie Sara, how she became the first female bullfighter on horseback in France… and also I have already met a male bullfighter from Russia… so why not a torera from the Czech Republic? She answered
“… being a bullfighter? No way! I am not strong, agile, neither brave. I will fight with a pen, not with a sword…”
Yes, Tikujanka, fight with the pen, I am sure you are great at it as your brain is strong, agile and brave… Can’t wait to read your first book!
PS: in case you too wonder about the signification of name “Tikujanka”, here it is:
“… When I was about 14 years old, my imagination was full of stories. They were set in Tikuj, imaginary country similar to old Spain. Later Tikuj became to be too idealised for me and I abandoned it, but I kept my nickname derived from it. In Czech it means “a girl from Tikuj”. “
I have never been in Tikuj, but somehow it makes me sad to think that it is now an abandoned country… I am too much of an Idealist myself, I guess!
PPS: and for those who can read Czech, go and see
Tikujanka’s blog about
la corrida de toros
The Red Barrier
12 Mar 2011 Leave a Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Spain, tauromachie, Tradition
The Red Barrier - by Miki
Acrylics on Canvas – 60 x 80 cm – 2011
(2011 Acrylics 03)
The last of my bullfighting art creations.
If you are interested in purchasing the original work, please contact me by email.
And if somebody is interested in buying a Giclee print of this painting, it is available in different sizes and on paper or canvas in my FAA Gallery here:
Si alguien quiere comprar un Giclee print de este cuadro, se puede hacer directamente online en mi FAA Galería aquí:
Baby Bull
06 Mar 2011 1 Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, Spain, tauromachie, torero
2011 Toro Acrylics 01 - by Miki
Acrylics on canvas – 60 x 60 cm – 2011
Well, it is not really a baby bull… it just means that it is a baby of my Big Bull , in the sense that it was created with the remains of the colours on my palette as I gave the Big Bull his final touch. Also “baby” in the sense that after painting a bull in about natural size, this one looks pretty tiny to me!
Painted in larger strokes as I usually do, not keen to spend much time with it… no mother’s heart for my baby bull! -;)
And if somebody is interested in buying a Giclee print of this painting, it is available in different sizes and on many different supports in my FAA Gallery here:
Si alguien quiere comprar un Giclee print de este cuadro, se puede hacer directamente online en mi FAA Galería aquí:
Mission Accomplished
04 Mar 2011 5 Comments
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, Spain, tauromachie, Tradition
Seeing Red II - by and with Miki
Acrylics on canvas – 185 x 155 cm – 2011
So, the big bull ordered by an American business man and to be delivered to Madrid is finished and approved by the client, just need to signed and varnished now, demounted from the wooden frame and rolled into into a big cardboard tube to go on the road.. If you have already tried to roll a bull into a cardboard tube, you might know that it is a tough gig, Perhaps the most difficult part of the whole mission!!!: they are not pets, they are wild animals and don’t really fancy getting locked into a tube! Lets hope my bull won’t use his horns to destroy his cage… I should perhaps give him some sedative before …
Sorry for the silly story, but I have a vivid imagination, and the bulls I paint are real to me!
This painting is, in the composition, the result of two existing paintings. The client saw on the net the following gouache painting by me, 50 x 65 cm, and asked me if I could reproduce it in big on canvas.
- Seeing Red – by Miki
It was not really possible, as the original painting is an horizontal format.So I had to make another composition, but more or less keeping the bullfighter and the red cape how they are. I proposed different compositions to the client, ans he chose among them exactly the one I personally preferred. I was extremely glad about that. I saw a photo of the sumptuous place where the painting will hang, and I think my painting will look great there in a big golden frames above the beautiful chimney.
I originally thought that the painting would hang in an office in Madrid, but I was wrong. The painting will travel from Madrid to Bologna, Italy, and from there to Florida, USA.
How nice: My bulls are literally invading America! I have sold so many of them over there, as originals or prints… it always amazes me, it seems to be more aficionados over there then here in Spain and France. Or perhaps there are more people loving art? Or my own special style? Or more people with money for art?
The Gypsy Princes in El Retiro
26 Feb 2011 Leave a Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, music, Paintings, Spain, tauromachie
Yesterday, as I wrote in my precedent post, we went to our local Art Gallery “El Retiro” to give the owner Curtis Helm my painting commemorating my bullfight paintings show there some weeks ago. Today I heard that after we left, a group of local musicians called “The Gypsy Princes” came to the gallery and played one hour there, first inside, then outside in front of the entrance door. A wonderful complement to the great art show of Julie Jones.
