Olga Sáenz
Painter
&
Writer
Argue for your limitations and you’ll certainly keep’em
Richard Bach
I am a bridge for all the colors to be on the canvas. They just flow through me, and they surprise me as much as they will surprise you.
My Story as a painter
It is impossible to live in Costa Rica and not to be a nature fan. We are surrounded by it, even in the cities! Everything is fertile, everything growns intensely… Pure Life! Yes!
I became a naturalist tour guide in 1988, and from the very beginning I was immersed in the tropical rainforests and their…
My Story as a painter
It is impossible to live in Costa Rica and not to be a nature fan. We are surrounded by it, even in the cities! Everything is fertile, everything growns intensely… Pure Life! Yes!
I became a naturalist tour guide in 1988, and from the very beginning I was immersed in the tropical rainforests and their chaotic beauty.
I remember, in the early 2000’s seeing a bright pink flower up on a tree in the Tortuguero National Park. I remember thinking that I wish I was a painter to catch that brilliant glimpse of Mattel pink in the midst of the green ocean of the jungle. A few weeks later I bought my first camera.
And I fell in love with the idea of photography. Catching those subtle and almost secretive images that lay invisible before our eyes became an obsession.
Yes, the beautiful bird, but I was more interested in the tiny space between the feathers.
Yes, the amazing flower, but I was in love with the velvety texture of its polen.
I learned to discover life through a 70-300.
In this same period I bought an easel and some canvas and paintings and started trying to paint. Trying is a great word for it. Whatever I did was swallowed by the generous amnesia of time and quickly I was saying that “Photography is the brush for those who don’t have talent to paint”.
Many things happened and maybe I’ll write about them in the non-existant future, but for now, I would simply like to say that my camera was lost, and so my love for tour guiding.
Changes… you know…
In 2014, a re-birth happened in my life. I was getting ready to fly away as my children were already growing independent and I was looking at freedom from responsibilities, and a solitude that could have become a deep loneliness.
We were living in an art-deco apartment building downtown San Jose and I had painted it all white. The cats that lived with us kept on pushing doors and gojumping iut the windows and I was going crazy cleaning their footprints. So, I decided to go to a nearby children supplies store and bought some paintings and did sort of a scribble over the dark paw footprints. And then I did another, and one more. I enjoyed so much I painted all the doors and window frames in the apartment and it looked great!
So I painted a mural in my bedroom… and well! That was it, No more walls, or windows… I bought a canvas then! And an easel a few weeks later. I haven’t been able to stop since then. Painting became like breathing.
Now, I have never taken a single painting lesson in my life. Actually I don’t know how to paint, in terms of techniques or even small tips.
However I’ve found a small secret I can share… The less my mind is involved in the piece I am painting, the better!
So, here I am! Painting for nine years non-stop and extremely thankful for this surprise Life had for me and that turned me into yes… A late bloomer!
What’s going on?
For 2023, I will be:
Restaurante El Bosque
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The Blog
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Inspired Painting
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To discover magic in the ordinary and the natural is a gift, a practice of the soul that we can all learn when we set out armed with only our senses, to listen with our hearts and open up our minds.
In these visions and memories of a wonderer and a wanderer, a taste of that magic drips onto the canvas, inviting us all to search for the glory and beauty in each moment of our own lives.
Colin Sharpe
Writer
Inspired Painting
Inspired painting is an experience that involves being at the present moment, getting the world rush out and allowing the flow of Life to go through.
There is no way to do it wrong, however an open heart and a relaxed attitude help to enjoy it fully.
Latest artwork
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My Blog
The Allure of Monteverde
January 7, 2023
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Personal
The most important questions in life. At least for me.
November 21, 2022
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My Costa Rican Art
Is this really a blog about Costa Rican art?
November 19, 2022
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Blogs de clientes
Manuel Antonio National Park, an insiders’ guide
September 30, 2022
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Blog Personal
Etiquetar, nuestra prisión favorita
May 27, 2022
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Blog Personal
¿Quién está en guerra aquí y ahora? Reflexiones sobre un tiempo que parece terrible.
May 27, 2022
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