Hola Robert,

The problem is time. Painting is time consuming as Victoria is saying to us. I have the patience to paint for hours but my husband doesn't. e.g. right now, in January, we will be in several countries, starting in Amsterdam, Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador. In the past, I have tried to paint with pastels only to find that my lovely pastel box arrived in a grey heap of dust ! I'm painting in oils now, it would be impractical to take and bring back my easel, heavy paint tubes, canvass, flying from one country to another, if on top of that, I already have to pack for three weeks worth of clothes for different occasions, no doubt, we will have to pay excess luggage ! Plus the painting would not have time to dry before I have to pack it somewhere to bring it back. The only way is to take a small sketching pad and a box of graphito pencils to make quick sketches and come home and do it by memory, but even then, my husband does not have the patience to wait any time of length, he starts pacing up and down, sighing as in bored, so its not really practical Robert.

Yes, that is true, the light can have a better quality in some places even in the same country. The best place in Mexico for its light, is San Miguel Allende, where the shadows are long even at mid-day and the colours seem clearer than nowhere else, so it has attracted a painting community, there are even painters from Canada, the United States and Europe in permanint residence there.

Welcome Victoria !

Do not underestimate yourself ! painting on the ceiling has its level of difficulty as you know, what you see close-up near the ceiling its completely different from how the eye sees it from down below, so there is the need to allow for distortions when doing a trompe l ' oeil and it requires a great deal of planning to make sure the pattern in the cornices ends up right and not chopped off at the wrong place ! Plus, the cheer physical discomfort of having your arms raised up for a long period of time. Did you know that having your arms raised up was one of the tortures used in jails ? I have to say, when I saw the Sistine Chappel for the first time, I cried, I could not believe how Michaelangelo managed to complete such a titatic work without sacrifying any of the quality, its just remarkable.

I would like to see your painted ceilings Victoria...

In turn, I will place a small oil portrait I painted of my husband whilst he was reading many years ago. He is due for another one now, as his hair has turned grey but he is not too keen in looking older, to me, he looks just the same except that his hair has turned a bit white.