THE DAILY URBAN LANDSCAPE #39 IN ITALIA

I should have known better than to go into my portfolio of Italian drawings.  It is difficult to move on to other places.  But since this is my blog and my facebook page, I can stay here as long as I want.  Besides, I am shameless and readily admit that I love these "clay drawings".

 Via Ferrucio in Castellini in Chianti

A view from the piazza in Greve, a village in Tuscany

THE DAILY URBAN LANDSCAPE #38 The delightful towns of Italy

It was bound to happen.  There is no way I could post just two paintings from Italy, and move on to other places.  I'm hooked, which means the Daily Urban Landscapes will now be coming to you from the "old country".  Most of the paintings are mixed media drawings - pen, ink, markers, and acrylic - on clay mono types printed on assorted fabrics and paper.

 Dinning out in Castellini in Chianti in Tuscany

Via Garibaldi in Parma

IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED

After focusing a lot of time and energy preparing for next week's opening reception - cleaning up, hanging art work, making labels, etc. - I actually sat down at the drawing table yesterday and attempted to create a small watercolor sketch.  It never happened.  The paper was of poor quality, and the initial washes for the sky looked awful.  On a whim, I began playing with pastel, rendering the mid-ground and fore-ground first, and then re-working the sky.

Tuscan Three...pastel..6c10

I thought I should post this today because looking at recent posts one would think all I do is eat pasta.

I SEEM TO BE STUCK,

but in a most delightful place, creating clay drawings. I can't remember the last time I've had so much fun, plain ole fun, in the studio. I want to do more with the watercolor and acrylic, and I will, but have no intention of abandoning the clay. I can easily work in all 3 media simultaneously. But to do so I feel I have to explore new approaches, especially with the acrylics, and hope to begin doing so soon. There is so much material from my trip that I want to work with.


the main piazza in Greve, a small city in Tuscany...clay drawing

The small (6x12") drawing below is a bridge between the clay drawings and acrylic. The warm background is acrylic on a gesso panel. The drawing is a combination of ink, markers, and acrylic.

TUSCANY IN PROGRESS

As these pics will show, I prefer to paint from the background forward, even if it means significant areas of the canvas remain blank. Today I worked on the architecture and am not satisfied with the colors; they don't capture the patina of age. I'll work on correcting that and completing all but the small details, before moving forward toward the foreground.




I'm painting with acrylic on a 24x48" wood panel

GREVE AND SIENA

One of our first day trips was to Greve, a short drive from Fonterutoli, where we wandered through their yearly pottery market featuring artisans from all over Europe. Their Piazza was quite impressive for a small town.





Of all the towns and cities we visited in Tuscany Siena was my favorite. Smaller and more manageable than Florence, but larger and more urbane than the villages, it seemed to be the best of both worlds. The Piazza Del Campo, the site of an annual horse race, was awesome. While others were exploring the church, Abigail and I decided it was time for some sketching.


Siena streets

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Siena streets


Piazza Del Campo Siena


Abigail and me

CHIANTI AND TUSCANA

From our apartment in Fonterutoli we explored some of the Tuscan treasures in a series of day trip. The closest village, Castelini in Chianti, just a few miles away became our home base. We enjoyed it small market and good restaurants, and on our last evening in Tuscany had our best meal yet at a small, inconspicuous family pizzeria (most of the restaurants call them selves Pizzerias).

I spent one morning in the town with my sketch book.


The Church on the Piazza. Pencil


small produce market directly across from the church pen and ink

We were able to buy groceries and other needed items for our week in the apartment at a nearby market, aptly named, the COOP. We later learned that it was part of a chain of similarly named markets in the region. Breakfast during most of the trip consisted of bread, salami, prosciutto, cheese, and occasionally left over pizza.


Two of the several restaurants in Castelini. We experienced both of them.


Looking down the main street. The piazza in at my back and the 2 restaurants just ahead out the camera's view.

MORE FONTERUTOLI

Today I would like to give you a feel for the village of Fonterutoli.


Looking down Via Puccini, the short "main" street int the village...our apartment is on the second floor of the building on the right.


Here we are looking at several homes on Via Puccini, seen from the opposite direction.


This narrow street crossing Via Puccine leads out of the village and is a remnent of the original Roman highway from Siena to Florence. The stones are original and date back to aproximately 800 years AD.


A pencil sketch of Via Puccini houses.



A view of the surrounding countryside from the western edge of the town.

FONTERUTOLI IN CHIANTI

We flew from O'hare to Milan, Milan to Rome, and drove 3 plus hours from Rome to Tuscany. There, nestled on a hillside along side of the Chianti highway, we found our Village/winery which was to be our home for the next week.



Looking at Fonterultoli

This village of 3 or 4 streets consists of a few private homes and a winery and estate that has been in the same family for 400 years. Like many other farms and wineries they offer accommodations for tourists, usually for a minimum rental of one week. Our apartment, 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, kitchen and large dinning room and living room was located on the second floor of one of the orignal winery facilities on Via Puccini.


the apartment...our bedroom, second floor window on the left


looking down Vial Puccini, our apartment on the right. The homes on this timy street are private residences.


Looking out the livingroom window. The building on the left is the owners home. They live here from May to November and in Florence for the remaining months.

The farm produces Chianti wine, olive oil, and lavender toiletry products.

ITALIAN DAYS AHEAD

This may be my last post for awhile. In 2 days Patience and I will leave for a 2 week trip to Italy. I will have camera and laptop and hopefully may be able to post while we're traveling.

Two years ago I suggested to the Renzulli cousins that we have a family reunion in Castlenuovo, the village of our grandparents located in the Apulia region in souther Italy (makes up the ankle of the boot). The idea floated about for a few months, and then gradually took form as folks signed on. Three generations will be present when 21 of us gather at the hotel in the village for 2 days.

Patience and I will be traveling with our daughter Amy, her husband Bob, and our 2 delightful grandchildren, Abigail and William. We will spend the first week in a winery in Tuscany where we can visit Florence, Siena, and Pisa, as long as it doesn't interfere with the wine and food.

Then it is on to Rome for 3 nights where we will celebrate Abigail's birthday with some of our cousins who will be there at that time.

From Rome we will all travel by train and bus to our final destination and meet up with the rest of the clan.