Now That's a Tiny Pickle

Seriously, this is the smallest pickle I have ever encountered. It came in a jar of olive mix that is quite delicious. 

Today I finished drawing and etching my big plate! I'm pretty excited to post the out come of this tomorrow.

Tomorrow Jordi is taking me to eat Paella. I'm pretty stoked, and tomorrow you will be rewarded with a photo of what paella is. or you can google it. 

The Mediterranean Sea. 

I went to the Sea today with intentions of getting in the water. I removed my sandals and approached the water whilst taking in the refreshing aroma of the sea. I then stepped into the water. And then stepped right out because it was super cold. 

the port

fish market

Tomorrow I will begin printing my edition of the big plate after I get finished aquatinting! Stay tuned....

It's Been a Week

photo by Hillary Clary

I spent most of today drawing. It took me two hours (9:00 am- 11:00am) to polish my plate. and then I spent the rest of the time (11:00 am- 6:30 pm) drawing on it. I got half way finished with my drawing which is great. When I'm finished writing this I will resume drawing. shown here is the process.

the tools. 

well, I've been here a week. 

Above is the Catalonian flag. Many Catalonians fly this flag on their balconies or corners of their houses. Their patriotism is very strong and their passion for the region is beautiful. 

I would go as far as to say that more houses fly the Catalonian flag than don't. 

sketch and writing for the big plate

afternoon cappuccino 

One of the turtles today made me laugh. I look down at him, and he is totally sprawled out, fully asleep. legs all crazy, and his little head was laying out on the floor. I also have been seeing some geckos around on the walls and such. They move so incredibly fast that the only picture I could get was through some acrylic glass. 

he kind of woke up when he realized I was taking a picture of him

sneaky geckos 

one last thing. Look at this :) http://www.artprintresidence.net/hillary-clary-started-a-new-plate/

The Last Three Days

Friday:

Friday was quite wonderful, as it was spent working hard, eating yummy pastries, and going on a drive in the mountains. 

Friday is the day when 6 or so people come into the shop to work on their prints. They also seem to bring a pastry or food item to share with the whole shop which is perfectly fine with me. We had a treat that was pretty much like french toast back home, I think it is just made a little differently. These folks spent their day making prints, and reminiscing on their childhood. Now, I didn't understand any of if, but i still enjoyed the way their good moods permeated the working environment. 

That afternoon, Jordi and Clàudia invited me to go on an afternoon drive with them through the mountains. It was a beautiful sight and Jordi stopped and showed me my very first cork tree! it was so cool to see how people harvest cork from trees on the side of the road. I took a few pieces to keep. 

Friday night dinner selfie: spaghetti with bacon, potatoes, and onion. It was pretty yummy. 

Saturday:

Saturday was my journey to Barcelona. I got to go by car which was a really neat way to see some of the city that many local people don't get to experience often. I got to hang out with Jordi and Clàudia's daughter who lives in Barcelona. Experiencing Barcelona with people who live there was a really fun way to see the city. Here are some photos that sum up my day. 

30 minute drive ain't bad

Inside view from an apartment. pretty neat.

Churros and Chocolat Chaud

parrots escaped from the zoo and reproduced.

picnic with new friends in the park

zebras

the next few are of Parc Güell

more Gaudì

Gaudì

creepy tree face

Sunday:

Originally I was suppose to wake up at 7 and go with my hosts to walk around a mountain.  Unfortunately, I was not feeling that well so I continued to sleep. When I woke up, I felt better and decided to go on a little hike since I missed out on the early one. I went across the street to the large park and walked around for hours. It goes up the mountain to a castle that was pretty cool to see. I as walked through the trails on the mountain, the squeals of children became louder and louder until I happened upon the adventure park that has a ropes course. It was filled with families enjoying their Sunday. I'm sure if I could have read the signs, I would have known there was a ropes course, but it was fun stumbling upon it.

Beginning

green pasture

Castel Jalpi

surprised turtle

view from the top

a picture of me hiking. woo0oo

I love these big plants on my walk home

Over the Mountain and Through the Woods

Here are a few pictures to sum up my wonderful day spent surrounded by hard work, joy, and beauty. 

photo by Hillary Clary                             an afternoon drive with Jordi and Claudia

photo by Hillary Clary                                            From under the cork tree

photo by Hillary Clary                                                   Morning Visitor

photo by Hillary Clary                                            busy day in the shop!

