August 2008

Now that I’ve had a chance to shake off some jet lag and acclimate myself to the changes in the gallery that summer brings, I thought I would share a little about our trip to Italy.

We started at Gargnano, a village tucked in between the steep hills and shore of Lake Garda. Lake Garda is roughly the size of our local bay here, maybe 15 miles long and three miles wide. I was surprised how warm the water was; several of the students and I found ourselves dangling our feet in the refreshing lake while visiting late into the evening.

The weather was beautiful and warm. After breakfast each day, we would leave at 9:00 and arrive at various lakeside towns usually within 45 minutes. I would set up, do a painting accompanied with a short lecture on design. The focus was how to paint loosely in a plein air (on site) location.

Our various locations included tight winding streets punctuated with awnings and vendors’ signs, lakeside promenades shadowed by stately cypress and marinas with undulating reflections. One beautiful estate of a poet offered us a quiet courtyard of concentrated study.

After enjoying our sack lunches we would disperse for the rest of the afternoon and apply the design concepts discussed in the morning.

At 4:30 our bus would pick us up and run us back to our hotel for a few hours of relaxation before dinner. At 6:45 I would lead a critique of the days’ work and I was truly inspired by the variety of interpretation and subject matter.

Evening was truly a delightful time of fellowship of the day’s events discussed over splendid Italian cuisine. The evenings were so pleasant that after dinner it was not uncommon for us to stroll through our little town and visit the gelato shops (many would stay open until 11pm). We just posted new paintings of Italy on our website.

Now I will change continents on you. Recently I have been fascinated with the subtle changes in the water reflections as I look across Willapa Bay. Every day brings a new pattern of color. I have some new paintings of this in both acrylic and watercolor and would love to share them with you, as well as some beautiful brand new Cosmos paintings. Check them out at www.ericwiegardt.com.

We also have the 2009 workshop schedule listed on the website.

May the sun shine pleasantly on you this summer.

-Eric