A few more Grande Praia scenes

 

Praia means beach., grande means large...so this beachside city is called Large Beach. Being so close to São Paulo makes it a prime weekend getaway location. These flowers were growing on a tree in the sidewalk, they looked delicate like rose petals. Since it was raining I stood under a ledge to cpmplete this one. 

Pink flowering tree 6 x 7.5 watercolour, January 2026 

I had  to find a Brazilian dumpster to paint...this one was on the way to the beach in front of a new house being built. It was much smaller than Montreal dumpsters because the trucks and roads are smaller. 

Brazilian dumpster yellow, 6 x 7.5.'' watercolour January 2026 

 

With steady drizzle I painted fast, its a food cart on the beach in among palm trees. More than just a food cart, its a mobile restaurant run by a local family. They even set up umbrellas and beach chairs. The french fries were excellent and the coconut water was fresh out of a coconut...like they bring you the coconut with a hole in the top and a straw. 

Food cart palm trees 6 x7.5 watercolour January 2026 

 

Finally some sunny weather on the last day and I did a painting of pigeons on the beach and bright blue Haviana flip flops. 

Pigeons flip flops, 6 x 7.5" watercolour January 2026 

Grande Praia beach town

 

You never knew Montreal had a beach town nearby...just a short cab ride to the airport then watch some in flight movies and you are there! Actually its harder than that but worth the effort...Cilei and her niece arranged the trip and their friend drove her Dad's car. This scene was from the balconey on the first night. There was a disco down on the beach creating a colourful glow in the distance. 

Grande beach night street, 6 x 7.5" watercolour January 2026

Looking up the street during the day gave this view of the colourful houses and rolling hills in the background. I used a mix of indo blue (PB60) and yellow (PY154)  to make the hill colours, and allowed some water blurring to create the cloud effects  

Rolling hills clouds, 6 x 7.5" watercolour January 2026

Next was an urban scene with some familiar graffiti on a wall. Lush foliage and colourful buildings completed the scene. Like Montreal, this city is slowly gentrifying...the old beach houses and shops circa 1960 are being replaced with soaring sky scrapers surrounded by gates and security. 

Graff wall Brazil, 6×7.5" watercolour January 2026

Finally  back at the São Paulo homestead we spent the afternoon preparing beans from vines. After pulling the beans off we opened them all, tossed them in a big seive, then cooked and ate them! Not a painting this time, was too busy working on the beans.

Grande beach Atlantic ocean

Close to São Paulo, this beach area got popular in the 1960"s and underwent a massive restructuring a decade ago to accomodate millions of tourists and locals. Now the beach, about 10 kilometers long, is lined with wall to wall condominiums. There is a beachfront road, winding bike path, tiled walkway and a wide beach with soft beige sand. 

Grand beach, 8 x 10" watercolour 2026

The shallow water was pale blue with a tea-coloured tint. Despite being on the Atlantic ocean, it was warm like bath water and pleasant to stand in while waves rolled by. 

Rolling sea, 6 x 7.5" watercolour January 2026

It was fairly crowded considering how large the beach was. People were standing in the water while a few surfers were catching waves. Rolling mountains in the background were typical for this part of Brazil. The drive in and out went along a winding highway that crossed misty valleys, jungle waterfalls and long tunels. 

Beach crowd, watercolour 6 x 7.5" January 2026

Roofs and cats

There are quite a few cats around the neighborhood  in Sāo Paulo, and not many birds or mice. On an evening walk we saw this cat on a slate roof and I painted it the next day...the cat from memory. Those tall jungle trees in the background are only there because its part of a nun's convent otherwise it would become condo highrises.

Cat on slate roof, 6 x 7.5" watercolour January 2026

Up on the laundry level at home, which is covered in a slate roof, the family cat slept in a green plastic basket while it poured outside. Raining the whole day I made a few paintings up here its a great vantage point.

Cat in laundry basket, 6 x 7.5"  watercolour 2026

Here is another scene from the upper laundry platform, an interlocking puzzle of roofs and slate tiles. Its a great scene at night Ill try to do it some time. 

Roof puzzle, 6 x 7.5" watercolour 2026

Scenes from Brazil

Real oranges have bright green skin with intense orange centers, which looked neat against the blue wall. Instead of tasting overly sweet, they are packed with zesty flavour. 

Green orange and blue wall, 6 x 7.5" watercolour 2026

This aloe plant grows in a rustic clay pot, illuminated by warm sun. A banana peel was placed next to it in the shadows. The bananas have incredible falvour and there are several different kinds.

Aloevera clay pot, 6 x 7.5" watercolour 2026

The view out the window has been filled with condo highrises, all beige and cream coloured. Slate roof tops are separated by a lush forest, with a busy highway in beween. 

Condo wall roof tops, 6 x 7.5" watercolour 2026

A buddist temple of Chinese culture is a popular tourist destination. Familiar red lanterns adorn the traditional pagodas. Loudspeakers played chanting and drums, with a strong odour of incense in the air. 

Red lanterns buddist temple, 6 x 7.5" watercolour 2026

Curio Folio: Inflationator

Normally I would never do this, but I was reviewing federal grants recently for a new program called Canadian Uninflation Research Devices (CRUD) grants, and came across one that was really interesting. I could get in a lot of trouble for sharing the contents of a grant proposal, so I did a watercolour painting to capture the idea. The device was called the Inflationator... the way it works is to walk into an area of high inflation, inhale all of the excess money, then expel the money out of its rear end in the form of hot air. In the example, the Inflationator could walk into a grocery store, bank, or any place of business, inhale excess money, make heat, and inflation would be reduced. It was a smart and simple idea when you think about it, very feasible. Since this professor will likely get full funding, I believe its okay to share with you, I ranked the grant #1 in the pile. Besides, you will probably start seeing Inflationators at local shops and banks near you soon.

Of course, the production of hot air is bad for global warming, and the Government is familiar with that (both the hot air, and the inflation), which was a drawback to the device. A secondary device, which looks like a small robotic dog, is being planned which can inhale the hot air and poop out money, which may defeat the whole purpose but would surely make for a popular household pet. If that ever comes out, it would make another good addition to the Curio Folio of things you have never seen, heard of, or even imagined. 

Curio Folio: Inflationator, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, January 2026 

Curio Folio: Grant Press

If you are new to the blog, I've been posting paintings of things you have never seen before, its called the Curio Folio, which began with the interesting case of a petrified pop-tart. In this installment, I made a painting of a 19^th century device used by scientists to assist them in writing research grant proposals. You might think that artificial intelligence was only a modern invention, but print makers had figured out a way to put words on hand-held rollers which could be covered in ink and applied to sheets of paper. The contents of the roller was based on words that appear most commonly in successful research grants, with special attention to contemporary topics most likely to be funded. Famous scientist Dr. Thinkfast used this device to get a grant to invent the world's first fork-knife, and luckily the grant was successfully funded. The grant press was in a Plexiglas display cabinet at the downtown MARMALADE museum where photography is not allowed, but they allow paintings for personal study. Since I am a scientist, I asked them if I could visit after hours and test out the device, but they said I would have to write a research grant proposal first, before gaining access to the grant press. Ironic. 

Curio Folio: Grant Press, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, January 2026