Author Archives: Tony Taylor

Kayakoy Street Craft

Leave a reply
The Kaya Lacemaker 10" x 8" Acrylic on card

The Kaya Lacemaker
10″ x 8″ Acrylic on card

On the little side lane that leads into the old town from the ancient water fountain in Kayakoyyou will find this lady.  She moves up and down the lane, seeming to occupy in a different position whenever I see her. I assume she lives in one of the nearby cottages and seeks out some shade and a bit of breeze. This is not a busy spot so she sits placidly among the chickens and cats and quietly pursues her craft making lace and jewellery.  I’d like to say I painted this plein air but the 40 C temperatures dictated a quick photo and work later in the studio

Sovalye Two

Leave a reply
Sovalye Island 2 10" x 8" Acrylic on card

Sovalye Island 2
10″ x 8″ Acrylic on card

It’s been an eventful week, our 6 day sailing trip to Kas curtailed by the stomach bug that’s going around. So although we’ve been out of action I managed to paint this alternative Sovalye Island view eliminating the greens and yellows but still portraying an old house on an island, I like it but appreciation is scarce.

After many weeks work, I also managed to complete, pack and send, on it’s long journey to Australia, a large wedding portrait of my niece Caroline and Jon. As it’s a surprise I can’t publish until it arrives so more on that to come.

Şovalye Island

Leave a reply
Sovalye Island cottage 10" x 8" Acrylic on card

Sovalye Island cottage
10″ x 8″ Acrylic on card

Just offshore lıes Şovalye Island. running North-South with Calis beach a stone’s throw from the Northern tip and the main Fethiye channel to the South.  Property prices on the island are astronomical by local standards, around a million pounds for a plot, but you do get relative privacy, a quiet enviroment and stunning views for your money. Personally I think a small island is great as a holiday hideaway but I couldn’t live on one.  I would go insane from the condition I call the  “Did you remember the milk, darling?” syndrome.

Çalis canal

Leave a reply
Venice Canal 10" x 8" Acrylic on card

SOLD

Some time last year a local official, commenting on the dredging and bank work being carried out at the time in Çalıs, said “Soon this will be the New Venice!”   I suspect he’d never been, maybe he’d heard that people visited Venice for the canals and thought we’ve got one of those here, maybe not. Well, the thick groves of rushes and bamboo have regrown along the canal banks, the frogs and fish, the egrets and kingfishers have returned, and while not exactly Venice it does have a charm of it’s own.  I recalled his comment and raked out an old photo of the real thing for some indoor inspiration in the heat of midsummer.

Fırtına River Bridge

Leave a reply
Firtina Valley Bridge 10" x 8" Acrylic on card

Firtina Valley Bridge
10″ x 8″ Acrylic on card

The Fırtına Valley which runs through the heart of Çamlıhemşin is spanned by the Ottoman-era Fırtına River bridges.  The valley ıs located near Rize in the far north east of Turkey.  Çamlıhemşin is high in the valley, which leads down to the Black Sea coast, and is an important access point to the Kaçkar range whose high mountains poke up into the clouds.  Fırtına means Storm and although it rains here all year round, temperatures can fall to minus 7°C in winter and reach 25°C in summer.  However the countryside is a gorgeous mix of meadows and valleys and in recent years the district has begun to attract touristsö especıally people on trekking holidays in the Kaçkar.  Çamlıhemşin is a low-income district and people live from forestry, beekeeping or herding animals.

Rory the Labradoodle

Leave a reply
Rory 10" x 6" Acrylic on card

Rory
SOLD

Rory is huge, that’s my first impression whenever I see him.  Then I think, he’s nothing like a poodle apart from being woolly and he’s nothing like a labrador apart from being easy going.  Rory is Rory and what a fabulous creature he is!   He lives with our friends Mike and Jenny and I am posting this portrait as a thank you to them.

Cemetery Walk

Leave a reply
Cemetery Walk 10" x 8" Acrylic on card

Cemetery Walk
10″ x 8″ Acrylic on card

To get to the hills where we normally walk our dogs you can climb up through a small cemetery. It is a place of melancholy beauty, family groups sipping çay ın among the olive trees.  Wild flowers thrive among the monuments large and small framing the views above Calis and out across the Bay of Fethiye. This is my impression of the view inland as we head home on another scorching day here in Turkey.

The inspirational landscapes of the Giro d’Italia

2 Replies
Tuscan impression 8" x 6", watercolour

Tuscan impression
8″ x 6″, watercolour

Watching highlights of the three week bike race around Italy has left me with some wonderful memories.  Not least the riders racing up mountains in blizzard conditions in late May.  But outside of the mountain days some of the most beautiful views were found in more modest landscapes and this watercolour illustrates one of many fleeting impressions made as the racers sped through the towns and villages of Tuscany.