ITALIAN MEMORIES
40×30
TESSERA
SOLD

My memories of Italy, especially the hill towns of Tuscany, remain vivid and compelling. Here I have created a piece that explores the myriad textures that are such a part of the landscape of Tuscany.The work is also about the visual impact of these wonderful towns. It is another of my tessera works, and the technique here allows me to create the jumbled feeling that grabs you as you meander through places like Siena, or San Gimignano, or Florence. All the bits and pieces of my old paintings are transformed into building facades and stairways and rooftops. There really is no sense of order, and yet it has a wonderful cohesion.

For this work, I created an underpainting in acrylic on a new canvas. The overlaid pieces, or tessera, are all from the old oil paintings that have become my new medium. I started with any and all the rooftops and little houses I have painted for years. I then added windows and doors, and at last the wonderful and odd color combinations that meld together so comfortably. I used pieces from about 6 different paintings. Some were paintings of Italy, but most were of other places. But they all contributed color, line and texture to bring life to this piece.