One Stroke at a Time

What I find hard to do, is to take control. The passion that drives me to paint is transformed into this powerful energy and strength that needs to be controlled, so I don’t end up damaging the canvas. This energy I talk about needs to change from physical to emotional at my fingertips. It cannot be added to the brush.

I was chosen by my style of painting, I didn’t choose it ...don’t ask me why, but at this moment this style of painting is what’s coming out of me. Detailed oriented, short strokes, carefuly-chosen colors ...one stroke at a time. I would’ve wanted something a little more physical, with speed, long strokes, lots of imperfection, that’s something that seems to fit me better, may be I’ll try it in the future ...but like I said, what you see at this moment is what’s coming out of me.

May be it is the period I’m in right now, may be it is the way I want to tell you the story, or share my memories. may be I just don’t want you to miss any detail of what I have to tell you through the painting. I don’t want you to mis anything.

I had some time to paint over the weekend, I got caught by the detail of the bullfighter’s parade-cape or Capa de Paseo, which is the cape they wear on the left shoulder as they walk into the arena before the fight. I spent a lot of time making decisions on what would go on the cape. I’m liking the wy it’s going.

It must’ve been around 1977 or 1978, I was about 14 years old, I was at the Plaza de Acho, a beautiful bullring in Lima, Perú; it was built in the 1700’s and restored in 1946 or so, I was standing there, at the gate where all the bullfighters need to pass through to get to the ring, I had a piece of paper and a pen, I wanted autographs. I did that every year. All of a sudden, Francisco Rivera “Paquirri”, a very famous Bullfighter scheduled to fight that afternoon, appeared dressed in his suit-of-lights and with a big smile took my paper and pen, gave me his autograph and shook my hand. I was shocked. I will never forget that moment.

One thing I remember very vividly about that moment, is the color of his “traje de luces” (suit-of-lights). It is the color I’ve applied to this painting, it was an aqua-blue and gold. Just the way I saw it. Just the way I remember it. Many people call bullfighting “the dance with death”, and you would think that to an event that’s called that, everybody would be wearing black, but a bullfight is a beautiful celebration of color. That’s ironic.

Francisco Rivera “Paquirri” was killed by a bull in 1984.


Peace.