The Guadalajara Restaurant To Come Down

A staple for any of us who lived in the downtown Charlottesville area during the past two decades has been the restaurant "Guadalajara". It was a hamburger joint run by some drug happy folks who would be glad to give you a free burger for buying something not on the menu. They gave away their profits I think, I don't know this to be fact though but it sure seemed like they ate up all their profits to me. The restaurant went under in short order (sorry about the pun but..), and this group of gangling seemingly Mexican folks took over the place. They decorated it up with some funky artwork and a new color scheme taken from the colors of the Mexican flag, then on top of that they named it after a Mexican town. Fancy that! After visiting it and enjoying the huge cocktails they sold I actually found myself enjoying the food. They weren't much on spices but they did fill the plate in (what was to me) unique and satisfying way. Tacos, Enchiladas and burritos were all on the menu and when you left one didn't think you'd been ripped off, it was good and for a good price. They stayed in business. Amazing for this town where new restaurants were more likely to shut its doors after the first year than stay open for two. Over the years I've seen many new faces come and go as waiters, and they even opened two other thriving places of business in this little town. As time progressed and I joined the ranks of the special needs teachers we would take our students into its doors. The reason was both that its food was something we could afford and it was a place to practice 'proper sitdown manners' for a lunchtime dinning experience. Its been an 'all-good' place for us to go to plus the prices remained about the same for the entire time that they've been open. Well that is changing. Our little city has decided to buy the land this building is on and turn it into a parking lot. The days of 'Guadalajara' are numbered. The city has been the home of both the surrounding County and even nearer city of Charlottesville's legal courthouse center for all its business. They got tired of hunting around for parking and decided to simply buy out our beloved 'Lucky Seven' and 'Guadalajara' out and put up a parking lot. And soooo...here's where I come in a paint it while it still stands for memory sake....thereby comes in this painting of our homeboys from South of the Border's restaurant 'The Guad".

Comments

Post a Comment

What Has Worked;

Wyant's Store in Whitehall,Va.

Image
  It is noted that Whitehall Virginia is a throwback to an earlier time, a time when people knew who you were whenever one was to shop in the store such as this....its something found in the rural areas of this state and not so much in the cities of Virginia. This is one of my paintings of such a place, where the guys inside it are all gathered talking about what's news in the area over some snack food of one kind or another. They were all very kind to me once I stopped in to see the inside of this store once I was done painting for the day. I enjoyed working on this one...it is the second of the same subject, the store was interesting to work on so I took a second look as it were and painted it again. It's wasn't so much that I didn't like the first painting of this country store it was more that I enjoyed working on it so I thought I would prolong the joyfullness by doing it a second time. I'm sure you have no idea what I am talking about..well just have a
Read more

Walking Along W. Main St.

Image
I found the scene along West Main is soon to change into an newer style cityscape of brick and glass with less ornamentation to its buildings. With this in mind I photographed some West Main Street buildings in the hopes of finding interesting scenes to paint. The signage is all a part of West Main and in that thought I painted this one with its graphic street crossing signage featured prominently in the picture plane. I highlighted the bricks in intense reds and developed the windows in a bizarre abstract display for each one of them. Each featuring one color being themed inside its frame as if each window display had its own abstract painting going on inside its area. Its all for the fun of it, I play with what is being viable to the view when I can. Nothing ventured nothing gained. It was nice how this one came together piece by piece with each painting session. Intense color came about as I developed its' scene on the sidewalk windows. I was going to bring in
Read more

Firecycle in Kamahura: 1954 or So

Image
Its been a long time coming but I finished another in my Japanese style paintings this past weekend. It's of a fire cycle, they didn't have enough money to build a fire truck although they did have a few in the station instead they made a cycle which could fight fires. I thought it was kind of unique and looked very different that anything I'd seen before so I painted it. Using one of my Dad's black and white photos I did a rendering of it. I enjoyed working with the strong red colors even though the photo is in Black and White I could remember some of the colors involved in this vehicle so I went ahead and played with it. It took a good deal of work, but I continued on with it until it was completed. I just couldn't let go of it very long while I was painting it. I guess I did another marathon painting session last weekend. I know I felt it after I was done.
Read more

Painting in the Public Domain

I've been busy painting outdoors. Yesterday, I packed up my easel and paints put on my backpack with the easel on it and walked to the downtown mall. I arrived about nine thirty am and got to work after setting it all up. Many people stopped to comment and offer supportive comments about the start of the painting. I was working on the Miller's bar and buildings headed westward from their on, I included a couple of people in it too boot, the thing was I was filmed by some group that came back later and had me sign a release form and I was photographed by tourist and others who just happened upon me while I was working on my painting. My work progressed to a good stopping point and I plan to finish what I've done at home. Some people to whom I talked I never saw because I was paying attention to what I was painting not to whom I was talking to at the time. I was looking at the buildings and what I was doing on the canvas so I have very little idea as to what or who the
Read more

The Holland Farm Chicken House in Arrington Va.

Image
    This piece of land has more to be explored from what I have been able to discern from the local neighbors.   I've only photographed what I can see from Arrington Road nearby where the Locken Music Festival is held in the summer.   There are three buildings I have been able to study so far with more that are out of sight.   I am interested due to the age of some of these abandoned farm buildings.   I was told that this one is a 'chicken house' for the Holland farm.   Its not in operation anymore but it must have held a good number of the foul in its heyday.   This is an oil.  I use a 30/30/30 medium with sunthickened linseed oil going by the name Stand oil.   Its small, only 14 inches by 26 inches in size with a popular wood lattice frame slapped on it.  
Read more