place: Cortijada Los Gazquez - Spain Trip I

I have just recently come back from a volunteer/art residency at the Cortijada Los Gazquez an artist-owned creative/eco haven in Southern Spain. I came to know about this place through an artists award they were running called AGUAZERO, where I submitted my 'Fragile Echoes' work based on ice. 

I can't rave on about the place enough. It truly was a sublime and unforgettable experience in terms of the people, place and palate pleasures! Im having to segment this blog entry into 3 parts as few things to write home about.

Firstly the Place, the pictures say it all really.....however just a few notes about the sustainability factor.

With the house relying totally on wind and solar energy, it was a reminder as to how easy it is to forget what energy is and what is means to us on a day to day basis. There was limited energy storage in the layered rows of 'battery' devices in the back of the house which was adequate day to day but using a hairdryer or iron after dusk can hoover up the stored energy accumulated during the day...I was caught out using my mini travel hair dryer which sent the generator wild as soon as I turned the dryer on so it swiftly went back in the bag. Things like this, you don't really think about back at home where energy is seemingly endless in supply.  Hot water came about through 2 fairly big wood burning oven-like structures. However water itself was pretty scarce as it mainly came from rainwater and a local well, so short showers were encouraged and you start to realise how much water you use when washing up, flushing a toilet. Drinking water was from bottled sources though.

The sculptural energy catchers