Our eight-day workshop here in Spain is based at Hotel Bandolero in the village of Júzcar, Malaga province. Júzcar has an average population of just over 150 residents, though summer homes are sometimes occupied. It's one of the beautiful "White villages" of the Genal Valley in Andalucia; all of the buildings are painted white and most have red-tiled roofs. We spent our first day painting in the village and around the hotel. With so many subjects to choose from, we were hard-pressed to select just one or two. I painted the flowering bush on the patio by an entrance (see the painting below at left), taking advantage of the shade, as did several other painters that day (L-to-R in photo below at right: Dauna Roberts, Memorie Williams and LaDonna Escamilla).

The next day we took the first day trip to the village of Ronda. We painted in the early morning at the bottom of the famous bridge, El Tajo. This vantage point not only gives the artist an idea of the monumental structure, but a good view of the surrounding cliffs (see my painting below).

While in Ronda, we attended an evening performance of flamenco dancing. The lively dance is too fast even for sketching, but we were able to take photographs throughout (see one of them here), so you may see paintings of the lovely costumes in the future.

It’s already been a wonderful experience, and there's much more to come!