Italian Landscape(s)

 Italian Landscape (Me), oil on gessobord, 8x10"
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Italian Landscape (Hugh), oil on gessobord, 9x14"

A couple of nights ago I ask my son Hugh, who was in an "almost a graduate, not yet done with high school" mood, aka no more assignments to deal with, to paint with me. That perked him up. Since I returned to painting a year ago, we have not had an opportunity to work side-by-side, again because his Visual Arts magnet school provided him with plenty of work. He usually had 2-3 assignments going on together, whether it be painting, drawing, photography or printmaking.  Kind of like  being an art major in college, but he is still in high school. 

He decided to call our painting time a "paint off" and he chose an image from which we worked.  It was a great experience, and fun, and in my opinion his painting was a hundred times better than mine. He picked this image because the sky was so dramatic, and his painting captures it beautifully. I am very proud of him and know it will be difficult when he leaves for college in the fall.

Cypress

Cypress, oil on gessobord, 5x7 inches

I began painting again one year ago this month, and I started with similar subject matter as this. Conical trees sitting amongst a vast landscape. You see them everywhere, but do you truly notice them? These trees are lucky to live in California, in the Napa Valley, surrounded by hilly vineyards. The property they rest on contains a 13th century Italian castle that was built after it was brought from its homeland and pieced together.  Wrought iron hardware made by artisans centuries ago hold it all together. I don't know how long the project took from start to finish, nor can I imagine the cost of such a project, but it is fascinating nonetheless.

The driveway to the castle winds up the Napa hillside (where else would a castle rest), and is lined mesmerizingly with these cypress, catching the light and casting their shadows.