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."

BERGOGLIO, POPE, watercolor

Bergoglio, Pope, watercolor, 3x 7 in.
South American Cruise series # 47
We had visited South America for 6 weeks, and had to take our plane back from Buenos Aires to Los Angeles on March 13. My cousin Mirtha and her husband, Mario, were taking us to the airport in a couple of hours. Meanwhile, we were having a glass of wine and watching the news, when the announcement for the new Pope, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, surprised and delighted us! Not only he is from Argentina, but he used to visit my cousin's church, as a Cardinal, arriving by Metro instead of using the car available to him. Since my cousin knew him, we felt he was part of the family! What a way to end our trip! And what a way to end this South American Cruise saga!

Watch my new blog, coming up from Sweden.......

PASILLOS DEL CARBO, CORDOBA, watercolor

Pasillos del Carbo, Cordoba, Argentina, 4x6 watercolor
South America Cruise series # 45

Escuela Normal Nacional de Profesores Alejandro Carbo. These hallways saw me from age 12 to 16, when I graduated with the title of Elementary School Teacher, two years younger than my classmates. I had never gone back to visit in 50 years. So I walked in this time. A man stopped me at the door and asked me what was my purpose. As I was about to tell him I just wanted to visit the school, I couldn't talk. Emotion filled me with tears, he saw my face and understood. As I walked around and relived some moments of my youth, it was sad to see the classrooms in disarray, dirty floors and windows. Decay has slowly set in, as the school is not well kept.

TRANQUERA EN SANTA CATALINA, CORDOBA, watercolor

Tranquera en Santa Catalina, Cordoba,  4x6 watercolor
South America Cruise series # 43

After a 5 week cruise round South America's Cape Horn, we flew from Buenos Aires to Córdoba, in Argentina, where we were received by our friends Lalo and Estela Perotto. What a pleasure to see them after so many years! Lunch was accompanied by a delicious Merlot, their own brand: "Perotto", with a picture of Lalo's father when he immigrated from Italy. This wine was produced by his son Jose's own winery. What an honor to be welcomed in this manner!  In the evening we walked along downtown Cordoba streets full of life, and saw the "dancing waters" of El Buen Pastor, "Casa Tomada's " shopping mall, small colorful boutiques, music, people, noise, fun!

TANGO EN PLAZA DEL ARBOL, BUENOS AIRES, watercolor

Tango en Plaza del Arbol, Buenos Aires, 4x6 watercolor
South America Cruise series # 42

Another day in Buenos Aires, Argentina, we went to San Telmo, visited the stores of antiquarians, and sat at Plaza del Arbol, where we had a drink sitting under a big tree, while enjoying the tango dancers. Very relaxing!

TANGO AT THE END OF THE WORLD, watercolor

Tango at the End of the World, watercolor, 12x9 in.
South America Cruise series # 38

Hanging out in Ushuaia, tango dancers caught our eyes, our imagination, and our cameras! It was really fun to hear tango music again, after so many years out of Argentina. This was our last day "at the end of the world". After cruising for 4 weeks going south on the Pacific, from now on we would start going north on the Atlantic. Very exciting! The daily paintings, of course, never stopped. What else did I have to do?

USHUAIA NATIONAL PARK, watercolor

Ushuaia National Park, (Parque Nacional de Ushuaia), watercolor, 4x6 in.
South America Cruise series # 36

In Ushuaia, Argentina, the southernmost city in the world, we took the little train (watercolor published yesterday) through this beautiful park "at the end of the world". We were among flowers, rivers, green grass, and faraway mountains with ice and snow on their summits. Paradise on earth! No wonder people who come here to try it out...stay!! At least, it is paradise in the summer months....Winters are harsh, cold and windy. For us, at the end of February, paradise!

