Art | The Daily Norm

Jul 25

Art-in-Amalfi – Painting 7: The terraces of Ravello

As my post on yesterday’s Daily Norm makes abundantly, sensually clear, Ravello on Italy’s Amalfi Coast is a place of stunning beauty. A place so beautiful that countless people, both famed and unknown, have flocked to its heady heights to sample a taste of paradise, and to soak in the views that Gore Vidal called the most beautiful in the world. So as my collection of Amalfi paintings reaches its steady climax (although I still feel inspired to paint more), there was no way that Ravello, and the stunning views from its quaint narrow hillside passages, was not going to be a part of it.

To my eyes, the thing that was so utterly charming about those incredible views was not so much the extensive sea views, but the elegantly terraced hills, loaded with lemon trees and olives and every kind of mediterranean plant growing abundantly. Those carefully sowed terraces gave the appearance of a fashion designed striped fabric in every conceivable shade of verdant green, while the houses clustered along intermittent roads were ripe for re-expression in the delineated cubic forms which have become characteristic of my Italy gouaches.

Ravello (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

So I am delighted to share with you this seventh Amalfi Coast painting, doing so towards the climax of the Daily Norm tales of my Amalfi adventure. But something within me tells me this is not the end. Already my paintbrush is poised to work a little gouache magic across some blank paper in a notepad by my side, and you can be sure that as and when those works are completed, I will share them on The Daily Norm.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 23

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Art-in-Amalfi – Painting 6: Arrival in Amalfi

On the Amalfi Coast you really are spoilt for choice. Not only is the coast a veritable paradise of high end shops, hotels and restaurants, but from every angle there is a new and stunning view to pop your eyes pen a little wider with pleasure. As both an Artist and keen photographer, this was both a treat and a burden, for every time I opened my eyes, I saw something incredibly beautiful, and started feeling guilty if I did not capture it in some form. So it was that on a short 45 minute boat ride from Positano to Amalfi I found myself unable to sit still, unsure whether to look backwards out of the boat towards the fading but ever beautiful view of the pastel-coloured town on the magnificent mountainside, look over the side to the similarly nestled hilltop town of Praiano, or forwards, towards the glittering town of Amalfi.

Well the answer to this quandary was that I did all three. Having had my fill of Positano (if that is even possible…) I then turned towards white-gleaming Praiano (and later painted it as Amalfi Coast painting no.5) and then turned my attention towards the grand town of Amalfi which our boat was fast approaching. This painting, my 6th of the holiday and another in the series of cubic simplifications by which I am delineating the houses and structures of the coast, captures the moment when we approached the town, when the gleaming gold facade of the cathedral could be seen flanked my buildings sweeping up the steadily sloping valley on either side. Meanwhile in the background one could just about make out the promised land of Ravello, a town we were to visit later that day.

Amalfi (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

More about that, tomorrow.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 21

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Art-in-Amalfi – Painting 5: Praiano

Having painted four views of Positano in gouache on paper, all of which concentrate on the hodgepodge of pastel-coloured cube like houses that are characteristic of the town, I decided to set my sights further afield, and start exploring the artistic potential of locations elsewhere on the Amalfi Coast. The perfect opportunity presented itself when, en route to the epicentre of the coast, Amalfi (see tomorrow’s Daily Norm for more on that front) we passed by the cliff-top town of Praiano.

Smaller than neighbouring Positano, which can be seen directly across the bay and vice versa, Praiano nevertheless has its own glittering domed churche and cluster of houses clinging precariously to the high edges of a mountain slope. However unlike Positano, whose multi-coloured composition can be spotted some distance away, Praiano is characterised by a gleaming symphony of whites and creams, dazzling in the sunshine as its buildings contrast against the green vegetation all around.

Praiano (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

This particular view of the town, seen side on with the gradually fading folds of the mountains in the distance was definitely my favourite angle of those many enjoyed as our boat whisked past the town at speed. And of course in the process of cubic simplification which has been the focus of my recent gouache works, Praiano could not have been a better model – for its white washed houses simplify down to their basic elements brilliantly, while retaining all of the shape and character of this very pretty town.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 18

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Art-in-Amalfi – Painting 4: Positano IV (Yellow Vespa)

As much as Capri may have entranced me, it was Positano that we returned to at the end of the day, the beautiful clustered town gripping for dear life onto the steep mountain slopes of Italy’s stunning Amalfi Coast. And such is the geography of that nature-defying location, that almost everywhere you go in Positano, you end up gazing in wonder at incredible views, either across the sea, the valley in which the bulk of the town is situated, or up at the vast mountains rising almost unendingly up behind it. No wonder then that I was inspired to paint so much when I stayed on the Amalfi Coast and although I was only painting with a small travelling watercolour book and a box of gouache paints, I got the most out of my limited materials.

