Perugia, July 26th

The city of Perugia is built on a hill-top some 500 metres high with the oldest part of the city dating back to Etruscan times. We visited the National Gallery of Umbria which houses the most important and complete collection of Umbrian painting, embracing a period from the early 13th to the late 16th century. We saw a number of important paintings by Perugino, who taught the famous Renaissance artist, Raphael. We ended our visit by painting the Fontana Maggiore (fountain) in the Piazza Quattro November, one of the most beautiful squares in Umbria.

On Monday, July 27th, we pack and get ready to leave on Tuesday, July 28th, for a long flight home.

Piediluco, July 24th & Cascata delle Marmore, July 25th

Piediluco Lake is situated on the south eastern tip of Umbria and is the largest natural lake in the region. It closely resembles an Alpine lake, and it was interesting to see the Italian cypress trees growing along the shoreline. While we were visiting we watched the national Italian rowing team practicing for competitions. We spent the morning painting the lake and the boats.

The next day we went to Terni to visit the Cascata delle Marmore (Marmore Waterfalls). These falls are formed from the Piediluco Lake. In 271 B.C., it was the Roman consul, Manlio Curio Dentato, who created an open pit canal dug out in the rock that created the Cascata delle Marmore that spill into the Nera River below. The waterfalls are a beautiful site praised by artists, painters and poets. The misty spray from the waterfalls cooled us off while we painted.

Spoleto, July 23rd

Spoleto was at one time the capital of the Holy Roman Empire. You will observe the ancient Roman remains still evident in the restored first-century Roman Theatre, the Roman remains of arches such as, the Arco di Druso (dating back to 23 A.D.), the fourth century church San Salvatore, and the Roman engineered Ponte delle Torri (also known as the Roman aquaduct). We also visited the Duomo, whose facade is carefully designed of Romanesque and Renaissance elements. Inside this church, you will find fresoes by the great Florentine artist Fra' Filippo Lippi dating from 1469. Check out the photos and drawing.

Montefalco, July 22nd

On the way to Montefalco we stopped briefly at a sunflower field for a photo shoot. You can see from the photo that the sunflowers were almost as tall as us. We arrived at the ancient city of Roman origin. It's name means, "Falcon Mount", because it is so high up and provides spectacular views of the Umbrian landscape. We visited the church of San Francesco and studied the frescos of the Florentine painter, Benozzo Gozzoli.

Assisi, July 21st

Assisi is a Medieval town high up on the top of a hill. It is known as the "green heart" of Italy. The landscape includes the silver green on the valley floor from the olive groves, emerald green from the grape vines, and deep green from the evergreen oak trees. It was here that St. Francis was born and founded his new religious order. The San Francesco Basilica is frescoed from top to bottom by the leading artists of that day, such as: Cimabue, Giotto, Simone Martini, and Pietro Lorenzetti. These artists painted the life of St. Francis on the walls of the Basilica. A quote from St. Francis states, "slow down and be joyful...you have reached the hill of paradise and this church will knock you spiritual socks off". Which it definitely did!!!

Studio Day , July 20th

Today we got to spend the day in the studio and a chance to create art based on all of our experiences and everything we have seen so far. We have taken the plein-air painting techniques and combined them with some of the fresco compositions and architecture that we have seen in Florence , Siena, and the various Umbrian small hill towns.

Studio at La Romita

The studio at La Romita is in the chapel of the 16th century monastery. Our schedule since we have arrived at La Romita is busy. Up at 6 a.m., breakfast at 7 a.m., on the bus at 8 a. m. Each day we are visiting a different city and location. At night we return to work in the studio and take lessons from an outstanding professor , Marilyn Derwenskus, Ball State University. She guides us and demonstrates various art techniques that we will share with our art students and other teachers when we return. Many nights we are in the studio until midnight working on our various art projects. Check out the picture of us working in the studio and some sketches of work.