The Salvation of Shade for the Plein Air Painter

Workshop participant Kim Owens plein air painting in the shade.

I love this photo taken during my Plein Air Painting workshop this past June, because it evokes a sense of creative solitude that is like a meditation for the plein air painter. Fortunately, Kim found the best of all worlds: a great view and some serious shade. Despite the heat, the shade is significantly cooling in Tuscany as are the afternoon breezes at Spannocchia. She actually sitting in a grove of olive trees.

 

 

Terraced Garden at Spannocchia 2012

I just returned from teaching my plein air painting workshop in Tuscany for the third time. Though it was pretty hot the group prevailed and had a great time painting at Spannocchia and all around central Tuscany. It was reasonable in the mornings and always nice by the evening. Just like a lot of places it is unseasonably hot this summer.
I became obsessed with by little 5 by 6"  Khadi watercolor sketchbook. I guess I just love small paintings. I find they serve as a quick demo and studies for larger paintings.
I especially love the terraced vegetable gardens at Spannocchia that are planted with vegetables and  and flowers. In this view you can see that the lavender on the left is just exploding with color. The gardens are meticulously planned and tended to by Carmen the incredible gardener and her team of agriculture interns.
I always love returning the Spannocchia. It is a rustic working organic farm and green hotel located about 30 minutes drive south of Siena.

Farmhouse Road in Watercolor by Linda Warner Constantino © 2010 

Watercolor on Khadi paper 7" w by 5.5"h.

This is one of my favorite views at Spannocchia. I have painted in oils in the past and now in watercolors. This summer I will be teaching my Watercolor Sketching in Tuscany Class in late August 2011. I will be interested to see how the colors are during the late summer. If you are interested in the plein air watercolor sketching workshop you can contact me via email. Wishing you all a Happy Holidays and Prosperous and Peaceful New Year!

Plein Air Painting at Spannocchia June 2010

Vineyard 12 - 8"h by 10"w - oil on linen board

I spent a month painting in Italy this past June. I spent two weeks at Spannocchia - one week teaching a plein air watercolor workshop and one week painting for a recent fellowship I received from Savannah College of Art and Design. The experience was remarkable to say the least. I could write a whole separate blog on the food alone.

I will be posting some of the paintings from my trip as well as new ones I have done for my upcoming show Chasing the Light on exhibit from August 9 - September 10 at the Art League Gallery of Hilton Head on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina. The show will be comprised of oils and watercolors inspired from my trip to Italy. The opening reception will be held on Tuesday, August 10 from 5-7 pm.

Late Afternoon at Spannocchia

I have finally had time to work on some paintings from the trip this summer। Plans are underway next for next summer. I am wanting to do two workshops: one week of watercolor sketching and one week of plein air painting. I will be posting the details in about another month so check back if you are interested. It was a memorable trip with a great group of painters.

I have just gotten the information for the Summer 2010 Painting Workshops in Tuscany. Here are the workshop descriptions:

Tuscany Doorway by Linda Warner Constantino © 2009. 11 by 14 in. watercolor on paper.

Watercolor Sketching in Tuscany June 21-27
$2200 single $2000 double

Watercolor is a medium that is perfectly suited to the sketchbook format and working on location. It is a wonderful way to capture the travel experience and develop your sketching and watercolor painting skills. This watercolor workshop is paced to savor the unique experience of Spannocchia and some of the surrounding scenic areas of Tuscany.There will be daily demonstrations regarding painting onsite and working with watercolors. We will be painting exclusively from life in our sketchbooks daily with sessions in the morning and afternoon. We will also spend time painting some studies out of the sketchbook as well. We will spend 3 half days painting on site.
This class is suited to beginners with some drawing experience and intermediates. No previous watercolor experience required.

Coprighted © 2009 by Linda Warner Constantino. 8"by 10" oil on gessoboard.

Plein Air Painting in Tuscany (Oils)
June 28 - July 5 $2400 single - $2200 double

Come spend a week at Spannocchia and some select areas in Tuscany painting “en plein air” (in the fresh air) with Linda Warner Constantino. Painting on location is an especially memorable way to capture the experience of Italian culture in picturesque Tuscany.
There will be painting sessions in the morning and afternoon, demonstrations and critiques, not to mention lots of talk about painting. There will be 3 half-day painting trips to neighboring towns. Students will paint in oils in a small format ranging from 5” by 7” to 9” by 12”.
This oil painting workshop is limited to 10 students and open to beginning painters with some drawing and painting experience and intermediate painters.

Casole Fields

Copyrighted © 2009 by Linda Warner Constantino. "Casole Field" 10" by 8" oil on linen.

This sunny field is indicative of some many views in Tuscany. The rolling hills of farmland are everywhere. I liked the wildness of the field against the structure of the plowed fields.

Demo Painting Using Portland Grays

"Carmen's House"Copyrighted © 2009 by Linda Warner Constantino. Oil on linen board 8 by 10 in.

Here is a demo painting I did one day of the Plein Air Painting in Tuscany workshop using the Gamblin Portland grays. I think it was a good exercise to help students see value. I used portland gray light, medium, deep, chromatic black and titanium white.I layed in the grayscale painting first painting thinly and then added the local colors in afterward. The day was a bit hazy and lent itself to focusing on a range of values rather than strong plays of light and shade.

You can see the grayscale stage of the painting in this photo.

Here are some of the workshop participants painting away.