If I had one sentence to describe what my residency at Moinhos do Dão has brought me it would be this one: ‘Moinhos do Dão has awakened my senses’

Fortunately I have a few more.

After two years of being graduated from art school, I was searching for some rest and peace, in the restless career I chose for. When at home (Amsterdam) I always feel like I’m running and doing nothing at the same time. I felt I needed some time away from my beloved people and city, that bring me a whole bunch of joy and distraction.

While here I created a daily routine for myself, it went like this:

reading
breakfast
walking
coffee
reading
walking
swimming
lunch
practicing Portuguese
painting/drawing
reading
cooking
dinner
reading
sleeping

(I occasionally took a shower, checked my e-mail and did the dishes too.)

What became most clear to me during my weeks at the Moinhos, is that I feel healthier when there are less decisions to make, that beauty is always around, and that nothing is ever the same. I walked the same path to the village every day, and every day, there would be something new to see, to smell, or feel.
Every day something else would attract me to its beauty. One day it would be a leaf, the other day a plastic bottle with a bright yellow top in front of a concrete wall, and another day it would be a smiling woman with crooked teeth. 

 Being here has showed me again that beauty is always around, and that it’s easier to find it when there is not too much distraction. I think that as an artist it is very important to remind myself, that in moments I don’t find inspiration, all I have to do is change my focus, take a closer look, or widen my view.