Bahay Kubo (Nipa Hut)

CALM THE FARM DOWN! In this day and age (cliche start!) everything is just fast paced, snap snap snap, busy streets, crowded subways, people staring down at their tiny computers. I wanted to paint something simple, something that when I look at it I can get a sense of calmness . Two things came to mind, the sea and the province life. I grew up in the mountains and spent most of my life away from big bodies of water and now that I am living in an island, it was obvious what I wanted to paint - a farm in my home province.

I painted this piece digitally but I did everything in my best to make it look traditional. Painting with green is one of the hardest skills to learn - nature does not just have one shade of green. It was a challenge and I had to vibrate my color work and make it look coherent. This is probably the most green I have painted in my life. Is it a technically well executed use of green? I am not so sure. But what I'm sure is when I look at it, I am transported back to my province; I feel the life and breath of the farm. I feel calm, collected and centered. Home.