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:
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:
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.
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?
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
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
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”.
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!!
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!
10 Feb 2011 2 Comments
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Paintings, Spain, Tradition
Valentine and Toros in El Retoro en Turre
Thank you Curtis Helm and the Newspaper “Euro Weekly” for featuring me !
30 Jan 2011 Leave a comment
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, France, Spain, tauromachie, torero
Toroscape 42 - par Miki
Pour les aficionados de langue française intéressés par la corrida de Rejon, je vous recommande l’article suivant
http://www.feria-corrida.com/lecon-4-la-corrida-de-rejon/
et plus généralement le site tout entier: très bien fait et très instructif!
Et aussi pour ceux qui ne comprennent pas l’anglais et voudraient lire un article sur mon exposition de peintures taurines le 28 janvier 2011 a Turre, allez sur mon blog français
29 Jan 2011 3 Comments
in Art, Bullfight, Corrida, Culture, Spain, tauromachie, torero, Tradition
Alejandro Carmona and Miki in El Retiro in Turre
(I guess we don’t look very cool with our winter clothes, far from the “traje de luces” for him and from the “exotic artist” look for me, but it was freezing in Turre!)
As I said in my previous post announcing my bullfight paintings exhibition in the gallery “El Retiro” in Turre on Friday the 28th of January 2011, we had a very special guest there: the local bullfighter Alejandro Carmona. It was wonderful to meet him and to have, for the first time in my life, the opportunity of a real conversation with a bullfighter. Although I have been to bullfights since I was a baby (really, in the arms of my father!) I never had the occasion to have a chat with one of my ring heroes. I must say, I am immensely happy that this first encounter was with Alejandro, as he turned out to be a very lovely, sensitive and intelligent guy. not at all “the macho type” which some people think bullfighters are. All the contrary. The conversation with him was extremely interesting,, we spoke about his débuts as he was 12 years old, how his family took it. Well, they thought it would be just a childish fantasy, one which many Spanish children certainly have. But it turned out to be serious, and the family totally supported him. I was quite emotional to hear that! There is nothing better than parents supporting and encouraging their children’s passions!
Alejandro stopped bullfighting in October 2008, and as fate would have it, Kevin and me attended that bullfight, without knowing it would be his last ever. Here are some photos of Alejandro taken that same day, in October 2008 in Turre. It was also the first bullfight for Kevin – A wonderful memory! I will never forget his excitement and screams as he saw the first bull rushing into the ring!
Alejandro has retired from official bullfighting , but he often goes to a friend’s ganaderia near the town of Jaen, and fights the bulls there in private. If I undertstood him well, his favourtie painting in the show was this one. I suppose because it reminds him of the ganaderia… and also it indirectly says that bullfighters deeply love the bulls, which many anti-bullfight fanatics seem to ignore…
Bull Herd - Gouache painting by Miki
I want to thank him with all my heart for his meaningful presence in my exhibition and the wonderful conversation we had. And I’m looking forward to meeting him again for a coffee soon at the “Hotel-Terraza Carmona” in Vera, run of course by the family Carmona.
Hotel-Terraza Carmona in Vera
Amour Toro 