Together
April 2026
Hello there,
Thank you for your patience as I’ve been taking a break from writing the monthly painting letter. And thank you as well to those of you who have recently subscribed and taken the time to read.
I would love to share with you this painting that I did recently in my sketchbook using oil paint. I keep this large sketchbook mainly for drawing practice, as its A3 size gives me plenty of space.
Lately, I’ve been working on and studying this subject in different ways and formats. This is a common practice in my work: I return to the same subjects many times, as often as I need or want to, and these subjects are always deeply connected to the everyday moment, to the present as it unfolds. The everyday life. That said, there are time travelers in my work, for sure. I mostly discover them after the painting is finished.
There is something beautiful and magical about alla prima painting, and about sketches in general. They capture a first approach to a subject, leaving little room for overthinking. Direct painting, regardless of the surface, holds a certain spark, one that lives in a different place than more elaborate pieces.
Whenever the variable may be time, the sketch remains as a first approach to the subject. It may or may not be developed further, in another form, at another time.
Like a hug, together, a sketch as something immediate and whole, without overthinking, existing somehow in between moments. A sketch as a hug. A spark of togetherness, even if our minds are elsewhere.
Until the next letter,
Elena.