Vigil's "Santa Madre Tierra y su Alma"

Our first desitination! This work, created by master fresco painter Fredrico Vigil, is on permanent display at the Albuquerque Museum in Albuquerque NM. Both Leslie and I were amazed at the transparency of the fresco paint. It appears as though Fredrico uses the raw white plaster as his lights.

If you look closely in the first picture you can see a seam. This seam which is called a "Giornata" represents the end of ones days work and the beginning of the next. Keep in mind a fresco painter must work on "fresh", or wet plaster. The average fresco painter can finish a 3'x4' section before the plaster dries. The Sistine Chapel ceiling, which was painted by Michelangelo, is comprised of dozens of smaller sections. Like most fresco painters, Michelangelo concealed his seams ("Giornate") along the natural contours of the objects in the painting. This could be the side of a figure or even where the sky meets the earth in a painting.