MARSEILLE VIEW FROM THE MEDITERRANEAN, watercolor sketch

MARSEILLE, VIEW FROM THE MEDITERRANEAN, watercolor sketch in my sketchbook.

Please click to enlarge. On the right is the entrance to the port of Marseille, and on the left you can see the Cathedral: La Major, in the back ground, and in black le MUCEM, the most incredibly modern museum, inaugurated a few months ago.

I have been asked to write about my inspiration, and the artists that have inspired me. Delacroix and his travel sketchbooks have definitely been an inspiration for mine. I use ink and watercolors for my travel sketchbooks, and have a collection of them, since I started doing this, about 7 years ago. I have published a few as books, two are for sale at the moment: MY THREE LIVES: in Argentina, USA and France.  Also: LOOKING FORWARD, watercolors during my five week cruise to South America. Contact me for details: minnievalero@yahoo.fr 

VILLEM'S BOAT, watercolor

Villem's Boat, watercolor, 12x9 in, painted during the South America cruise aboard Carnival "Splendor", from Los Angeles around Cape Horn, to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Look at the preview and buy  the book of watercolors from the trip: LOOKING FORWARD, here at Blurb:

http://blur.by/1bmi8fi

I visited LACMA's (Los Angeles County Museum of Art)  Calder exhibition this week. Very small, compared to Calder's exhibition at the Musee Pompidou in Paris a couple of years ago. The Pompidou had several floors of Calder's contraptions, while LACMA had just a few of them in a big room, so I was disappointed, but still, Calder is Calder, and it was fun to see them. 

LOOKING FORWARD, watercolor and book cover

Looking Forward, watercolor and cover of my new book: LOOKING FORWARD: SOUTH AMERICA CRUISE watercolors by Minnie Valero, available from Blurb, here:

http://blur.by/1bmi8fi

This book is being published as I write this, first available date is December 10. You can see up to 15 pages in the Blurb website. Take a look, and get your copy now! I am trying to follow Benjamin Franklin's advice: "Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing."