Introduce myself

Hello all!

This time i cannot make the same mistakes again, i suppose. So, there it is.

I am a portuguese retired electronic engineer, almost 60 (this month), and painting since 2002, kind of in a reguar base, but very strongly in the past 6/7 years. I
teach mathematics for a change - to get some easy funds - but with some success (in teaching), i must say. I cannot say the same with my paintings, but it is not so
importante anyway, although i already sold a few paintings.

Painting is a passion. I´m a self-tought guy, although i had a three year help from a fantastic Goya disciple teacher in Lisbon, without whom i don´t think i would be
able to survive! I know now that i should have done painting instead of engineering since i was born! But i cannot go back in time. So, i am struggling everyday,
everynight, every moment cause of it. I do a lot of search and research over the internet, and i still try to find, not any purposes or goals anymore, but some path,
to calm me down.

Richard asked me on my application, which painters i like the most. Hard to say, i am affraid.

Da Vinci, Rembrand, Tuner, Constable, Monert, Manet, Seargent, Zorn, Nerdrum, The Cubists of course (very much), Richard Schmidt, Liliedahl and Richard Robisson of
course. all of them are amazing, soberbs!! I feel like a simple apprentice compared to them.

My worst drawback - drawing, of course. I don´t know if i will have the time enough to go into it as i should and would like to, but that is one of my objectives, so
far, at least on a minimum and simple scale. I am working exclusively with oils and pastels (sometimes), and i had some experiences with tempera (you heard and saw
some videos from Tom Keating out there - his work about Turner was amazing, among others).

Color theory, VHC/VHS, and a lot of other stuff that you, in particular Richard, speak about, although i was aware about it, was never my goal, cause i though i could
go on without it, but i am missing something, indeed.

I attach a few pictures of some paintings, painted over a large period of a few years. Please be kind and sincere enough to critisize about their.

I think this might be enough for the moment. I am used to be on my own. But, useless to say, I am very pleased to joint you all! I am sorry to be so nerd about this
ways of communications nowadays. For me, it was always simple to deal with systems and secutiry in the past. I promise i will try to improve myself...

Accept, all of you, my sincere regards.

Francisco
(artist name Rodrigo Leal)

PS: I will have a blog on soon. In the meanwhile, the attached photos are from a recent small exhibition in a bar nearby to my house, plus a few more from a few years
ago (the nude ie), or the affrican tree last year, to the more recent english cottage and waterlilies