1128 Freshly Squeezed

 The little lemon juicer was a gift from friends many years ago who visited Italy.  Having visited Italy and Sicily since then, I discovered that lemons are a very big deal there, and the lemon motif is everywhere.  I saw the same little bird on many different ceramics.  I think it looks cute with the flower arrangement.  The painting was started during the summer, and the flowers were from my rooftop garden.

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/1128-freshly-squeezed/973962

921 Prosecco

Life doesn't get any better than a glass of Prosecco and THIS view.  Heaven.

Happy Mothers Day to all of you.

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/921-prosecco/740395

881 Things Are Looking Up

Here is another painting where my inspiration came from a recent visit to Venice.  The original scene was mostly black and grey and I enjoyed employing a complimentary palette for the painting while still respecting the aged nature of the building.

"881 Things Are Looking Up"
acrylic - 16x20 in

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/881-things-are-looking-up/638629

876 View From the Courtyard

There is a term in Japanese culture, "Wabi Sabi" which refers to finding beauty in the aged and the imperfect.  Here is a very nice article, The Art of Imperfection by Robyn Griggs Lawrence, that I think you might enjoy.  https://www.utne.com/mind-and-body/wabi-sabi

I love this concept and honor it.  I love to paint aged subjects--rusty old cars, weathered barns, old door nobs,  peeling paint.  This painting shows a scene from Venice, where my husband and I recently vacationed.  We had lunch in a lovely little courtyard and this was my view. Italy was "Wabi Sabi" heaven with all it's weathered buildings, imperfect walkways, monuments and historical sights.

"876 View From the Courtyard"
acrylic - 12x12 in

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/876-view-from-the-courtyard/633215

875 Blue Umbrella

It rained miserably on one of our last days in Venice, but it didn't stop us or any of the other tourists from enjoying the day.  St. Marks Square was packed with people wearing plastic ponchos, vying for a bit of covering near the shops.  At a certain point, the crowds were too much to deal with, and so it was quite a nice reprieve to have a recommendation for dinner at a restaurant in an out of the way area, still not far from our hotel, but away from the tourists on a quiet Giuseppe Garibaldi Street.  I loved the perspective of this scene and definitely needed my ruler to sketch it on my canvas.

The evening was one of our most memorable as we went to an orchestra concert of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, Le Quattro Stagioni at "Vivaldi's Church," Chiesa Della Pieta.

"875 Blue Umbrella"
acrylic - 20x16 in

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/875-blue-umbrella/631410

873 The Gift of Silence

My husband and I recently traveled to Italy for a long-anticipated visit to four cities, the first being Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast.  Due to long travel delays, we arrived very late at night, and upon awakening in the morning, we were delighted to see such a breathtaking sight of the sea outside our window.  Located high up on a cliff, our hotel was a beautiful blend of old and new with the most elegant blue and white tiles of different patterns throughout, and furniture modeled after mid-century modern, also in blue.  I was in heaven.  The grounds were exquisitely designed with 70 different varieties of plantings from all over the world.

Located next to the hotel and its grounds was an old, seemingly abandoned building with all the weathered paint and texture that delivers to me that compulsive surge of desire to paint.  I photographed it from several angles during those golden moments when the light is just so perfect.  During the visit, I was unable to get information about the domed building, but finally received an email response from the hotel with explanation.

In 1597, this building was constructed by the Jesuits as a convent in what was then a rural area with orchards and citrus grove sloping toward the sea.  "According to legend, the gods had given custody of the secret garden to the nymph Colomeide that to all those who would have entered into that magical place, she would have given the gift of silence."  In 1777 the building was converted into a hotel, now called the Grand Hotel Cocumella and is the most ancient destination of recreation and rest in the Sorrento peninsula.  I wish I had known this information when we were there.  I would have looked closer to see the hotel and would have entered the grounds, which are bordered by a tall stone wall.

Throughout Italy I took well over 1,000 photos of unimportant buildings and windows with weathered paint that I find so charming.  I took a few hundred of the historical sites.  I suspect you will see more paintings of the old buildings/windows than you will of the Colosseum.

"873 The Gift of Silence"
acrylic - 12x12 in

https://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/diane-campion/873-the-gift-of-silence/629117

This painting has sold.