Medieval artist in residence

Gmuend in Carinthia, Austria

A mighty long silence on this blog, not because there hasn't been any painting going on, but because as well as working on the usual clutch of summer commissions for wedding icons and so forth, I have been preparing for a month's residency in the lovely medieval town of Gmuend in southern Austria. Besides being an exquisitely preserved medieval town - fortress, town walls, dungeons, the works - Gmuend runs a distinguished arts programme and is host to  a busy artistic community. The town is currently holding a Matisse exhibition in the Stadtturmgalerie, and as of this morning will be hosting me for a month in the Altstadtgalerie. There I get to display my icons and illuminations and work in public, and struggle along in German with interested visitors. This will be an amusing challenge, as my German is still rudimentary and I generally prefer to hide away......

eAs you can see from the pictures, the Altstadtgalerie usually has a more contemporary offering than mine. However you can also spy the red sign of the well-known Cafe Rudiferia where if the art bores you, you can sample the high art of Austrian patisserie at a much more reasonable price than in Salzburg.

During the month I shall also be holding two workshops, an introduction to medieval book illumination, where the participants will be able to choose from a range of fabulous dragons I have recreated from manuscripts of different periods.