A Long Weekend in Malaga

October 31, 2018

Last weekend I took an autumn city break to Malaga. It’s quicker for me to fly to Spain from my home in Devon then it is to get the train to London … and almost as cheap, so spending a long weekend in one of Europe’s iconic cities is not a difficult undertaking :-)

I’ve heard through the grapevine that Malaga was making its mark on the art world and therefore was something that I wanted to discover at first hand.  One of my licensees had just opened a factory in the city so this gave me the extra push to go.  I love walking around factories as much as I do art galleries or museums.  I am intrigued as to how things are made and how operations run, having built up and ran an eco-print factory in the industrial heart of Sheffield for ten years.  I was therefore delighted to meet the lovely Maria at Customworks Spain and to see their new factory in operation.

I got a tip off as to the best place in Malaga for lunch and so quickly found myself sipping a glass of wine and enjoying the local seafood at El Yerne in the Mercado Central de Altrazanas. 

The wonderful displays of fresh fruit and vegetables are mouthwatering. 

My artist hero, Pablo Picasso was born in Malaga and so a visit to the Picasso Museum in the delightful, historical quarter was a on my list. I am inspired by Picasso’s ability to express human emotion and make it real in whatever medium he chooses: painting, ceramics, sculpture, printmaking, his talent and energy was boundless. I've therefore included Baby Picasso in my Malaga illustration.

Discovering Malaga led me down lots of winding streets filled with wonderful aromas coming from the age old tapas bars and street sellers pedalling salted almonds. I climbed the hill and home to the Alcazabar to look down on a beautiful city of terracotta tiles, dominated by the magnificent baroque cathedral. 

A lovely surprise was to stumble across many little museums in Malaga, including the Museo del Vidrio y Cristal, which is home to hundreds of beautiful glass and crystal objects from centuries past, displayed in a traditional Malagan house. As I collect Danish glass from the late 20^thCentury I was in my element.  Marvellous Malaga :-)

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