Malaga

That's a wrap! PIGSY Exhibition in La Casa Amarilla, Malaga /  by PIGSY

PIGSY Exhibition in La Casa Amarilla

Dog Art - when dogs visit dog friendly art galleries

PIGSY’s Spanish Art Exhibition is “cerrado”

What a roller-coaster ride it’s been over the past few weeks since my exhibition opened in La Casa Amarilla on 27th of March. From the opening day until closing on Tuesday 20th of April it has been Go Go Go! The high of the incredible opening day (see pics here) just kept going and I was busy all month with callers to the exhibition and giving tours and talks to visitors and groups. If I was in the gallery when visitors called in I had a great time chatting with them and answering their questions. And if I wasn’t in the gallery it was fantastic to see reactions of visitors on social media as most tagged the PIGSY instagram and twitter. - as pictured, there were even some visitors of the four legged variety!

Art sponsored by San Miguel

My exhibitions in the past in Ireland have been sponsored by beer makers. O’Brother Brewing sponsored my first show in The Kemp Gallery while Hope Beer sponsored my exhibition in Fumbally Exchange. It was apt then to again be sponsored by a beer company for my latest art exhibition. But what a beer company!

“I Went to Mass” in La Casa Amarilla was sponsored by none other than the famous Spanish Cerveza “San Miguel”. As I raised a San Miguel beer at the art exhibition, I gave both the Irish toast of “Sláinte” and Spanish “Salud”. Both of these toasts mean Health….but I think they brought me good luck too!

Sold! Yellow is the new red dot!

Contact La Casa Amarilla Gallery to start your art collection today and get art up on your walls

The translation of “La Casa Amarilla” is “The Yellow House”. So of course it makes sense for the gallery to use yellow dots in place of the traditional red dot when art sells. It was a great moment to see Gallery Director David Burbano place the first yellow dot on to a sold PIGSY art work. The first sale is always exciting and having seen lots of red dots in the past, I enjoyed seeing the unique La Casa Amarilla yellow dot go up on the wall.

The art work in the photograph with David placing the yellow dot on it is a framed paper study. You can read more about the process of creating this artwork at the bottom of this blog. It has been framed by a local craftsman in a way that I specified in order to highlight the art and to show it to it’s best potential. They are a very accessible piece and can be easily shipped any where in the world. One of these art works was recently posted in the mail to County Cork in Ireland and the new collector was delighted to receive it promptly and get it up on the wall of their home.

It excites me to think that there will now be a number of PIGSY art works gracing the walls of homes in Spain and I know one piece is destined for Marbella to be included in a collector’s contemporary art collection. As an Irish artist it is always awesome when you see your art travelling beyond the shores of Ireland - in recent times one of my pieces was shipped to a home in Canada and knowing that they are now hanging on walls in Spain is a great thing too! See below for some of the artworks that have now sold as part of the Malaga exhibition “I Went to Mass” and also some photos of visitors to the exhibition.

An Altar of Art

The altar of art - the religion of art

I created a large feature wall of art studies, as part of the exhibition, of which the concept is that it becomes an “Altar of Art”. These studies are now available for sale and you can choose your favorite one which I will then frame in a bespoke custom frame specified by me. As a fun alternative, you can ask me to select one for you and I will then frame it without showing you which one I have chosen for you. The framed piece of artwork will then be posted to you and will make for a surprise when you open it as it is at this point that you will see which art work you are now the proud owner of!

See below for the “Altar of Art” of which you can choose a study to be framed and mailed to you…..or I can mail to someone else of your choosing if you know an art lover who would enjoy receiving it as a special gift from you.

See here for further information about this unique range of artworks and what the finished concept looks like. They will make a nice addition to any home and are great for anyone starting their contemporary art collection.

Art studies available as affordable framed art for your walls and home
Art gallery uses yellow dot instead of the traditional red dot when it sells art in Spain - how unique

“I Went to Mass” artworks

See here for all of the artworks in the exhibition or contact David Burbano in La Casa Amarilla for further information, availability and pricing, etc..

