Landscape near Caieira; car

Landscape near Caieira, oil on card, 9.9 x 11.7 cm - discarded

I've been driving around. There are so many amazing things to see and paint that I am tempted to stop the car alostr every hundred yards. I wonder, if ever, the novelty will wear off.

I want to visit the mountains more, of course, but also those strange, half-resolved tiny settlements which are such a feature of this country. I rather like them.

I also want to do some work on the strip mall developments that scar the areas along the sides of the highways, and constrast so harshly with the amazing mountains beyond them.

All this brings me back to the idea of doing a Santa Catarina road trip, all the way up to Foz de Iguaçu., then back.

A wooded area; car

A wooded area, oil on card, 13 x 9.7 cm  - available

The first painting painted from my new car: this vehicle will radically change my life for the better, allowing me to paint when it is raining and more safely at night, as well as letting me explore Brazil much more easily.

Rio: The Ibis Hotel room nocturne; painting nocturnes

Rio: Ibis Hotel room nocturne

 oil on card, 12.3 x 9cm - discarded

The view from the hotel is of some administrative buildings.

To paint these things you nee to find a way of  getting light on your support without losing your ability to see the thing in front of you. But this is surprisingly difficult, because when you illuminate the support, your motif will often fade out. I think I shall try to get one of those little reading lights that they advertise in magazines, usually with images of elderly couples in a double bed, one asleep, the other deep in George Eliot. That might be ideal: they have a little clip so you can attach them onto your book, or in my case, picture.

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Photographing these nocturnes is very hard, there are almost always reflections in one place or other.

Rio: Botafogo beach

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Botafogo beach, oil on card, 11.5 x 9.1 cm   SOLD

I wanted to capture the footballers playing on the sands, but by the time I had chosen my viewpoint and laid out my things they had finished their game, and after a big argument, departed. Actually ,I very rarely see arguments in public here: I seem to remember them being much commoner in the UK, and British life, despite it's reputation for calm, being far more fractious.

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Rio: from Santa Teresa

A view from the ruins, Santa Teresa, oil on card, 8.5 x 12.2 cm - discarded

From Santa Teresa towards the centre, oil on card, 10 x 8.3 cm

Santa Teresa is a beautiful neighbourhood with amazing views of the city, and nineteenth century architecture of immense charm.

Rio; selling work

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A view from Copaacabana, oil on card, 10.8  9.5 cm  AVAILABLE

My trip to Rio was a qualified success. I went to paint and see if I could find a gallery there to represent me.

The painting side went very well: after the first day, the weather was great, no-one mugged me, the natives were friendly and I came away with maybe five decent paintings: not a bad haul.

It's a great painting city:  insane mountains, sea, sunshine and very open people in a relatively small space. The people are friendly but not overbearing as they can be in the middle east. The only trouble is crime, and during the day, in the wrong place there's a fair chance you'll be annoyed by some kids trying to beg coins off you.

I spent Monday visiting little galleries in Copacabana and Ipanema. I visited about ten. There was some interest, but little real hunger. One of the gallery owners who liked the work remarked that it would be hard to display small paintings but it is clearly possible to use cabinets and group them to make them more prominent. I am confident that they will take off in the next two years.

I suspect there simply isn't a good art market in Rio. So I shall do what many have advised and make my way to Sao Paolo, and see if I have more luck there. The little pictures sell well when they are given the chance as gallery sales in Scotland and online show.

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Selecting for Rio

Forty-four paintings. I will select a dozen to take.

I shall truck round some galleries with my wares in Rio on Friday. I think the best thing is to take a variety.

I'm experienced enough to know that if some people like what I do, some never will. The opinions of those who dont really are of no consequence, because it is usually because they just don't like this sort of painting, however well or badly it is executed, and they are really not "on side". Ergo it's better simply to ignore them.

I will reduce the selection above to a dozen: to show more is to risk repetition. It is better for people to say, "I wish I could see more", then for them to say "ok i think that's enough". The paintings chosen should be bright and immediate. I am visiting totally on spec and I imagine that the galleries will not give me much time, if any.