"I learnt about the very interesting life of GaudÃ! What an artist! His works are incredible, so detailed and what an imagination! Karla's knowledge and explanation opened up his world to me!
Always enjoy Karla's lectures as they introduce new facets of each artists' life.
Her vast knowledge and her great enthusiasm are great when giving the lectures
Would you recommend Karla Darocas teaching and books to others? *
Absolutely recommend her classes!!!"
Diane Santiago, Javea
"Just finished the first class on Antoni Gaudi. I have been a fan of Gaudi's work for many years and this class was a stunner. I had so many "OH" moments during the class. I think it's because Karla has such an excellent grasp of architecture, that she easily puts his work into the context of the broader whole. It makes it that much more interesting.
I am really looking forward to part 2 next week.
I just want to thank Karla for enhancing my "old" brain with this wonderful knowledge. Pure pleasure!!! Her knowledge of the subject and her great tidbits add so much to the lecture. What a gift!
I absolutely recommend Karla Darocas's teaching. "
- Mimi from Valencia
"Everyone knows "Gaudi". This is what I thought, myself. But Karla's lecture on Gaudi's first years as an architect was just astonishing.
Understanding his motivations and discovering his incredible imagination, Karla opened my eyes to what he would later develop. For example, Gaudi's materials - brick, ironwork, tiles... were physically made and used so artistically. I realize I have everything to learn about him.
Karla is knowledgeable in her domain and transmits her knowledge with ease. I recommend her lectures. "
-Jo Jouas, Denia
Karla explains and gives details in a very easy way so you can understand. She makes the artist come to life, you feel as those you are living the moment." - Amanda Jane Rosser
"I discovered an important artist of the surrealist period that I had never heard of before. Dali, Andre Breton... Yes, but not Remedios Varo. How can such an artist, who had followed the same paths (Freud, Jung) not be known better than that? Thanks to Karla's enlightenment, we learned to interpret Varo's inspirations and her personal preoccupations. Karla linked this artist to her times, the context which is so important to understanding an artist's state of mind. I would recommend this lecture and Karla."
- Jo, Denia
"I have been familiar with Javea old town for 25 years and know quite a lot about it but, when I saw the walk advertised and thought about the lectures of Karla’s that I had attended and thoroughly enjoyed pre lockdown I decided to take advantage. With Karla it’s the little details that stand out and display her research into and passion for her work. I loved learning about the indoor market, the poor mother superior who acted as look out, the hard wearing wood from Mobil, Bolufer and his super sailing boats, Sultan, diaphanous arches, tri lobe windows, the local artist influenced by Degas … the list is endless! Karla's teaching style explores the everyday details that bring the history to life." - Jean Halse, Javea
"I loved the Sorolla lectures. We heard about his whole life from being a young boy. With the connection to Javea, you can recognise our local beaches. Sorolla was a very empathetic man paying tribute in his paintings to the way women worked very hard in all kinds of jobs. His very clever use of white paint in a lot of light and shade images was amazing. He invented his own unique style. I love the very clever method of being able to almost walk through the gardens and out through the wall onto the outside. His wife Clotilde was an amazing woman and a huge influence in his success.
Karla has so much knowledge which she shares with you." - Glenys Graham, Javea
"Salvador Dali, for many years I have wondered about this artist and visited his museum in Barcelona. It's such a pity that Karla wasn't with me to explain the wonders of his work. Karla told us how to look into the paintings and see what he was thinking about when he painted, what most call, strange. Dali was influenced by Sigmund Freud, and many of his pictures depict his strange dreams. Dali was not only a surrealist artist, his paintings tell stories - some not so pretty - but really make you think differently.
In Karla's lectures, we are encouraged to ask questions. Without a doubt, I recommend Karla Darocas teaching." - Glenys Graham, Javea
"Karla guided us around Javea with so much enthusiasm. She loves it when you ask questions. Although I had done this walk a few years ago Karla has found even more knowledge to share. Now when I go into Javea I think this is where all those years ago people fought to save the church and themselves. Even the door knockers' explanations are interesting. You could say Javea is battle scared but that makes for a story or many stories and only by doing the walk, you will hear them from Karla. Things are changing in Javea and not all for the good, some artifacts have been removed. The history in Javea is very important so let's hope it stays that way. Recently Javea town hall announced that there will be a life-size bronze sculpture of Sorolla in a realistic style. I love my hometown even more now. Karla's teaching is full of enthusiasm and a little fun too This walk is a 'must do'!" - Glenys Graham, Javea
"Having attended the lecture the night before, the field trip made me pretty excited. The lecture was a lot to take in but it all fell into place once seeing everything. It was a very easy walk, with no hills to climb. Gandia is another fascinating place and a very important city having a palace, which we toured. In most of the rooms/halls, there are so many artefacts and again Karla described everything really well. I loved the art museum which has a huge collection of paintings and statues. I'm hoping to revisit Gandia and go into the art museum and palace again. Thank you Karla for the tour.
I love how detailed Karla's lectures are." - Glenys Graham, Javea
"Fascinating learning about Sorolla, his wife, his great achievements with snippets of info on Javea that I didn’t know. I took the class because my friend Glenys told me about it and it sounded right up my street! Surprised I didn’t know about it before. The features that I liked about this experience were the relaxed atmosphere, great slides, and Karla is extremely knowledgeable. I would most definitely recommend her classes!" - Sally Marsden. Javea
| How did you hear about SpainLifestyle.com and Karla Darocas? * | word of mouth |
|---|---|
| What was the name of class or book that you wish to review? * | Picasso |
| REVIEW TIPS... what did you learn? was there anything unique that stood out? why did you take the class or read the book? * | I learnt a lot about Picasso that I never knew and thought it was fascinating |
| What features did you like about Karla's teaching or writing style? * | I like the informal yet extremely informative teaching approach |
| Would you recommend Karla Darocas teaching and books to others? * | yes |
| FULL NAME & LOCATION * | Rhona Wells. Javea |
| How did you hear about SpainLifestyle.com and Karla Darocas? * | A friend introduced me many years ago. |
|---|---|
| What was the name of class or book that you wish to review? * | Picasso |
| REVIEW TIPS... what did you learn? was there anything unique that stood out? why did you take the class or read the book? * | I had always wondered what kind of man Picasso was so when I saw that Karla was doing the lecture I had to signup. We were taken on a very descriptive journey through his childhood to his death. We found out who influenced Picasso and why he changed his styles so many times. Karla showed us how he was a good businessman he gave the people what they wanted. Karla showed us so many images, how she remembers all this knowledge I'll never know. I could hardly wait until the next lecture, I was excited. Now I have more free time I will be attending lots more lectures becoming a regular student. |
| What features did you like about Karla's teaching or writing style? * | Karla made us comfortable and answered our questions. |
| Would you recommend Karla Darocas teaching and books to others? * | Of course, in fact I have done so already. |
| FULL NAME & LOCATION * | GLENYS GRAHAM |
"As we can't travel to Javea at the moment, we went to MNACC, Catalunya National Art Museum in Barcelona, the other day to look at the Baroque galleries. They have been redone and have a lot of paintings on loan from the Thyssen collection from Madrid. I was happy to see many El Greco's, Titian, Tiepolo, Canaletto. Having studied with you, the Zurbarán were particularly amazing. His Saint Francis of Assisi and Crucified Christ were incredible as was the Still life with Vessels. I remembered from your lecture. I kept telling Michael to look at his fabrics!
Anyway hope you are having a good week and see you at the next Neo-classical talk next weekend."
Best wishes
Denise