Friday, December 26, 2008

Mexican Cactus

Last winter a friend of mine was heading off to Isla Mujeras, a small island just off the coast of Cancun, Mexico. "Are you coming with?" she said. Well that was all the invitation that I needed. I had never been there before and the Dalai Lama says that you should visit at least one new place a year. I started to make arrangements. I was already booked to enjoy a Saskatchewan Christmas with my family. Was I to go there, then back to the West coast, then south? It was mind boggling.

My partner Jeff said "Why don't you see what kind of flights are available from Regina?" "Regina" I said, "Are you crazy? There won't be nothing flying out of Regina." Well, what do you know, there was indeed a direct flight out of Regina and quite affordable at that. My plans were made. First to Saskatchewan for Christmas, where it was very cold, then off to Cancun Mexico where it was very hot. Talk about extreme weather changes. Another slight problem was the packing, as I had to move through several different climates. Long story short, I made it down to Mexico, had a fantastic time exploring, reading books, snorkeling and just hanging out.

While making our way to the beach for another glorious day of suntanning, swimming and goofing around, I saw this forlorn looking cactus, propped up in a terra cotta pot, ready to be potted. The owners were just opening up a restaurante and hadn't gotten around to potting the cactus yet. With a camera in hand, I quickly took a shot, then headed off to the beach. After returning to Canada and going through my photos I looked at this one and noticed the reflection of the house in the window. What a great bonus to this painting.

"Mexican Cactus"
10 x 12", acrylic

Another great painting inspired by my trip is
"Memories of Mexico"
24 x 30", acrylic

You can view it on my website:
http://store.youngatart.ca
or see a past blog dated October 20th.




Love what you do ... and do what you love!

No comments: