José F. Grave de Peralta
My path as an artist has everything to do with my family history, my education in and out of school, and the many amazing people I have met along the way.
In 2008, after 20 years teaching (first) writing and (subsequently) freehand drawing at the University of Miami, the School of Architecture in Coral Gables offered me the life-changing opportunity to bring students to Rome, and to eventually stay in this City and carry on my work here on a deeper level. This is why my own open book of Rome is as full of handwritten notes and sketches about its piazzas, its Caesars, and its Popes, as it might be of thoughts about 1-point perspective and the elegant form of an urn or vase. Rome has given me an opportunity to discover how the active engagement of our eyes and hands when we draw while we travel or visit an important location can transform not only our visual language on paper but -- more importantly -- ourselves.
Hopefully this web page will give you a glimpse into my Art world and invite you to discover , in my company, both Rome and some of the fascinating areas surrounding it.
My Channel
The great painting of Las Meninas by Spanish Master
Diego Velazquez used to be displayed in Madrid's
PRADO MUSEUM
with a large mirror alongside of it, until the 1970s.
Click my Sketch of Las Meninas above to read the story of how my father introduced me to this masterpiece by taking me inside the Prado's magic mirror ... in 1963.
Above are some of my paintings and works on paper, some dating back to the 1980s and 90s. Please click on any image to see it full size, or visit the various categories across the horizontal menu on top of the page to view more samples or to watch short video presentations of my work.
Rome
Paintings and Drawings
*** FREEHAND DRAWINGS and MORE ****
Click on the arrow to view
how my pencils, ink pens, and brushes showed me the magnificence of the City.
Oil Triptych
Stories and Drawings
*** FREEHAND DRAWINGS and MORE ****
*** CLICK HERE to read more about the
JASON Triptych ****
https://www.gravedeperalta.net/copy-of-triptych-of-jason-the-monos-1