Revealing Thursdays- Artwork Transformations of Summertime in Venice!

     Summertime in Venice had been an exciting challenge as I had never painted a canal, a bridge, buildings, boats or people with faces. I used acrylics on canvas, with bold large paintbrush and palette knife strokes  for the buildings and water, and tiny brush strokes for the small details in the people and gondola. The painting was built upon many scenes I had photographed in Venice. 
     After printing the photos on 8'x11" paper, I tore out my favorite sections from each individual scene, and created a collage.   A  background of white gesso with a  covering layer of blue paint for the canal and sky was used on a blank canvas.  I  sketched the final composite scene with a black sharpie directly onto the canvas. A darker layer of blue acrylic paint was used to cover those areas where I decided to change my lines. Here is a close up of the center section for the start of the painting. 

 This was followed by a rough overall foundation of colors for the base  of the scene,  with details starting to be filled in.

Next I added more detail to the faces, water and  bridge - leaving the buildings in  a more sketched rough appearance for contrast....

     When completed( below)- I felt it was missing something.  I  wanted to have a Gondolier in the painting- such a constant sight along the beautiful glimmering canals of Venice.  So I created a wooden pier to house my newly created Gondolier -  dressed to the nines in the ritual costume that they all adorn, complete with the famous hat and scarf  they all wear.

     Here is the finished painting. There are a few things I could change, but have decided to keep it 'as is'. Sometimes, even when I see something that I may like to alter, I know there is the possibility of losing what I have already created- and for that reason, for this painting, I've decided not to make any new changes.  
     Deciding when to create a completely new artwork or when to change an existing one is part of the process we all go through in both art and in our daily lives. Though there is always the pressure of projecting what others  think of us or our work, it's important to be true to our own needs and values.

     

     Make priorities, do what you can in the time you have, and hope everything will fall into place.  Then remember, as is often heard - "rules are meant to be broken", and as I say, "sometimes decisions are meant to be changed"!