"I Went to Mass" - PIGSY Solo Exhibition in La Casa Amarilla, Spain /  by PIGSY

LCA - Centro de arte y cuktura contemoranea en Malaga oatrocinado oir San Migue Cerveza - La Ca Casa Amarilla is Malaga’s premerie venue for contemporary art and culture

“I Went to Mass” by PIGSY

PIGSY Solo Art Exhibition

La Casa Amarilla Galerie, Calle Santos, Malaga

Date: 27 March until 20 April

Sponsored by San Miguel Beer

PIGSY Spanish Art Exhibition Opening

Photos below are of the opening of the PIGSY solo art show “I Went to Mass” in La Casa Amarilla Gallery on Santos Street in Malaga, Spain, on Saturday 27th of March. The exhibition is running until an extended date of April 20th.

For opening hours and contact details for the LCA gallery, see here.

For more great pics, see here on Facebook

PIGSY welcomes visitors to his Malaga Studio /  by PIGSY

Visit artist PIGSY in La Casa Amarilla

PIGSY Spanish art studio is located on Calle Santos in the centre of Malaga City close to Calle Larios

Maureen McDonnell of Stepstone Gallery, Dublin visiting La Casa Amarilla in Malaga Spain

Since August 2020, Irish Artist PIGSY has been working full time as a professional artist in Malaga and is a resident in La Casa Amarilla Gallery. Pigsy’s studio is on the second floor of La Casa Amarilla which is a popular gallery in Malaga City Centre directed by David Burbano. The gallery is home to different sized art studios and hosts artists of various disciplines within. La Casa Amarilla is on Calle Santos a quiet street very near to Calle Larios and faces on to Cafe Aranda where you can stop off for a coffee and a churro after a visit to the studio. The cafe has been serving up churros since 1932 to the people of Malaga and visitors to this pleasant city!

Calle Larios, Malaga

The studio is a short walk from Calle Larios the main thoroughfare in Malaga Centro. Larios Street is a stunningly beautiful pedestrianised shopping street lined with attractive architectural buildings that at time will have you looking up rather than looking in the the shops! Most of the city is very walkable due to the pedestrianisation and also because of the size of the city which is very manageable for most to get about either walking or cycling - or you can rent an electric scooter too. The public bus is reliable and regular and can take you beyond the city if you wish to visit some of the small fishing villages along the coast (Pedregaleo is a must see), some of which are now home to chilled out fashionable, somewhat hipster, restaurants and cafes.

Art in Malaga

Pablo Picasso

Among the palm trees in Malaga City Centre, Irish artist Ciaran McCoy has rented an art studio where he paints his expressionist masterpieces

Malaga has a rich art history with it of course being the birthplace of Pablo Picasso. Today artists and art lovers alike flock to the city to visit the two Picasso museums - one based in the house he was born in and the other in the house he grew up in. For details of the Pablo Picasso Museum see here

Museo Carmen Thyssen Malaga

Along with this there are numerous other museums with the Carmen Thyssen in the centre of the city (steps away from PIGSY’s studio) showcasing a massive collection consisting of classic Spanish artists including artists, such as Mariano Fortuny, Joaquín Sorolla, Darío de Regoyos, Julio Romero de Torres and Ignacio Zuloaga.

The Carmen Thyssen Museum has a really nice cafe and gift store. The cafe does a really good cup of coffee (cortado) and there is a good deal for breakfast of a mixto, coffee and a glass of juice for about 3 euro.

See here for the Museo Carmen Thyssen website.

Pompideau Malaga

The Pomipou Centre also has a museum here in Malaga (the first Pomidou Centre outside of France). The Pompidou Centre is located down by the port can only be described as a jewel in the crown of the marina and in fact it looks like a jewellery box being a cube colored building designed by Architect Renzo Piano sparkling in the sun and inviting visitors in to an amazing collection of artwork including Joan Miro, Dali and you guessed it some Picasso too!

