Blog

While waiting for the plane that would take me to Charlotte, NC and from there on to Rome, Italy, I got an excited phone call from my friend Manjushree Roy, a fellow artist.  I had just won first prize at the Norwin Art League's annual show.  Unfortunately I would not be present to collect my award, but she graciously offered to accept for me since she had won Best of Show and would be in attendance.  I was thrilled with the award, and frustrated that I could not be at the ceremony.  But the trade off, a twelve day trip through Abruzzo, was a pretty good one that I would not possibly regret.  

Our first hotel was at Fiumicino on the outskirts of Rome, and we had a view of the Mediteranian from our balcony.  I was able to make a quick sketch of both the working and pleasure boats after a walk along the beach at Isola Sacra.

The tour of Abruzzo was somewhat hectic:  Five hotels in ten days, which did not leave much room for creating any masterpieces.  Plus all the wine and rich food seemed to bother my hand causing additional swelling and pain.  Nevertheless, I was able to do a quick sketch of the lake near Scanno between stops a couple days later.  I used my watercolor pencils with pen and ink for these sketches.

This was a beautiful, peaceful spot on an equally beautiful day.  We had temps mostly in the eighties throughout most of our trip, with only one brief afternoon of rain.  

The third sketch worth showing is of the lovely Adriatic during a quick stop in Pescara.  My husband Bob, my sister-in-law Rosanne, my nephew Martin, and I all sat on a restaurant rooftop for drinks and respite after a walk through the city on a hot Tuesday afternoon.  The uncrowded beach was another beautiful view dominated by rows of umbrellas in blue, white, and burnt sienna; my little sketch does not do it any justice.

With all the dinners, conversations, and bus travel, I was not able to create much else share-worthy, but ... I'm hoping to create some work from the hundreds of photos we took.

Until next time, arrivederci ;)