First Oil Paintings: Umbria 2015

  Woke to a beautiful day a week or so ago, so we drove around looking for a good spot to start painting.

  This is looking west towards Tuscany, in an area I have painted before. There are many Etruscan tombs in this area.

  There was a flock of sheep down below me, so I was serenaded by their bells the whole time I was painting.

Setting up.

Laying in color. No drawing, just direct painting.

  Simple forms work best for me so that I can concentrate on the intuition of the colors.

  Again this year I am trying to concentrate on the old buildings, integrating their forms with the natural forms of the landscape.

  This spot was good for two paintings on this day. 

  There is a small village nearby with a beautiful bellower we can see from everywhere we drive in this area.

  This painting will be called "White Road". These "strada bianca" are favorite places to stop and paint.

Just off to the side of the white road.

  The white road is the bare canvas board showing through, below. 

  Later I darkened in the sky, to flatten out the image. 

  The line is a great accent for this little painting.

  After painting the first oils, I realized I had to buy some supplies I needed.

  On a second day, we headed to a nearby paint supply store which also carries some art supplies.

It's close by, so we didn't need to drive all the way to Cortona,
where my favorite art supply place is.

  This place is called MAF. We come here often.

Looking for a perfect "signature" brush.

Checking out oil paint options.

  Back at work on a much cloudier day.

  The weather was changing. This is a new area, I have not painted here before. Good spots to pull over along this white road.

Painting at the crossroad.

I love laying down the color.

Castle on distant hill.

This was a fun painting.

  Since these were done, we have had a big weather change which has kept me from painting for almost 10 days. It is supposed to get nice again in a day or two.
  In the meantime, I work inside on my travel journal, and catch up on the art magazines I have brought along.

  It all adds to the creative process, and I will be ready when the days warm up and the sun comes out again.