Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Tears of Chios for Easter week...


Sakizli muhallebi (Milk pudding with mastic gum )

We had a very nice easter week with our family and friends. I spent lots of time cooking at the kitchen as usual. I would like to share a dessert recipe that I tried first time and it came out really delicious. It's a milk pudding with a special aroma  called "damla sakizi/ mastic gum", it's resin extract from mastic tree.  In Greece, it is known as the "tears of Chios," being traditionally produced on that Greek island and, like other natural resins, is produced in "tears" or droplets. It's widely used in Greek and Egean Turkish kitchen for making desserts, candies and delights. If it's difficult to find at your area, you can get it online at Amazon.com)

(Damla sakizi) Mastic 

Sakizli muhallebi (Milk pudding with mastic gum)

Ingredients:

1 lt milk
1 table spoon  cornstarch
2 pieces of mastic (1/2 tiny tea spoon)
1 vanilla stick
3/4 glass of sugar
1 table spoon butter
cinnamon or pistachio for topping (optional)

In a medium size pot put 800 ml milk and sugar mix and heat until it gets all dissolved and hot. Crush the mastic pieces in a mortar and add to the pot with vanilla stick keep mixing it about for few minutes. Add the butter and mix for another 3 minutes. At Last put the cornstarch in a small bowl with remaining milk whisk it well until it's smooth. Add this mixture to the pot keep mix it until it gets thicken and boils for more 5 minutes. It's important, dividing the pudding mixture into the little bowls or cups while it's hot. Once it's room temperature keep refrigerated and serve it cold with cinnamon or pistachio topping on them. Enjoy it!

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Last week I created a new still-life composition with some of Easter theme characters, bunny, flowers and instead off the egg I chose "Tuna indio" fruit (cactus fruit). I think their color attracted me first of all, also this Easter was different and much more fragile than the others... I used oil pastels on craft paper.

work in progress

Pastels and the craft paper

detail

"Happy holidays" by Birsen Ozbilge, 2016
8" x 11" (21 x 29 cm)
Cray Pas Expressionist Oil pastel on heavy-weight acid free craft paper, 

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Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Welcome to Spring and Happy Semana Santa!

Infront of the famous Canarian artist Aguiar's painting

Recently I visited a collective exhibition called "Cuerpo de mujer" (female nude) at Casa de Colon, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.  I really liked this 40 something pieces of artwork collection which show the beautiful female nudes. In my early works I had a few female nude paintings. (see pic below)

Cat lover, by Birsen Ozbilge, Acrylic on wood,40 x 30 cm, 1995

I keep drawing the city and the coastal landscapes on my sketchbook. The other day I went to the city of Las Palmas and set infront of the public library to sketch one of my favorite view point.

work in progress sketching en plein air 

View point from the Public Library, pencil drawing on sketchbook, January 2016


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Monday, March 14, 2016

“Choose only one master – Nature” –Rembrandt. New linocut print is available!


Last weekend I was out sketching from the lovely Tufia coast in Gran Canaria.

View point called "Lugar punta de mala gato" ( Bad cat point place)

"View from Lugar punta de mala gato" pencil on sketchbook

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Last week I worked on another linocut. I wanted to create a night scene with the moon with addition of a few objects and a cat. Once I drew the sketch, I go through on stages to simplify the design in order to be able carve it properly on lino.

work in progress carving the lino

pressing the paper with the wooden spoon

Pulling out the print

"The Message", by Birsen Ozbilge, 2016
Limited Edition hand pulled reduction linocut print ( Edition 1 of 25)
Paper size 6.5" x 9" ( 17 x 22 cm.)
Image size 4" x 6" (10 x 15 cm.)
Available, click on SHOP



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Friday, March 4, 2016

Spring is on its way! Check out the new multicolor linocut "El Pinzón", a local bird from Gran Canaria

Sketching the view from Gemma's the kitchen window

Playa del Burrero, pencil on sketchbook

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Last week I worked for a new linocut project called "El pinzón". It is a local bird from our island. Also I designed the composition with the emblematic rocks of Gran Canaria, "El roque Nublo", "La rana" and " El Fraile" from Tejeda village, at the peak of the island. It is a reduction linoprint which means that after each layer more of the plate is cut away, so there is no going back and the print cannot be repeated.

Carved for the 1st layer 

Cut the paper ans set the registration board, ready to print first layer

Inking the lino for the first layer

Carved for the 2nd layer

Inked the plate for the 2nd layer

I repeated carving, inking and the printing proccess for 3 more times. If you have noticed I did not add on the print my carved initial signature, because it was not good enough for me, so I covered it with tape (see pic above) while printing each color.

Prints are drying 

Pulling the 5th and the last layer of the print.

At the end I selected only 9 copies of the final print and gave them a few last touch with the brush and black ink. Each one is signed and numbered with pencil on the front of the print. Ready to ship directly from my studio safely packed and registered mail. Available, click on ETSY Shop 

"El Pinzón", by Birsen Ozbilge, 2016
Limited Edition hand pulled reduction linocut print ( Edition 1 of 9)
Paper size 6.5" x 8.5" ( 17 x 20 cm.)
Image size 4" x 6" (10 x 15 cm.)
Available, contact me for purchase details

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