"Various Paintings" Personal Page by painterdave

This was a street near the central piazza in Orvieto. I sold this one to someone in Colorado. The size was about 15 by 28.
I completed most of it in Orvieto when I made my first painting trip in the month of April about 5 years ago.
I liked Orvieto a lot and have gone back two more times. It is a small city built on a huge rock landscape. When you drive by it going from Rome to Firenze you think to yourself, "I want to go there!"

watercolor painting

Started in Tuscany and finished in Colorado. Here you can see its size.
There are many of these types of Villas, but with less trees. It seems more spacious there, and I wanted to make a backdrop, so I put more in.
A year ago I was in Firenze and saw a painter from Croatia on the street with a painting of the same place. We had a good talk over an espresso about painting.

How many years and people?

I am attracted by doorways and entry ways. This one I found in Venezia. There are a lot of these places and I never tire of painting them.
I like Venezia much better in the winter as there are fewer tourists and it is sometimes like a deserted city. You let yourself get lost and wander around taking in everything.

South of Durban, South Africa

When I visited South Africa I took some photos of the ladies who were making baskets in a market outside of Durban. I enjoyed these markets a lot and felt that I should paint something from this experience. This painting is one of my oldest done on a full sheet of heavyweight paper.
These women work real hard to earn money for survival. The one woman at first had a face of distrust until we talked about her work. I wanted to capture this feeling of distrust in the painting.

Near End of Summer by Certaldo

Partially made up out of my mind and partially a real place. I used deep colors for the depth of the hills and grape plants. I wanted to capture the feel on Tuscany with its hills and valleys.
It is so nice to drive through the middle of Tuscany, and the drive near Montalcino in the middle of summer has some wonderful sunflower fields. This drive is said to be one of the most beautiful, but I have to say that in the Fall it is not as beautiful in places as it is dry and they have plowed up the sunflower fields.
By the way, the wine of Montalcino is some of the best in the world.

River Scene

This is a small medieval town in Slovenia and a bit of a tourist trap, but this one scene I really liked. I don't have much to say about this place except that this scene was talking to my brush and paper when I first saw it.

Almost Like a Child's Story Book, these towers

There is a huge church in Padova where pilgrims come to see the jaw of the old saint, and other relics. Bus loads of people come every day, and they walk around and look up to see a wonderfully created rooftops and spires. This painting was made partially on location. It is bit washed out in this photo.
When I bike past the back of this church in the morning the sun hits the angel on top makes it look so enchanting. It makes my day start out nice and gives me a good feeling to know I live in such a special place. I wish I knew more about who designed all the towers and rooftops, because it must have taken several generations to finish such a place.