MARCH

The Museum of Nonconformist Art in St Petersburg will hold a group exhibition titled Transpositions –This will include many of the artist's who have spent time as residents at the Pushkinskaya 10 art center. Carolina and I shall include work but unfortunately we wont make it back to Russia to see the city in its summer mode for the opening function in July. I will show a series of small paintings fittingly titled - SOFT DIPLOMACY alongside a new film work - SIMULATED VEHICLE -TAXI

Speaking of vehicles …A few planes, buses, trains, trams, escalators, taxis plus one automobile finally got us back to La Consulta. Back to summer, back to the southern hemisphere and back to Argentina where, as soon as we landed I savagely gobbled down a plateful of my favorite local snack - empanadas.
It was +28 C but felt like +280 C as the sun was so bright and my brain and skin had almost forgotten what southern summer sun was like after our time in Russia. Carolina and I commenced to BBQ in true Argentina style with loads of Malbec wine and some kilos of meat to help us settle back into La Consulta. I once again set up my studio under the Andes and began working on new ideas the second day back. There is alot to sort out here besides all those new ideas. Many aspects of Argentina are still very unstable, stupid and extremely messy which makes being here not so fabulous. Of course I do not include all the friends, family, great wine, rustic food and superb views of the Andes I am lucky enough to engage with in this part of the world.
​
Over summer besides my studio time I tend to and move around cacti in the garden, I collect handfuls of pine-cone kernels from our pine tree, I sundry 1000 tomatoes and I roast almonds with salt and sweet paprika. I may even make some jars of pickled zucchini and onions in an attempt to domesticate myself. Wish me luck.

 hacked off my long, fluffy hipster beard upon arrival in South America in preparation for summer and the Year of the Goat. So now I am totally in tune with the current Chinese lunar calendar as I sport a neat white goatee on my chin. With luck both my oriental and occidental horoscopes will read something along the lines of – Your faith in the fruits of your toils will shine beyond the obstacles put in place in the fifth quarter when a shiny celestial body zooms around the green planet with pinkish spots influencing the fate of your transactions in a positive manner. The goals you desire in work, family, romance, money, health and future intergalactic space travel shall become closer this year if you discard your giddy grief and cease to howl like an unhappy rabid dog on heat. Remember that life is like a bone to be shared and nibbled on without too much greed, barking or slobbering and avoid licking your private parts in public.

In mid March a fast and furious family trip to Catamarca in North West Argentina for the 66th birthday party of Carolina’s father was done. A long bus trip took us there and fun was had even with the unpredictable weather and the overly amorous advances towards my leg of a Mongolian/Chinese Chow Chow dog by the name of Genghis Khan. Proof that love is rather blind.