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The Alhambra wouldn’t have lived up to expectations if there weren’t a few tiles to inspire some pattern designing.
And as you can see I wasn’t disappointed in the least.
Miles and miles of them. These are the survivors of a hard edit!
Endless colour and pattern inspiration. 
I have just begun to scratch the surface of the design inspiration they prompt.
Here’s a little peek at some pattern WIP which has to remain a little bit secret 😉
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This pavilion is the oldest building in the Alhambra.
During the period of my life when I was busy bringing up toddlers but still had a heart to paint (which wasn’t happening) I saw an artist tackle a similar scene and it was so inspiring it stayed with me.
Jean B Martin
Her name is Jean Martin and I think this is the painting I saw propped up on a gallery floor waiting to be framed.
I had to work hard to take inspiration without copying or loosing my own authenticity – I chose to turn up the colours as The Fauves would have.
© Claire Leggett Palacio del Partal
Back in time again to our visit to Granada last Summer and I wanted to show you the wonderful Alhambra.
Set high up on a hill overlooking all of Granada is this exquisite place.
It’s made up of several buildings which have become the Alhambra but its first building dates back to C9th.
© Claire Leggett Patio de Arrayanes
Improvements were made and destructions too by various rulers along the way and then in C18th it was abandoned with restoration beginning in C19th.
Despite all that chequered history, it’s amazing that so much of its beauty remains.
© Claire Leggett Upper Gardens, Generalife
And it is simply really beautiful with craftsmanship of the highest degree and wonderful gardens and it’s kept a mood of the past about it too.
Most of my painting from Spain has centred on this building partly because visiting it been on my wish-list so I was determined to make the most of it and partly because it appeals to the designer in me (all those patterns) and the painter in me (all that scenery and foliage).
© Claire Leggett Alhambra Patio
I’ve saved all the tiles for a special blog-post of their own!
This collage sums up the mood of this place for me – old textured building materials, light and shade, the smell of oranges and perfumed flowers and the welcome cool of a trickling water fountain.