There are lots of nice restaurants situated down by the marina close to the Pompideau Centre Malaga so you can make a whole half day of your visit to the museum and a lunch by the marina along with maybe a walk down to the lighthouse.

Click here for further information about the Pompideau Malaga - it’s free in after 5pm on Sundays.

Museo Jorge Rando

Ciaran McCoy aka PIGSY surveys “Seven Spanish Angels” a massive artwork created by him in Spain

The Museo Jorge Rando reopened in Oct/Sept 2020 after renovations. It is located in an area that is a short walk from Uncibay Plaza is definitely worth seeing for both it’s extensive Rando collection and also the architecture of the museum with a spectacular corten clad courtyard out to the back of the building.

I visited the Museo Jorge Rando in October 2020 after it had reopened after renovations.

Malaga Studio Visit - Contact Enid

Contact Enid on pigsy.art@gmail.com if you are in the Malaga region and would like to meet PIGSY and take a tour of his studio and also visit La Casa Amarilla Art Gallery on Calle Santos, Malaga. PIGSY always enjoys visitors to his studio and will chat to you all about his latest work and what he is currently being inspired by.

Enid is also happy to give restaurant or cafe recommendations if you are interested in spending time in Malaga and want to relax over a glass of wine and some tapas after visiting the studio!

Art life in Malaga, Spain /  by PIGSY

Art life routine in Malaga, Spain

An artist living in Spain

It’s been nearly 5 months since I arrived from Ireland and started working in my art studio here in Malaga. I’ve settled in to a great routine in Spain, which you can read about in this blog post.

The first thing I had to get used to when I arrived in Malaga was the different working hours in Spain as compared to Ireland. I’ve adapted now and we changed our whole lifestyle to encompass the different working hours. Back home in Ireland we tended to eat dinner about 7ish but now here in Spain we eat about 9pm or so.

So my routine is now working out as follows>

Morning Art Life

We start every day with some self directed Spanish language learning on the internet - we do a combination of Duolingo, Spanish Dict Interactive Classes and Dr Danny Evans (The Language Tutor) on Youtube.

We then have breakfast about 11 or maybe a little later and either take Bones the dog for a walk before or after breakfast.

The business end of things of being an artist here in Malaga, Spain - living in Spain as an expat and running my art career. Beyond the creation of art, the artists needs to catalogue and inventory the art along with working on the financials and ar…

Afternoon - the Business end of Art

Art Website and Blogs etc

In the afternoon, both my wife and I look after the business end of my art work. Enid updates my website, I answer emails and then update social media along with doing other items as they arise.One big project that I worked on was bringing my art archive fully up to date - this took a bit of time but is done now and so I only have to tip away at it now. Over the past while, I also had an online solo exhibition with Designyard in Dublin and a group art exhibition with La Casa Amarilla here in Malaga, There was both administrative and physical work (paintings to be framed, etc.) to be done for these art shows, so this all kept me extremely busy in recent times. I find Artmoi very useful for my art inventory.

Other art business includes the marketing and promotion of my art which is a huge area - but luckily Enid has a diploma in Digital Marketing along with having lots of experience in this from her time working in public libraries.

Creating art in my studio here in Malaga, Spain the home of Jorge Rando and the great Pablo Picasso

Evening - the Art of Art

And then it is down to the real business of art: studio art work. I head to the studio about 3pm every day and stay there til about 8/8.30pm. Sometimes I leave a little earlier if I have chores to do like packages that need to be sent in the post. The Post Office is open until 8.30pm and I find that it is quietest after 7.30pm so I like to go then. I discovered the quiet time after queuing for over 30 mins outside the Post Office a few mornings! But no more queuing when I go later in the evening.

Enid tends to meet me when I am finished work (particularly now the Christmas lights are up on Larios) and we have a little walk around the city before we go home for dinner. When we arrive home we have a drink while making dinner on the bbq (which we have used every single day since we got it about a month after arriving in Spain). The bbq I chose is an electric Weber and I find it brilliant - very easy to use and makes perfect food….or maybe it is the chef that makes the perfect food!!

