Milan, Florence, Rome, Venice, Perugia: Italy was my first great inspiration to discover picturesque places and try to catch their nourishing atmosphere with vibrant colors and generous sunlight.  Maybe because I spent the rest of the time living in mostly rainy parts of Europe, I developed a chronic need for these short escapes tanking Southern light and Mediterranean beauty.

I developed a brilliant formula: a discovery travel of 5 or 6 days, even less, would provide about 500-600 photos, which, in their turn, would feed me painting material for months. Yet I travelled too often and painted “too slow”.  Art, of course, has never been about efficiency. Travelling successfully sustained my passion for art: the direct contact on site gave me such a strong, authentic sensation that upon my return I could paint my impressions from the comfort of my home. These visits meant bonding. I have tried to paint landscapes of breath taking scenes which I hadn’t  been able to enjoy directly. It never worked.

While I never committed fully to painting, I always took my interest seriously. I made room for it. The geographic portfolio was growing ever larger: Greece, Belgium, France, Portugal, Spain, as well as Germany and Holland. Technically, I was prolific producing acrylic landscapes. On a personal level, I was grateful for the great experience of getting to know the world through painting it. Artistically, what more could I wish for?

The idea did not grow all at once in my head. After spending three years studying journalism and social policy in Germany and Holland, I needed a break from academic life. I decided to take a job in tourism and, again, make more space for painting. My tourism job led me to Mallorca, the first summer came and went….but I stayed. I had visited the island on multiple occasions before. I remember a two week vacation spent travelling which resulted in a better knowledge of Mallorca down to its less popular areas.

As a resident, I did not rush to paint, I savoured my chance to get to know the island in its entirety, to truly call it home first. I was putting a village after village on my personal exploration map, not just the places of greater popularity: Valldemossa and Deia but Soller, Binissalem and Sineu; Santanyi but also Campos and Felanitx, Portopetro and Portocolom; Arta but also Capdepera. I started painting after I could settle down and know my home. Born in a fishermen’s village on the Black Sea coast, I have always been at home at the coast. Mallorca’s Tramuntana fascinated me: I enjoyed painting Bunyola and Alaro amids impressive mountain structures.

Even if the last months have understandably made us feel like Robinson Cruso on an island, my paintings kept me good company, not letting me forget that sooner or later I will be able to enjoy my beautiful home again, and paint it even with more passion and vigor. /www.rozaliadp.wordpress.com; rozalia_dp@yahoo.com/