Painting in Italy

I just returned home from teaching a workshop in Northern italy. I had a group of 12 students from various places in the US with me. We met in Milan and spent a couple of days there, then spent the rest of the week in a small town on Lake Garda.
Below is a demonstration painting I did the first day of the cloistered monastery where we stayed.

San Tomasso
Gargnano Italy
12 x 16 Watercolor
by Pat Fiorello
SOLD

Here are some other photo's from the workshop.

Geraniums in Italy

   

With so many greens in the landscape in Tuscany, the occasional red accent flowers, in this case, geraniums, appear even more vibrant.

 I took the opportunity to do a quick demo on colors to help students while teaching my recent workshop there.

Started out with a variety of reds and oranges, warmer on the sunlit side

Added in a dark background in a neutral tone which will have the flowers ultimately appear more colorful

Here's another example of the geraniums. I think they like the Tuscan sun- they are some of the biggest geraniums I've ever seen.

The final oil painting study 6 x8 Geraniums 

Painting demo in Italy

Here's a scene looking down the driveway at San Fedele, our home base for my recent workshop in Italy. I choose it for a quick watercolor demo while there since it has a strong value pattern and also the trees are very typical of Tuscany.

Started out with a simple sketch of the big shapes, painted in the light areas first.

Then proceeded to add in the darker trees and shadows. there are lots of greens so I have to continually remind myself to change, change, change for the sake of variety

Here's the final impression of the scene.

Painting in Italy

Pat Fiorello painting in Radda in Chianti, Tuscany

Hi, you haven't heard from me for awhile since I have been away for about 10 days painting in Italy. Last week, I taught a workshop in Tuscany.

Our home base- The Tuscan Renaissance Center in San Fedele

We stayed at the Tuscan Renaissance Center which is a really special place. It's a 12th century monastery that was active thru the 1980's. It was abandoned for about 20 years after that and then a private family bought it and over the course of 6 years of work and millions of dollars, they restored it to an amazing place intended to foster creative growth.  It's the best of both worlds, modern amenities and comfort in an authentic and sacred building with lots of character . We have the place all to ourselves so it makes it feel like home. We used that as our home base to take day trips to other painting sites in Tuscany as well.

Two students painting on location- Tom in oils, Haylee in watercolor

 I was crazy enough to bring both oil and watercolor painting supplies ( which consumed most of my luggage space), so did some of each every day! Will share some of the highlights in the coming days.

 If you have always wanted to paint in Italy, I have another trip planned for late September of this year to Northern Italy- beautiful Lake Garda, so get in touch if you want to find out more.

A beautiful place to paint...

Lake Garda, Italy

If I had to pick the most beautiful place I've ever been, it would be the lake region of Northern Italy.  I've been there 4 times to paint and will be returning later this year.

Despite being in the northern part of Italy, not far from Switzerland,  the climate is quite mild. The lakes create a microclimate where the weather conditions are more like the Mediterranean. They grow lemon trees, palm trees , bougainvillea, lots of lush foliage. Charming towns and  elegant villas on the lake with a backdrop of majestic and even sometimes snowcapped mountains of the Alps take your breath away.  Incredible inspiration for painting. And it's fun to go on a quick boat ride across the lake to visit neighboring towns.

San Tomaso in Gargnano is our home base

These are some photo's I took when I taught a workshop at Lake Garda in 2010. I am arranging another workshop for this fall. If you'd like to explore and paint this lesser known area of Italy, you are welcome to join in the fun. There is a flyer with the details at  http://patfiorello.com/italianlake_fiorello_fall2011r1.pdf  or just get in touch with me. It's open to painters of all levels and mediums.  a painter's dream come true.

View of Lake Garda from San Tomaso

Learning at an Art Workshop

Well I had a wonderful week at the Scottsdale Artists' School in an oil painting workshop with instructor  Hedi Moran  a couple of weeks back.
 Here we are together. Hedi is on the right.

 She is a wonderful instructor who is not only generous in sharing her techniques and her own lessons learned over the years of painting, but also is fun, genuine and encouraging.

I learned a lot during the week, but some of the lessons are beyond techniques.

I took my first workshop over 15 years ago. On a whim after only about 3 months of painting I decided to got take a workshop in Provence. I had no idea what I was doing- it seemed like a good idea. When I got there I had a moment of "what was I thinking?" when I realized everyone else there was a professional artists, or art teacher and I had been painting for 3 months.  But it was a wonderful experience that I will never forget.