And then there are the other things that we get up to that also have to be fitted in on different days

Enid and I on the rooftop if the O2 gym in Atico Padel club getting ready for a Sunday morning Padel tennis game

Padel Tennis in Malaga

I play padel in the Atico Padel Club which is on the roof of the O2 gym near the city centre (just across the river). It’s a great club with a relaxed atmosphere. Along with playing some good games of Padel, I also get to practise my Spanish and mix with lots of people. It seems like Padel is popular in lots of countries and I have met lots of people with different Nationalities in this club. They all speak Spanish a lot better than me!!

Poco a poco little by little I am learning to speak Spanish with Speak and Learn classes in No Pigui cafe in the centre of Malaga

Spanish Lessons (Online and in person)

Speaking of Spanish, we do two Spanish lessons with a teacher per week. One of the classes is currently being ran online due to Covid restrictions. Hopefully we will resume meeting in the Hotel Anihita in the new year for a face to face lesson on Tuesdays. Then on Wednesday we do a face to face lesson in No Piqui Cafe in a group of 5 learners with teacher Clara of Speak and Learn. An hour long class passes quickly and while is very inspiring and helps me a lot, it also highlights how little Spanish I know and how my progress with the leaning is slow. But I’ll get there - poco a poco!

Enid’s volunteering job - Cudeca

On Saturdays from 10am until 2pm, Enid volunteers in a local charity shop which is ran by Cudeca. This gives me a bit of free time on a Saturday morning so I tend to have a relaxed time which involves a slow saunter with the dog and maybe stop off in a local cafe for a coffee. On the way home from the walk I buy some bread in the panederia and then I go home and browse the internet over breakfast and catch up with what is going on in the world!

Sundays in Malaga

For us everyday is a work day so we tend to follow a similar routine on Sundays too, except that we fit in a visit to a museum or attraction on this day. You can see some of the museums we visited in past blog posts that I have written.

And so that’s my general routine here in Malaga but I also get up to different ad hoc things that come up like what we did last night !! Read below for more!

Artist Pigsy on Calle Larios with his dog Bones, visiting the Christmas lights on the Malaga street is very much a Christmas traadition for Spanish families and tourists

Lights on Calle Larios

As mentioned the Christmas lights are now up on Calle Larios and in other parts of the city. They are absolutely spectacular and as I said we like to make it a thing to walk on Larios every evening and enjoy the lights. It’s very much a family activilty here in Spain for families to get out in the evening and enjoy the lights and music. The weather is mild and given the Covid situation it feels very safe to do this as everyone is keeping their distance and wearing masks. In past years, Calle Larios has been very busy at this time but the light and music shows have been toned down this year. There is also a large police presence to crowd control if it got overly busy.

Last night we got up to something fun on Calle Larios. My wife’s sister in the USA is working on a facebook project called “Me and my Tree” where she is compiling a collection of people dressed up in their party best (even though most are not going out and some are even in places that are on lockdown) posing with a drink beside their Christmas tree. Even though we aren’t putting a tree up this year, my wife Enid definitely wanted to partake in this fun Christmas project so she put on a party dress and I took some pics of her beside the tree at the top of Calle Larios on Constitution Plaza.

Amy in her 1950’s Florida home posed beside her vintage mid-century modern looking Christmas tree along with her Moscow mule cup in hand

“Me and my Tree”, a global Facebook project created by Amy

Enid’s twin sister, Amy, came across some vintage 1960’s pictures of glamorous ladies in sparkly dresses posing beside their festive trees. She thought it would make a great activity for her friends to do in 2020 and so put the word out on Facebook that she was looking for people to join in and send her their pics of themselves with their tree. She has created a collection of pics on facebook.

If Amy decides to share the photos from the collection on her blog I will put a link to them all. But for the moment, please do enjoy the pic of Amy beside her vintage looking white Christmas tree covered in colored baubles.

And below arethe pics of my wife Enid with the beautifully lit Christmas tree on Calle Larios that Amy has included in the facebook album of her “Me and my Tree” collection of photos for 2020.