Valta's Blog | valta.nl

  Coincidences do not exist. Not even in Denmark. It was meant to be another painting for my series Hands' Private Life, as I wanted to make a study after a masterpiece by Antonio Mancini depicting a sewing woman, backlit. Mancini could put her hand on the canvas unmistakably right with just a few impressionistic brush strokes - we immediately recognise what she is doing. My goal was to make my own version, accentuating the hand while maintaining Mancini's light and the woman's posture. Initially, I planned to set a scene in a grey-blue-red interior, using the interior of our kitchen with a window behind her. However, neither the hand nor the overall composition came together as I had hoped, leading me to wipe the painting off mid-progress and start over.    In my second attempt, I decided to focus on the figure, first working out the face and the hand. At that point, I wasn't sure about the overall composition yet.  Then I found some photos I had taken last autumn ...

Old fashioned  Painting this one was a valuable learning experience. I realize now that it was quite silly of me to try and paint people from fantasy again, without a real reference. Although I was content with the man's pose (Paul posed for me for the man's figure), I had to repaint that woman's head multiple times - at least three, I believe. Initially, she was blond and innocent, which made the whole scene obnoxiously sweet. Then, she became a drama queen, but that version lacked joy in her dance. In the end, I feel I finally achieved the neutral expression I was aiming for. Just dancing, that's it. The viewer may decide for themselves what's in her head. What emotion do you see? Is there any? Perhaps there is. But for me, my focus was again especially on hands.  I only hope she and the whole painting didn't end up too sentimental, too sweet. That I would hate. And regarding the dance itself, I'd like it to be a foxtrot. The slow one. Deliciously old-fash...

  After Struggle Anyone who knows my best friend Chester the Manchester Terrier , has probably never seen him truly at rest. Our energetic boy is famous for being a speedy runner and a loud alarm barker.  However, he has always been the greatest cuddler and a long sleeper, especially now that he is approaching his 14th birthday. Paul and I feel fortunate to cuddle with him, as he is quite selective about his friends and the places he chooses to relax.  I have enjoyed thousands of precious moments holding him, petting him as he relaxes beside me, often resting his head on my lap and falling asleep. It makes me so happy to have him close. I always wanted to capture such a scene in a painting. Over the years, Paul has taken many photographs of Chester sleeping beside me, so I only needed to select a few as references.  To begin, I quickly painted a small study, just 15 x 10 cm. I was satisfied with its composition and lighting, so I thought it could serve as a good star...

  Study and Tell Here is a series of landscape paintings based on the photographs I recently took.       I am honoured to have been invited to share my painting process with the enthusiastic and talented local painters' club for the second season. Inspired by our sessions together, I recently created a series of quick and small landscape studies based on the beautiful surroundings of our village. This experience has provided me with a great opportunity to teach while also learning more about painting landscapes, composition, light, and colour. All three are oil on canvas board 20 x 20 cm, alla prima, limited palette. View the finished paintings in my  gallery .