 There is nothing like being immersed in art and being surrounded by new inspiration to paint and other people who are passionate about the same things you are. It's a totally enriching opportunity and after that first workshop, I vowed to take at least one workshop a year (  a vow which I have kept and has been one of the best decisions I've ever made).  Now I teach workshops to provide those enriching experiences to others. Next month, I'll be taking a group to paint at a wonderful place in Tuscany  ( for more info see www.patfiorello.com under Workshops or contact me and I can answer any questions.). There is still room available for anyone who woudl like to come and it's open to artists of all levels( even total beginners) and mediums. We meet in Florence on May 28th.

By being immersed in art , away from the distractions of everyday life, you can learn at an accelerated rate and really see your progress from the beginning till the end of the workshop. You also meet great people from all over who share your interest in art and develop friendships that last well beyond the workshop.

This past workshop I got to see a lot of art on the local galleries in Scottsdale which is also educational and inspiring. I also got some practical lessons. This was the first time I flew with my oil paints and had to figure out how to transport the wet panels after the workshop. I typically love to paint on Panelli Telati canvas on panels ( available at ASW art supplies), but instead, ordered some oil primed linen on gator board since I thought the panels would weigh less in my suitcase( I'm alway precariously close to the 50 lb limit). Well big lesson learned. Avoid using new materials( except those specified by the instructor) when on a workshop. It's challenging enough to learn and new approach , but to also adapt to the nuances of new materials adds another layer of complexity. The panels I brought were much slicker than the ones I am used to and it was difficult to handle with the new approach. I wished I had has the materials I was already familiar with, but I was out of luck so had to make the best of it. Good lesson learned for next trip.

If you have an opportunity to do so, I'd strongly recommend treating yourself to a workshop- Investing in yourself and your skills is the best thing you can invest in for a sure return.
 Plus it's a lot of fun!

Bella Italia

One of my favorite places to paint is Italy. I have been teaching workshops there for several years in both Tuscany and the Northern Lake Region. On my first trip there I was curious about why so many people were drawn to paint Tuscany. Of course it's a beautiful place, and great fun with wonderful art & history to explore, but looking at it from an artists perspective, there's something there that's naturally paintable.

 One of the things I noticed right away is the dominance of diagonals.There are so many diagonals in the landscape of the hills rolling, vineyards, mountains, and even rooftops that it makes for an inherently dynamic landscape. Also there's natural color harmony. Most of the buildings are very old with lots of character.  They are made from local materials from the earth, so the colors of the buildings and land are  naturally harmonious. There's a variety of textures from the stone buildings and lush foliage. Those great dark cypress trees and strong sunlight and shadows provide opportunities for dramatic value contrast on most days. And then there's the intangible, but palpable spirit of La Dolce Vita. A sense of peacefulness and contentment with life that pervades the area and it's people- Or maybe that's the Chianti???

Here are a couple of my recent paintings of Tuscany:

 If you've ever dreamed of going to Tuscany or painting in Italy, there are still several spots available in my May 28 workshop. It's open to artists of all mediums and all levels. Even total beginners have come on the trip before and enjoyed every moment of it ( and left with some nice paintings of memories of their trip). If interested, please get in touch with me at patfiorello@aol.com.  I would appreciate you sharing this with others you know who might be interested.  It might be the dream trip of a lifetime for an artist.

Painting Italy- A Work in Progress

Recently I did an oil painting demonstration at the Burton Gallery in Georgia.
I thought that experience might offer a way to share my process for translating a photo into a painting.

 First I started with a photo of a Villa in a small town in Tuscany where I teach painting workshops each year. This was in the small town of Vagliagli, which is so tiny it’s barely on a map- but you might have seen it since they filmed segments of the movie "Letters to Juliet" there. (If you haven't seen the movie, rent it- there are some spectacular views of Tuscany and Verona where most of the film was shot)


Then I used that inspiration to create a small value sketch showing light, medium and dark values. I made some design changes, like shortening the long building and adding some cypress trees. One of the challenges of landscape painting is the need to simplify all the detail that you see into the big masses of similar value.

Here is the  finished painting .

Villa at Vagliagli

12 x 16 

Oil on Panel

$500

To see more paintings of Italy ( I have a whole collection of Images of Europe) or find out more about my upcoming  painting workshop to Tuscany check out my website  www.patfiorello.com