Spain Series - Love Padlocks

The Puente del Isabel II bridge at Seville was adorned with love padlocks that publicly declare the love of two sweethearts (same sex or opposite sex).  Some of these were painted, which added a romantic touch.  It was so sweet to see these love symbols for the first time.

Spain Series - My favourite paintings

Of all the paintings that I saw at the Museo del Prado and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza at Madrid, the Guggenheim and the Museo de Bellas Artes at Bilbao, and the Museo de Bellas Artes at Sevilla, a number of them have made a lasting impression.

The Metropolis by George Grosz (at the Thyssen-Bornemisza) - an apocalyptic vision of Berlin during the First World War.  The blazing red brought the chaos and the onset of doom to life.  Here, the painter made a strong political statement of his opposition to the war, which is both striking and terrifying. 

Salvadore Dali's the Dream (also at the Thyssen-Bornemisza) is probably the only painting that I like coming from this surrealist.  The name of the painting is much longer: Dream caused by the flight of a bee around a pomegranate a second before waking up.  The Freudian undertones are open to intepretation, but the hyper-realism of a fish bursting out of a pomegranate, and two tigers leaping out of the mouth of the fish, and in the background an elephant with long spindly legs walking along the horizon was truly mezmerising.

Jose Garcia Ramos's El Nino del Violin - a small format painting from the stables of Ramos, but a touching portrait of a boy in rags with his violin and his faithful companion - a little dog.  

Spain Series - Door Knockers

Just like ring tones, door knockers can be a statement of intent.  From northern to southern Spain, there are a vast variety of door knockers: some of them works of art, some of them more of utilitarian objects.  Here are the more beautifully crafted ones.

A welcoming one.  It says: "Eat me"

A suggestive one.  It says: "I want you...."



My favourite one - It says: "I embrace you"