Madeira News Blog

This Anona was handed to me by the owner of the house in Arco Da Calheta that we were thinking of buying. Eight months later we have now moved into that same house and the Anona tree is just outside my art room.

I have been painting for 15 years starting with oils and finally progressing to watercolour then my interest moved to botanical art.

This painting was sent to The Society of Botanical Artists in England (www.soc-botanical-artists-org) as part of my final exam where I had to produce 3 paintings. I had signed up for their Distant Learning Course when living in Denmark as botanical art is practically non existent there. I enjoyed the course so much despite it being intense and dedicated work, it lasted a total of 27 months and I passed with distinction which is in the 90%-100% mark criteria and I was so pleased to have achieved that after working incredibly hard. For the final I was literally doing a 6 day week in order to complete and my eyes were really strained.

It was my new found interest in botanical art that brought my husband and I over here to see the "Garden of the World" and from that point we have now moved over. He still has his work in Denmark but commutes over and I can start to really enjoy the fantastic variety and abundance of plant life here and once the furniture removal boxes have been unpacked and things have settled down I will start painting again.

The next goal is The SBA exhibition in London next year where I have to have 5 paintings accepted then I am allowed membership-which is my goal. From there I would like to try RHS and other botanical societies and just keep improving my work. So my plan from end of October to February is that I will be slaving over a steamy paintbrush and paper to achieve that aim. I know that there are at least 2 other botanical artists on the island and I am hoping to make contact with them in the near future or any other artists here for that matter.

This particular painting is not for sale as it has to go into the exhibition next year and be on sale. I have other paintings on my web-site www.angieart.minisite.dk it is a bit out of date and I have 10 other botanical paintings here at home, not on the web-site yet more up-to-date. If anyone is interested in my paintings, contact or information about The Society of Botanical Artists my e-mail address is angiedk11@hotmail.com.          Angie

‘Doctors Disassociate Themselves With The GOLDEN AGE – The luxury residence was transformed into a health hotel, but is lacking liquidity. The unhappy partners sell their stakes’. The idea of a group of 56 doctors to invest €33 million into creating a luxury home to look after those in old age, has turned sour. The ‘Golden Age Residence’, in the tourist area in Funchal, has not given sufficient returns after two years of operation, and the owners are now trying to sell the building after the banks refused further funding. They are hoping that a hotel group might purchase it. 

‘Regional Government Restores Agricultural Levadas – The secretary for the environment has set aside €5 million to intervene in 100 watering channels in 7 districts’. The strategic plan that the Regional Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources wishes to implement, especially in the southern part of the island, will bring improved irrigation resources to our farmers. The works will focus particularly in Calheta, Ponta do Sol, Ribeira Brava, Câmara de Lobos, Santa Cruz and Machico. 

‘Environmentalists Fear Excessive Human Pressure In The Laurissílva’. Both Quercus and the Association of Friends of Ecological Park, believe that the plans for planning and management of the Central Mountainous Massif and the Laurissilva of Rabaçal are risking damage to the ecosystem. A public discussion on the two matters, which ended yesterday, was held to discuss public opinion, suggestions and complaints, and clarify doubts about the plans. A spokeswoman for Quercus on the matter of the new cable car at Rabaçal said “These plans are going to add yet more human pressure on the spaces that are protected, and this increase is a threat to the existing biodiversity”. The environmental impact study reports that the cable car will be able to carry 180 people per hour from Paul da Serra to Rabaçal, and it is possible that in just 3 hours the load capacity of the Rabaçal route (in nature conservation terms) will be exceeded.

The secondary school Francisco Franco held a demonstration of robotics on Tuesday, with the challenge to make three robots perform different tasks through instructions given by  the operator. The demonstration was held mainly for the benefit of students in information technology, to provide some real life experience of programming languages. The tasks were to design geometric figures, negotiate a series of obstacles, and interact with the presence of students.

The Funchal Search and Rescue Unit rescued a fisherman in their Merlin helicopter near Porto Santo on Tuesday morning, after a suspected heart attack. He was flown to Funchal central Hospital, but unfortunately died.

In total 140 tonnes of anonas have been exported this year, when in 2008 it was just 80 tonnes. No wonder the price has gone up for my favourite fruit, I reckon by about 40% in just two months.

Between 10 and 15% of Madeira’s population suffer with asma problems, but only 20% of them receive treatment to prevent seizures. As a result, the Regional Program for Prevention and Control of Asthma are to issue sufferers with identity cards to highlight their situation in the event of an emergency. The announcement was made on Tuesday, to coincide with World Asthma Day.

When cetacean experts gather in Madeira ahead of the 61st International Whaling Commission meeting (22-26 June) they will share information about the health and population size of the whales of the world’s oceans. The data is usually dismissed as fanciful by one side or the other, because of the commercial whaling dispute, and is also seen as unreliable because each country has its own way of counting.