New French girl around!

[Carlos Ygoa]

Welcome, Karine!
I wouldn

[Allan Rahbek]

Hello Karine,

welcome to the forum from a fellow European in Denmark. I like your pastel and hope to see more paintings of yours.

Our queen has a house in your neighborhood, Chateau Caix in Cahore. You may see her painting in the garden if you peep through the fence.

Allan

[Karine Monaco]

Hello Allan,

Originally Posted by Allan Rahbek

Our queen has a house in your neighborhood, Chateau Caix in Cahore. You may see her painting in the garden if you peep through the fence.

That would be fun

Actually I didn't know about this castle, maybe I will go someday. It is not so far from here. It is situated in the Lot, which is a natural and beautiful region. Have you been there?
There are so many things we Europeans do not know about our fellow neighbours... I hope I can learn more about Denmark too thanks to you through this forum!

[Allan Rahbek]

Karine,
I found some photos from Cahore. The queen does her own shopping, you see.
Allan

[Allan Rahbek]

Originally Posted by Karine Monaco

Hello Allan,
Actually I didn't know about this castle, maybe I will go someday. It is not so far from here. It is situated in the Lot, which is a natural and beautiful region. Have you been there?
!

No, I have never been on that side of the Rhone river. The only time I have been in France was to have an exhibition in Mus

[Karine Monaco]

Hello Mischa,

Sorry to reply so late, I was quite busy these days. Thank you for your kind words. Concerning the fact that you find my portrait dramatical, well it came naturally as the model's mood was what it was. Actually, I am not sure that I understand the term dramatical here, but what I can say, is that before starting to paint, I observe the model for quite a long time, kind of absorbing what the face has to tell me about that person, and then I paint it with all it has brought to me. It is always a profound experience, to me, to paint someone's face.

Allan, thanks for posting that picture. It is an interesting painting, indeed. I will to try to look for more on the Internet. I have not been in Haute-Provence yet but based on the pictures I saw, I am sure it is a beautiful area. You should definitely see the Tarn. It is an inspiring place too. Landscapes are colorful and bright throughout the year.

Originally Posted by Allan Rahbek

She have a job here in Denmark, you know, looking after us.

And what a job

Luca, Ah... Napoli. I think I went once when I was a child. Who knows, maybe I'll have the opportunity to go back someday, I'll let you know!

Well, I am working on new portraits right now. I am sending the newest one. Please note that It is not finished yet, I am working on the background, but I thought this would give you another example of my recent works.

[Karine Monaco]

Hi everyone,

I have posted the portrait above with some close-ups in the Pastel Critiques section as I thought it would be more appropriate.

Please feel free to give me your thoughts about it. I would greatly appreciate.

Sincerely, Karine.

[Karine Monaco]

Muchas Gracias Carlos!

Well, I am not so good in Spanish either! I studied it for many years, but did not practice enough and started to forget words after words... This is a shame I have never been to Madrid although I have lived close to Spain for years, but I would like to go someday. This city is beautiful, isn't it?

Originally Posted by Carlos Ygoa

Your piece looks strong, confident, and impressive. Hope to see more.

I'm a little embarassed to get all these compliments! The thing is that I really enjoyed painting this one. I think it is important not to worry about the outcome, just enjoying the process. In my humble opinion, technical skills are something essential to learn, but there is another important one to me, which is enjoying the act of painting!

This should be something natural to us, yet we can easily forget it, sometimes, when getting commissions that do not inspire us as much as we would like them to, when we begin to worry that the portrait doesn't get done properly or in time, or when students practice and do not get the results they are hoping to get. Painting is a very intense way of learning about oneself, but how exciting is it!

Carlos, could you please give me the link to the Spanish forum you found?