After a week of finishing projects, making improvements to "Comfortable Hide-Out", and failing at a painting of a single rose, I was in the mood to relive memories from Lake Como, Italy. The day that I was there it was very cloudy and gray and all my photos look like the one here. I decided that I would make the best of the reference and use it very loosely, as an inspiration. The ideal would be en plein air or paint from memory, but I wanted to paint a brighter and sunnier day than I remember. I used only the bottom left portion of this photo to inspire my composition.
I gave the canvas a light tone of raw sienna, adding some darker smudges to indicate composition and wiped out the lightest areas. I established a composition with a large dark mass on the right, and a subordinate dark mass on the far left. The focal point would be the group of white boats which will also be the lightest light on the canvas.
Next I began filling in the local colors, continuing to work out the composition and comparing values as I go. At this stage I can already visualize the sun hitting the boats and buildings in the cove.
This photo of the finish painting fails to show the distant buildings in their full intensity of color. In the original, the roofs are redder and the boats are very white and "pop" out as the focal point. This photo shows the red and white flag on the right, competing with the focal point, but it doesn't at all in the painting. I've shot this in many lights, inside and out, night and day, and have finally settled for this heavily photo-shopped image.Click on image to enlarge.
6"x 8" oil on canvas mounted on hardboard
5 comments:
this painting brings back fond memories of Lagoon Como! How do you pack so much paint in such a little space. bonita. other stuff too.
It's kind of like extra cheese on pizza... Do you think I ought to charge extra? Why don't I see any paintings of Lagoon Como?
Lovely interpretation. I especially like the soft, loose handling of the mountains/hills in the distance. In the past I lamented overcast days, but more and more I am drawn to appreciate painting their effects, as well as days of brilliant sunlight.
As Colinel Sanders once said, "There's no such thing as bad weather...just different kinds of good weather."
I'm with you, but Lake Como 1 and 2 were painted as gray days. I took the challenge and embraced the subtle and muted colors. But being there for only a partial day and a cloudy one, I always wished to see Como in the sun. As an artist, we can do that! That said, I have no regrets, I was there! :0)
Hi Marilyn,
I like very much the second stage, as you said about some of my paintings in progress "dont do nothing more, leave it like that", hahaha! is funny, you too have continue the work, thank you also for stoping by my Venetian Canal and for your wonderful comment Marilyn, yes are all recents works, as you know I work on series, these particular two "Venetian canals" are not from the series "Venice and Portofino jewels and corners", but in between
Hugs.
Alex
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