The fourth day

Even on the fourth day, new things are happening! 

I am sitting on my couch catching my breath after taking a walk to and from Arenys de Mar. It was a lovely walk filled with new sights that I missed when I arrived. The city is very walker friendly- I had a sidewalk the entire 15 minutes it took to get to town. I really had no destination in mind, but it ended up being the grocery store because I haven't had chocolate.. or any sugar for that matter in four days. Thats too many days. The town is very small and I felt very safe walking down the side walk passing families and grandparents. It was very cute. Next time, I hope to make it all the way to the beach. 

The walk back was quite tiring. It was all up hill, and the last stretch is up the mountain that my apartment is on. I was pretty out of breath by the time I returned. 

first cool sight on my walk

chocolate

Yosk?

on the way home

Art Print

The rest of the day was similar to yesterday. I prepared my plates. they're all etched so hopefully I'll start printing tomorrow!

When it rains heavily here for at least an hour, there is a flash flood and various kinds of vehicles get washed into the ocean. Luckily i'm living on top of a little mountain. And luckily it's obvious when it's about to rain.

The turtles were a little shy today. I think the tremendous thunder storm last night scared them. 

La(s) Tortuga(s)

Third day was a success, even more so than yesterday.

I got three plates etched so hopefully tomorrow I can start making some proofs!

photo by Hillary Clary

photo by Hillary Clary

Did you know turtles can squeak? I didn't either until I accidentally intruded on a turtle mating ritual. There I was, just standing, cleaning off a copper plate, and suddenly I hear a tiny little "huuuh" noise. I stop and look around only to find a male turtle hopelessly chasing the unwilling female turtle. He kept trying to bite her front toes, which I found odd. After at least 20 minutes of called attempts, the male turtle went his own way. 

Anyways, I learned so much today. I have learned a whole new side to intaglio that I never knew existed. I discovered new methods to etch, aquatint, soft ground, and ink a plate. My mind is being blown! 

photo by Hillary Clary

printin'  

photo by Hillary Clary

photo by Hillary Clary

Learning the Ropes: a first day

So today was my first full day in the workshop, and I'd say it was a success.

I started off by preparing my plates some more. Usually I would have burnished, polished, and de-greased them. However, today I learned a more effective way of preparing a plate that I had yet to experience. The method I learned involved sanding the plate with 3 different sandpapers (600, 800, and 1000) leaving them pretty smooth. Next, a polish that must be vigorously buffed was applied and removed. After this, another polish was applied and removed leaving the surface as reflective as a new piece of copper. It is quite a few more steps than I am use to, but it is very effective and I like that. 

photo by Hillary Clary

Next I went for a small hike in the woods near the workshop. I found many of the same things that I would have in Louisiana- pine trees, spiders, a random ball cap, grass, a sock- but I also found things that aren't in Louisiana. Here is a picture of a couple of them.  

photo by Hillary Clary

I then returned to the shop to begin making my image. More on that tomorrow. 

The shop pets are turtles. There are four turtles. Here is a picture of a turtle. 

photo by Hillary Clary

Irene Badia is another printmaker here as well. She has been here for nearly four months making massive etchings of abstracted aerial views of Italian farmland. Irene and Jordi have been so helpful with learning how the shop runs. 

photo by Hillary Clary

Today made me very excited for the next two weeks! 

First day in Spain. There was rain.

I can officially say that I made it safely from the United States to Spain. It was a journey of ups and downs and uncertainty- but 11 hours later I am sitting in the living room of the apartment i'm renting. Below is a picture of the sun rising I took from 7 miles above the earth. 

photo by Hillary Clary

The first hours here have been so wonderful. The people of Art Print Residencies that I am staying with are so welcoming and kind. I've already learned a  new trick as far as printmaking is concerned. 

Things I have done in the last 24 hours: 

Gone to church

Left for Spain

Arrived in Spain

Rode a train

Got Groceries

Showered

Filed the Edges of my Copper Plates

Face Timed my love

Cooked Dinner

And soon to follow- SLEEP

The Town of Arenys de Munt is beautiful and I can't wait to see what else is in store on this journey. 

photo by Hillary Clary

photo by Hillary Clary

This is the space i'm so excited to work in. Its an enclosed outdoor patio. You can hear the birds chirp and there are turtles crawling around. 

p.s. I missed farmers market art project Saturday this week!