Evening desert ride

I have a horse and I keep him out near Al Wathba near the endurance race track. I like to do classical riding which is a bit like dressage, so mostly I ride in an arena. However, there are times when we both need to relax, and that is when we ride out in the desert. In the evenings it is nice to watch the sunset and appreciate the silence of the desert. It is at these times that the camels are being taken out for their exercise too. There is a camel race track nearby and it gets very busy of a Saturday morning. Many local people have herds of camels that need to be kept fit and they take them out in groups with a lead rider and a host of camels tied together. This painting is inspired by these scenes. I have never been really up close as horses are not too keen on camels for some reason, but at a distance, we see them passing.

Dog Beach Done

Well it is a trade off between trying to give a sense of the activity and trying not to make the picture too busy. I am fairly happy with how it turned out. Dog beach is a busy place. At the moment there is a construction project going on outside the exhibition centre on the opposite side of the inlet. It remains to be seen whether dog beach will survive as it is. The current financial crisis may mean that it gets a few more years, but if construction picks up again, for sure the area will be developed and swallowed up by high-rise apartments, offices and hotels..

Dog Beach

This is not finished yet but I am pleased with the way it is going. It is one of my favourite places to be early in the morning. It is commonly called "Dog Beach" by the ex-pat community in Abu Dhabi. I have no idea what the real name is, but between 7 and 9 in the morning, you will find a lot of people walking their dogs off leash. It is one of the few places here where this is possible near the city - otherwise you have to go into the desert to walk your dog off leash. I still have to add people and dogs to the picture, but it is getting there.

New blog

I'm starting this blog to view Abu Dhabi as I view it. I have been here for a year now after moving from Portugal, where I lived for 18 years. It was hard to leave and I didn't really want to come to Abu Dhabi, but now I am here I am finding that I can see beauty here and this is what this blog is about!

I am not attempting anything more than allowing you to see the city and its surroundings through my eyes and through my art.

I am very much linked to horses, so there will be times when this will include my horse art, but principally, this is not about horses it is about the city the people and my impressions as an ex-pat living in the UAE for the first time.

The first painting I have for you however, is of a horse and his 'master' - Ali Al Almeri - a UAE (Abu Dhabi) national, who works with horses for films, commercials, and shows. Here he is seen working with his horse Tayyeb at liberty in the desert near where he lives.