Ghosts

It's Sunday and I'm looking at the 'girl on the postcard'. The card was sent with "best wishes" back in 1916, more than a century ago. The girl, beautiful, with a mischievous look in her eyes, looks at the from the mists of time.

Who was she? Was she a professional model, or just a well-to-do girl, who posed for a greeting card? How did her life unfold? Did she do something 'artistic', was she married, did she have kids..? How long did she live?

I guess I'll never know. And maybe it's better that way. Because now I can fantasize about her, and pretend she's still alive, as she looks a me with those witty and seductive eyes, from the top of the living room chest of drawers. 

She's one of the ghosts that live here with me, and keep me safe.

New Arrival

Today, the Rust & Steel Train Maintenance Facilities saw the arrival of a quite special visitor: a rare snowplough wagon! 

In the old days, these modified wagons were used in North America to remove snow from the tracks, keeping the lines open in winter. 

These are the first pictures I took of this Hornby Meccano manufactured gem, and, of course more will follow!

The Window

The cool, fresh air of the night invades the house through its broken windows, bringing in the sweet, chemical scent of spring: a mix of a thousand different perfumes, which are the words of as many plants and trees, feverishly communicating with one another in the dark, in silence.

The scent comes in waves, as if the house were breathing. Actually, the house is breathing!

Jane senses it all, peering through the broken window glass. She does so in silence too, just like the plants and the trees outside. She listens to their mute conversations, their gossip and whisperings, their words of anger, of lovemaking and of longing. Their words come in waves with each breath that the house takes, and stick to the decayed wallpaper like amber. Here and there a firefly lights up the dark, as if trying to compete with the Queen of Fireflies, the Moon. All that interrupts the peaceful silence, is the nocturnal call of the Whip-poor-will, coming from the depths of the shrubbery.

Jane on Sunday

Little Jane of the Attic stretches her legs, but doesn't go far. She wanders through the house, to which she's confined, and peers through the windows at some distant star..

Just Jane..

Saturday Night with Jane

To celebrate Saturday night, here's another "song from the attic"! This time, it's an hypnotic and dark 'techno' track by Wolfgang Voigt, from his album "Zauberberg". Click on the below image to go to the track on YouTube.

Note: To be enjoyed strickly with headphones on... Like the track: support the artist by buying it from a trusted source.

© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Every (Dolls) House Has Its Secrets

And even old, abandoned ones, are often not that 'abandoned' after all...

I've been playing around a bit wit my recently acquired dolls house. It needs a complete overhaul and reconstruction inside and out, but I'll definitely take up the challenge!

The house consists of a ground floor and an attic. And Jane, well... she just couldn't resist!

Racing Cookie Monster

This tin racing monster was actually filled with delicious Italian "Di Saronno" cookies! The cookies are long gone, of course, but the car is still there, much lighter now, hence faster! VROOOMMM!!!!!

Domnișoara Christina

Domnișoara Christina (Miss Christina) is a 1936 ghost story by the Romanian writer Mircea Eliade (1907-1986), about the struggle between a female strigoi —a troubled spirit, in Romanian folklore—and a young man who visits the house she haunts.

This picture shows one of my very first attempts to recreate a scene using miniatures, and was loosely inspired by the novel. I put it together pretty quickly, just for trial purposes, then did a small photo shoot to see how it would turn out. 

I think the result is pretty cool, the old, mysterious portrait against the wall, and the torn books scattered over the floor, give the scene an eerie look. Hence I wanted to share it with you.

Miniature paintings

Hi All,

Four of my miniature paintings are featured in an article in the current issue of  American Miniaturist magazine.

The paintings were commissioned by my friend and fellow miniaturist Rebecca Micallef, and were added to her stunning dolls house project named "J.R. Art Gallery", which is the focus of the article.

The Art Gallery is truly magnificent, and the level of detail breath-taking. Note that most of the items you see on the pictures were hand made by her. I feel immensely thankful and honored to be a part of this beautiful and unique project through the paintings!

The below pictures give a short impression of the project, which you can view in more detail on Rebecca's blog by clicking here!

Three of the paintings sitting on wooden easels. Front to back: The Cupola (canvas only), The Hummingbird (framed), and The Secret Garden (framed).

The level of detail and elegance of the Art Gallery is stunning.

The forth -unfinished- "Ballerina" painting in the living quarters of the artist. The painting was left unfinished to create a sense of 'work in progress'.

Photography by Rebecca Micallef.