Vish Velandy

I get sick of reading on vacation, and frankly, it seems wrong to stare at pages all day when you’re somewhere fun. For the past few years, my girlfriend and I have rented a house on a Greek Island. Before I leave NYC, I call an art store in Athens and have them stretch a few canvases for me. When I arrive, I pick them up along with some oil paints, turpentine, and some other supplies and go straight to the ferry. At the house, I set up an easel out of ladder and some wood, in a cave next door to the house that has an amazing view of an azure sea cove below. The cave offers some welcome shade from the blazing Greek sunshine, and it feels great to paint pictures in the open air. The cave makes it private, but the opening to the Aegean Sea makes it not feel claustrophobic. The paintings are usually dry by the time we leave, and I got this old lady down the street to hold my supplies until the next summer when I return. I once saw pictures of Julien Schnabel’s Montauk studio which is basically a gigantic deck with three huge walls and no ceiling, which was kind of my inspiration for trying this. Painting takes longer than sketching in a little book, and it’s more physical than photographs. Every time you look at the paintings, you’ll remember the place where you did them. Everyone should try it.