Curtis posted a short video of the Princes in the gallery, here is a screen shot
- The Gypsy Princes in “El Retiro” in Turre, Andalusia, Spain
Apparently one of them is actually related to the GYPSY KINGS. I wonder how long it will take until one of the Kings themselves appears in El Retiro!!!
If you want to see the video please go here
El Retiro de Los Toros
25 Feb 2011 5 Comments
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, Spain, tauromachie Tags: bullfight, bulls, corrida, El Retiro, Turre painting
Today I went to our wonderful local Gallery “El Retiro; and gave the owner the painting I did to celebrate my last bullfight painting exhibition there on the 28th of January 2011. If you want to see photos and read about the show, just browse back a little bit in this blog. The painting is called “El Retiro de Los Toros”.
The original idea was to show me leading bulls into the Retiro, as a symbol for my art show. Then I thought of adding a little bit more mystique and mystery into the painting. This is why I am now sitting on a white horse, -is it me or is it a nun from the church behind? – leading the 6 bulls saved from their death in the afternoon bullfight into El Retiro. Now, this all sounds nice and peaceful and animal-friendly, but when you look at the painting, you might wonder what will happen to the bulls inside El Retiro. There is a bright orange light, red stains also, it almost looks like creatures of fire… one of them even looking like a matador opening his cape to welcome the first toro.. well, this is all free to interpretation and to imagination!
And if you look really closely you will even see the eye of God somewhere there…
El Retiro de Los Toros - by Miki
Acrylics on canvas – 60 x 60 cm – 2011
Curtis Helm was very happy to receive the painting, and I am glad that he liked it!
Curtis Helm, Miki and El Retiro de Los Toros
Acrílico en lienzo – 60 x 60 cm. 2011
He pintado este cuadro, llamado “El Retiro de Los Toros” para conmemorar mi exposición de pinturas taurinas en la nueva galería de arte de Turre, “El Retiro”.
Entering Madrid through the American Door… – Entrando en Madrid por la Puerta Americana…
16 Feb 2011 Leave a Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Spain, tauromachie, torero, Tradition
I have just started a new, big bullfight painting on commission, acrylics on canvas, 185 x 154 centimetres, the kind of dimension where the bull is almost as big as me and where I have to climb on a chair to paint it.
The client is a business man in the USA, and the painting is meant for the Spanish office in Madrid. Always nice to see that there are still serious bullfight aficionados around the world… probably more than in Spain! I have said it before, I have bullfight paintings clients all around the world, in countries even where one would think they have never heard of bullfight. But I have hardly sold my bullfight art here in Spain. Well, I have sold loads of them, but not to Spanish clients. I don’t know the reason… perhaps because most of my sites are in English, perhaps too because the Spaniards love more the heavier, darker way in art, fitting to their dark and so heavy furniture pieces? Funny though and quite cool to enter now the Main town Madrid via America!
Acabo de empezar un nuevo cuadro taurino por encargo, 185 x 154 centímetros, dimensiones en cuales el toro casi es tan grande como yo, y yo tengo que subir en una silla para pintarlo!
El cliente es un hombre de negocios en los Estados Unidos y el cuadro es para su oficina de Madrid. Siempre un placer de ver que todavía has muchos aficionados alrededor del mundo.. probablemente mas que en España misma! Lo he dicho anteriormente, tengo clientes de mis cuadros taurinos en muchos países del mundo, hasta en algunos donde yo no me podía imaginar que saben lo que es una corrida. Peri casi no he vendido mi arte taurino aquí en España. Bueno, la verdad es que si, he vendido mucho, pero casi siempre a extranjeros. La razón puede ser que la mayoría de los sitios donde expongo, en Internet como en el mundo “real”, son ingleses. Pero también puede ser que a los Españoles les gustan mas los cuadros mas graves, mas oscuros, para acompañar a sus muebles pesados y oscuros… aunque lo de los muebles esta cambiando aquí, increíble la cantidad de españoles que se ven en tiendas como IKEA. Pero que cómico de entrar en Madrid por la puerta americana!!
Valentine’s Day with the Bulls
15 Feb 2011 Leave a Comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, torero, Tradition
Just a photo of me at my Valentine’s dinner yesterday evening, a dinner for two which I won last week by a local Valentine Art Competition. The painting behind me is not by me, They had on the restaurant (MESA, in Mojacar Playa) wall a series of attractive bullfight paintings in popart style with bold primary colours.
Everything was perfect, we had a great time and a great meal!