PETROHUE, CHILE, watercolor

Petrohue, Chile, watercolor, 4x6 in.
South America Cruise series # 31

In the language of the original natives of South America, called: Mapudungun, "hue" means place, and "Petro" flies. So "Petrohue" means "the place of flies, according to our guide, Roberto. From Puerto Montt we took a taxi to this area, Petrohue, to see these beautiful waterfalls rumbling down. It was raining, so I painted this watercolor from the pictures I took at the moment. Roberto was  very knowledgeable and explained very well the geography, language, and culture of the area.

PUERTO VARAS, CHILE, watercolor

Puerto Varas, Chile, watercolor, 9x12 inches
South America Cruise aboard Carnival Splendor series # 29

Puerto Varas is only 16 km. from Puerto Montt, where the cruise ship stopped. Puerto Varas is inside, overlooking Lake Llanquihue, the largest lake in Chile, and one of the largest lakes in South America. It has waves like a sea or ocean, and on the shore there, you cannot see the other side. This town is also called "City of Roses, due to the large variety and quantity of roses planted everywhere. Between 1850 and 1880 the Chilean government asked Germany to send people, families, here, and gave them land, and a few animals to start working the land and establish farms. Today, Puerto Varas and the surrounding area looks like Bavaria, with signs in Spanish. Well cared gardens, beautiful homes, snow capped mountains, rivers and the beautiful lake Llanquihue. What a blessing to have been able to visit this place!

PUERTO MONTT, GERMAN HOUSE, Chile, watercolor

Puerto Montt, German House, Chile, watercolor, 9x12 in.
South America Cruise series # 28

Puerto Montt is set among lakes, fiords, and rivers, and nestled at the foot of snow-capped mountains. Beautiful homes surrounded by parks in an ideal setting were all along the drive to Puerto Varas and Petrohue. We visited the Feria Artesanal Angelmo, an artisan market with Chilean products: woven items of wool and alpaca from Chiloé, the big island off the coast nearby.  Such a beautiful day in that area, I highly recommend visiting Puerto Montt and its surroundings!

PUERTO MONTT, CHILE, watercolor map

Puerto Montt, Chile, watercolor map, 4x6
South America Cruise series #27

Puerto Montt was founded in 1853 during the German colonization of Southern Chile. Gateway to the Archipielago de Chiloé, LLanguihue Lake and Nahuel Huapí on the Argentinian side. Puerto Montt is the second largest salmon producer in the world, considered Salmon Capital of Chile, as it is the hub of the largest salmon aquaculture industry in the world, closely followed by Norway. Fresh salmon is flown daily to world markets. Puerto Montt looks like Bavaria with signs in Spanish. Amazing and beautiful!

VALPARAISO II, CHILE, watercolor

Valparaiso II, Chile, watercolor, 9x12 in.
South America Cruise series # 26

Valparaiso is an awesome town! Colorful, escalating up the mountain, full of little corners and hidden places, twists and turns, and with "elevators" or "inclined trolleys" to take you up and down. One is represented in this painting. I have talked about them in a previous blog. The highlight of my visit to Valparaiso was Pablo Neruda's house, for me. Amazing!!! He collected all kinds of objects he called them "juguetes" or toys. Look at this poem:

"En mi casa he reunido juguetes pequeños y grandes, sin los cuales no podria vivir. El niño que no juega no es niño, pero el hombre que no juega perdió para siempre al niño que vivía en el y que le hara mucha falta."
"In my house I have gathered toys big and small, without which I could not live. The boy that does not play is not a boy, but the man who does not play has forever lost the boy that lived inside him, and whom he will greatly miss." -------------------------Pablo Neruda, "Botellas y Mascarones"

ONE VIEW FROM LA SEBASTIANA, watercolor

One View from La Sebastiana, watercolor, 4x6 in.
South America Cruise series # 24

"Yo construi la casa.
La hice primero de aire.
Luego subi en el aire la bandera
y la deje colgada
del firmamento, de la estrella, de
la claridad y de la oscuridad. "
Pablo Neruda en su poema a su casa, La Sebastiana

"I built the house.
I first made it out of air.
Then I raised the flag in the air
and left it hanging
from the sky, from the star, from
clarity and obscurity."
From Pablo Neruda's poem to his house, La Sebastiana