Topic: Day (2 posts)

Day 4 Italy

Paintings. Paintings? Yes, paintings. John and I went to Torino yesterday. I'd never been and it is about an hour from where we stay in Alba. Torino was wonderful and we saw some remarkable art. We went to the Civic Gallery of Modern Art (GAM) and saw a show that categorized artistic creative expression into several areas in seperate galleries, none of which I could have cared less about. This was a show that pulled art from the museum's permanent collection, which was mostly Italian, as a way to educate viewers. Okay, a curatorial construct that is contrived.  But some of the paintings were magnificent.

I photographed the areas in each painting that interested me.

(sorry, no attributions, these are really just snapshots)

There's a sheer level of skill here that is simply phenominal. Many artists avoid painting hands as they are so difficult to get right. This artist seems be to showing off his abilities.

This one above is from the late 18th century and yes, there are flying figures.

There were several paintings depicting idealized and fantasized landscapes. Of course, I loved these.

I did copy down the artist for these below as I wanted to learn more about him. He was Antonio Fontenesi and he lived from 1818-1882 and was from Reggio Emilia in Italy:

They are dark and brooding paintings, so far down there as to be almost not there

and convey the hazy air at times in Italy and what must be" late in the day" light.

I don't know about you but I admire painting very much. It seems with our use of photography that we work so hard to convey emotion at times and that our tools make such a straightforward representation of reality that it is difficult to get them to bend to our needs. Imagine starting with a large, white, gesso'd blank canvas and applying that first brushstroke to it. What a different way to build a picture! We make ours in some fraction of a second, all at once.

Today, number 5 in Italy? We are headed off to make pictures as the rain has finally stopped. I wonder if these paintings will resonate in my brain enough to effect how I see? Hm. Paintings made in Italy by Italian painters. I am in Italy. Hm.

Stay tuned....

Topics: Day

Permalink | Posted November 6, 2014

Day 2 & 3 Report From Italy

After driving most of the day I ended up in Barbaresco, about an hour from Torino, at the Enotecha where John was. This was a wine shop in an old church in the center of town. Perfect. 

What did I see driving south from near Lyon? From flat to very mountainous, the inside of the Mt Blanc Tunnel, incredible fall colors, snow topped mountains, endless tolls that were  always more expensive than I thought, some very fast cars flashing by in the left lane, many trucks, rain and sun then rain again.

 After a glass of wine I followed John into Alba where he lives and where I am staying in a friend of a friend's apartment. 

Day 3 was rainy so we cruised around a little. John showed me where he biked in the hills, we had soup for lunch in a hill town covered in fog, and dinner at his place. 

We did get into a gallery and cultural center at the plant in Ferrero (Ferrero is the major company here and is known for Nutella, Tic Tacs and Ferrero Chocolate), but only for a minute as there was a private tour taking place. I got three pictures made before being told "No Photographia" quite emphatically. 

I assume this is mostly Italian furniture design. I wonder if any of you know. The Egg Chair up top was designed by Scandinavian furniture designer Arne Jacobsen but I don't know the others. Elegant.

Topics: Day

Permalink | Posted November 5, 2014