Always Balaton
Some places become destinations.
Others become part of the rhythm of your life.
For me, Lake Balaton belongs to the second kind.
It is not simply a landscape but a sequence of recurring rituals. Hoisting the sails before the wind rises. Following the changing light across the water. Swimming at sunset. Picking cherries in early summer. Making apricot jam. Watching the lake transform from one season to the next.
Every year it reveals a different face. Sometimes it feels like an architectural landscape, shaped by harbours, villas and sailing clubs. At other times it becomes a shared social space, filled with conversations, competitions and quiet afternoons. And sometimes it is simply the memory of summer itself.
This watercolour was painted after a sailing race.
When the boats have already crossed the finish line, something remains on the water. Not the excitement of competition, but the traces of wind, movement and light. The lake seems to hold them for a little longer before they slowly disappear.
Perhaps that is why I keep returning to Balaton.
Not because it is always the same, but because it never is.
Artwork
Medium
Watercolour on paper
Series
Places to Remember
Location
Lake Balaton, Hungary
Series
Places to Remember
Follow the project
For new paintings, works in progress and studio notes: