Italian Paintings done in Italy: 9/1 - 12/26, 2004 (Archived)

View from Bagno Vignoni
Framed: 20 x 25 inches
Image: 12 x 17 inches
Watercolor & Gouache
(SOLD)

Bagno Vignoni is an old Roman village with hot mineral baths. The town is quite small and is easily accessible by foot. In early September most of the rolling fields are plowed and the villas and cypress stand stark against the earth. Painting in the open air this time of year is not easy as the sun is direct and relentless. I was inspired by the light and shadows on the villas and the strong diagonal that breaks this composition. This was the first painting I did on this four-month painting trip. 

View from the Roman Bath Pool,
Bagno Vignoni
Framed: 34 x 22 inches
Image: 26 x 14 inches
Watercolor
(SOLD)

Bagno Vignoni is an old Roman village located in the hills of Tuscany known for hot mineral baths.  The Romans would visit these spas, about one hundred and twenty miles from Rome, to relax and soak and heal. At this site there is a large stone-walled bath in the center of town. I stood at the south end under an arch in the shade while painting some of the village patterns and the reflections in the water. 

View from Bagno Vignoni, September Fields
Framed: 25 x 33 inches
Image: 17 x 25 inches
Watercolor & Gouache
(SOLD)

I did this painting at the same site where I did the first one on this tour. Bagno Vignoni is an old Roman village with hot mineral baths located in the hills of southern Tuscany. The Romans would visit these spas, about one hundred and twenty miles from Rome, to relax and soak and heal. I learned a lot from my first piece and decided to do this larger painting in watercolor and gouache.  In September I see Tuscany in ultramarine and gold. The umber and sienna plowed fields are set off by the thick blue haze this time of year brings.

Pienza, After the Wedding
Framed: 32¾ x 24¾ inches
Image: 24¾ x 16¾ inches
Watercolor
$1900

Pienza is a small hill town in the south of Tuscany. I spent some time here in the center square after there had been an Italian wedding. The wedding party and guests were in the square taking photos. The priest ambled among the crowd chatting, hugging, and giving blessings. At times he would distance himself from them and wander alone. I did a few sketches of him and also of
the old Roman well which is at the center of most Tuscan villages. I went back a few days later and set up in the square which at this time was much
more quiet. I wanted to capture the light and texture of the stone walls and the feeling of the Roman well. Of course I placed the priest at lower left lost in contemplation. 

View of Field Patterns, Montepulciano
Framed: 26 x 32½ inches
Image: 18 x 24½ inches
Watercolor & Gouache
(SOLD)

Montepulciano is a hilltop village in Tuscany that has a population of approximately 40,000. Winding up toward this city, panoramas open
between trees and villas, and at the city's edge there is an incredible display of field patterns, vegetation, and farms. There is also a beautiful
bird's eye view of a cathedral that is breathtaking. I was inspired by all of the diagonals and the complex nature of the composition. It was also a steamy-hot day with little shade. The high humidity actually worked in my favor and the paper and paint dried slower giving me more time to work the brush and manipulate the paint. Then, at the end of the day I packed up and finished the work away from the site. 

Twilight, A Canal in Chioggia
Framed: 22½ x 18½ inches
Image: 14½ x 10½ inches
Watercolor
(SOLD)

My workshop group and I arrived at the beautiful fishing village of Chioggia on September 8. I would stay there a total of eleven days. The first night I could not wait and ventured out to the edge of a canal next to the hotel to do a painting at twilight. This was a challenging painting to do because as the light dimmed, it was hard to see the palette and the color mixes. I enjoyed the lights from the buildings and the dark shapes of the boats piercing into the light bouncing off of the canal. I took the painting further later in the studio where I could adjust the colors and the value that could not be deciphered towards the end of the plein air painting session.

View by the Sanctuario Del Christo Church,
Chioggia
Framed: 32½ x 22½ inches
Image: 24½ x 14½ inches
Watercolor
(SOLD)

Winding along laundry draped allies and narrow streets, I came to the edge of a canal and the Sanctuario del Christo Church. In front of the church is a large gated yard as well as a public square. To the south is the main canal that the large fishing boats use to access the sea. On the other side of the water are high rise villas with laundry hanging. At the corner of the building is a sculpture of Maria and a street lamp. Above the sculpture is an ornate, gold umbrella-like protective covering that must symbolize a heavenly body. I liked the composition of the
sculpture winding down to the two boats with the two Italian women lost in conversation.

Gabbiani, Nebbia,
Sanctuario Del Christo Church
Framed: 26¼ x 34½ inches
Image: 18¼ x 26½ inches
Watercolor & Gouache
(SOLD)

On the west side of the large canal in Chioggia
there is a great view of the Sanctuario del Christo. The day before I had sketched this view and had thought what it would be like to paint the church
with some ground fog and a flock of sea gulls.  When the large fishing boats come through the canal, flocks of these birds activate and are like a cloud of piercing cacophony.  I began painting near the water's edge with just enough room to stay out of harm's way of small cars and Vespas.  Italians walked by and one offered the words “gabbiani” for seagulls and “nebbia” for fog.