It started in Venice…

4x6 watercolor, Pink, Orange, Green

In the fall of 2020 I started painting small watercolor postcards based on my own photos from a family trip to Italy a couple years ago. After painting daily for almost 2 months I decided to start a #100dayartchallenge.

4x6 watercolor, Along the canals of Burano

The first in the series were fun quick illustrations. I penciled in some quick boxes to establish the size and then very quickly started with my pen. I painted my way through that the pad of blank postcards very quickly. I dream about spending a week on the island and painting it everyday, all day. With breaks of course.

4x6 watercolor, Burano, Blue and Orange

The intensity of the colors on the island are just the hit I would need on a rainy day! I was looking through my photos from 25 years ago of my first trip here. At that time the island was not as freshly painted and vibrant. It was still very colorful but with more layers, character and chipped paint. I’ll need to return to check on the upkeep.

Framed

Practically speaking, 4X6 is super easy to pop into your favorite pre-matted 8x10 frame. My personal preference is a shadow box frame, these ones are 5X7 from Ikea.

5.5x7.5 watercolor, Burano, Indigo, Thalo, Magenta

I painted my way through the blank postcards and found a slightly larger watercolor pad collecting dust in my studio. Forever the hoarder of art supplies, I am finding my way as I stumble across forgotten materials in my studio. The colors are becoming more saturated as I get lost in these little paintings, lost in the details, lost in the color, finding myself aimlessly wandering down these streets.