Tuesday 20 October 2009

Il Duomo di Cefalu & Case antice nella Baia







St. John's Cathedral at dusk, Cefalu, Sicily
oil on canvas - 40 x 30 cm
painted on location - Sunday 4 Oct 2009, (early evening)
SOLD

Cefalu is famous for its monuments, and this is probably the most famous example. Built by The Normans(1016 - 1194), one of the most ancient Cathedrals of this period, it still retains its natural beauty, mainly due to the fascinating color of the yellow ochre stones, which are found in abundace on this Island. As I started to paint this scene, the light was so intense on the facade of the structure, I was at once troubled with the thought of, "how the hell am I going to get that vibrancy on my canvas?"..., it eventually got softer and for certain moments, the stones seemed to glitter a most unusual golden light, wonderfully magical, to say the least. One does not even need to enter this place of worship, in order to have a spiritual transcendent experience, at least not in my case. The Statue of St. John(appropriately a Norman Saint) is the one featured on the far right.

and early the next morning....



Charming ancient houses along the Bay, Cefalu
oil on canvas - 24 x 18 cm
painted on location - Monday 5 Oct 2009
SOLD

The Sunlight is just starting to make its access on the slowly awaking village. Il pittore is out there, capturing that soft golden light in time to render its magical affect on the scene at hand. As the English painter, John Constable once said, "Light governs everything." He couldn't be more right, especially on this Island. A slight reflection on the turquoise/greenish salty water, harmonizes carefully with the yellow/greenish forests being lit up on the gentle mountain slopes, behind the village.

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