- Oil on Gallery-Wrapped Canvas
- 30 x 20 inches
- Available, Framing Optional
Fontana di Lucca
Lucca, Italia
This painting is a larger reworking of a smaller acrylic painting I did when I visited Lucca, Italy, for the first time in 2004. It depicts the draped torso of a woman. She is actually a statue atop a community fountain (fontana in Italian). One breast is exposed, as was typical centuries ago. I am not sure why, perhaps because asymmetrical design is usually more interesting?
I found as I started oil painting from live models in the mid-1990s that zooming in on the figure was a type of abstraction. The shapes of this torso appeal to me, the curves dividing the canvas in lovely ways. I enjoyed painting the drapery, that seems to defy gravity in parts. The dramatic curve of her hip on the left is pure woman! What a beautiful design!
Lucca was a surprise for me. I had visited Firenze (Florence) for about five days before heading north and west on my way to the marble mountains in Carrara, Italy. I was only able to stay in the walled city of Lucca for two nights. Compared to Firenze, Lucca seemed a bit sleepy and lacking in art.
However, as I explored the town, I began to look up into open windows, my gaze following the sounds of voices and music. I discovered that most of the art was inside of the buildings as I caught glimpses of beautiful frescoes on the walls and ceilings.
The 2nd of June is a holiday called Festa Nazionale della Repubblica. It just so happened to be the day I was painting a composition of my favorite fountain in Lucca -- in the Piazza San Salvatore. Many families were out and about and it was fun to watch people of all ages walk and bike to the fountain I was painting to refill their water bottles.
I laughed to myself as I overheard a tour guide confiding to her visitors that although the water from this particular fountain was believed to have wonderful healing powers, she was not so sure the benefits came from the water or from the fact that the people exercised every day while traveling to the fountain!
One man remarked from behind me while he and his family watched me paint, "La composizione è interessante!" (The composition is interesting!") Several others asked me about the kind of paint I was using. The people here were very warm and I enjoyed working among them.
My original sketch in acrylic on a pad of watercolor paper:
Payments planned are often accepted, with no finance charge [ever]. You set the date and the amount you wish to pay each month. One-third [whenever you reach that point] is non-refundable. However, if you change your mind about adding this work to your collection, then you may apply the deposit to any other available Borsheim artwork. No risk!
Thanks so much for your interest and patronage. You will love Lucca, Italy!
Peace,
Kelly Borsheim, artist