This fourth and final painting of Positano is loosely based on a charming walk we took along the upper mountain road, where the town feels more authentic and Italian when compared with the tourist-centric core of the town down by the sea. This area, being Italy, was full of all of the characteristics which make a place intrinsically Italian – gossiping old women sitting outside their homes, old men propping up the bar and drinking espresso, and outside one of the most Italian sights of all – the Vespa. This painting captures the moment when we stumbled into a perfect specimen of Vespa – a bright yellow one which, when propped up by the side of this incredible mountainous view, just begged to be painted. And here is the result.

Positano IV (Yellow Vespa) (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 17

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My travel sketchbook: Capri 2 – The Arco Naturale

The Arco Naturale in Capri is one of those sights which just takes your breath from you, propelling it into the atmosphere is a shower of fireworks. For there is nothing quite so stunning as the unexpected, and this mighty towering limestone arch looked so deliciously precarious as it balanced several hundred metres above the turquoise sea below that it felt almost like a stage set. There was something almost arousing about its huge teetering mass, thrust upwards into the blue sky like a declaration of robust resilience in the face of nature’s cruel seas; its hardy mass a swollen emboldened spectacle rising above the battered cliffs and sumptuous plant life besides it to frame the surrounding landscape with its gravity-defying arc. And despite the fact that the little pathway skirting alongside this awesome sight was something of a vertiginous spot, with a sheer drop right below it, I could not resist swinging my legs over the side and getting out my sketchbook to capture the impressive prospect before me.

So my fourth sketch of the Amalfi Coast trip was not made without risk, and although my legs were firmly curled around the railings above the cliff edge, I could easily have dropped my pens, or even my beloved sketchbook down that sheer drop – goodness knows how I didn’t. And it wasn’t like I didn’t have distractions – my sketching attracted not just the attention of fellow tourists, but also a dear little cat who curled around me, rubbing itself against the hard edges of my sketchbook, and at times appearing to teeter horrendously closely on the knife edge of the cliff-edge, its perfectly balanced slender body somehow nonplussed by the drop just below. But as you can see, my sketchbook lived to tell the tale – and indeed to be shared, on today’s Daily Norm.

Capri Sketch 2: The Arco Naturale (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen on paper)

My sketching companion

Now that’s what I call an artist’s studio…

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 15

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My travel sketchbook: Capri 1– Roof of the Church of Santo Stefano

Being as the island of Capri is not exactly short of a tourist or two, and seeing as the prices which a café there can evidently get away with are sky high, you can understand why the cafés packed into the little Piazzetta at the centre of Capri Town are keen to do a quick turnaround of customers. After all, at nearly €10 a pop for a glass of wine or something similar, why would they not want to churn out the customers like a supermarket conveyer belt? So there must have been some extent of vexation for the waiters of one such café located directly beneath the square’s famous ceramic-faced campanile when I sat down at the café table and, after ordering myself a coffee, proceeded to open up my travel sketchbook and start sketching. Fearing no doubt that I would be there all day on the price of one coffee, I could almost feel their frustrated eyes burning into the back of my head as I began to sketch. And yet how could I do otherwise? After all, Capri is undoubtedly a place of beauty, and in the centre of its small capital city, the architecture is so cutely quaint that it feels a bit like Toytown. In particular, I adored the rooftop of the church of Santo Stefano, whose small little domes and white-washed walls captivated me from our first steps in the town. And it was those which I sat down to sketch at that little front line café table.

Capri Sketch 1: The church of Santo Stefano (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen on paper)

Capri Sketch 1: Roof of the church of Santo Stefano (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen on paper)

The waiters needn’t have been worried however. As ever with my impromptu sketches made in pen, I wasn’t working on this for long, and in fact had to leave said café before the sketch was completely finished owing to the fast approaching time of the last ferry back to Positano. And yet I’m glad I risked their wrath for the short time I did, because this is definitely one of my favourite sketches of the holiday.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 11

Art-in-Amalfi – Painting 3: Positano III (cluster on the upper road)

Following hot on the heels of my photographic post on Positano’s upper mountain passages is the third of my Positano paintings it inspired. Unlike my previous two works of Positano, both of which included the sea and the beach as prominent compositional elements, this one concentrates solely on Positano’s mountainous backdrop as it focuses on a cluster of houses on the town’s upper mountain road. With its resulting rocky background and not a slice of sea or sky in sight, the group of pastel houses collected onto the mountain side is even more striking set against these dark and looming surroundings, emphasising just how striking a sight is created by a small town built upon the steep sides of huge imposing mountains.

I kept this painting as simple as possible, and even though the mountains have the appearance of craggy complexity, the brain is doing most of the work here – for in reality I have painted neither shade nor light into the purple mountain – only the impression of texture as created by the strategic placement of green detailing indicating where the mountain’s verdant plant life would be. It’s an effect which I find altogether pleasing, and a simplicity which ultimately does all of the work which a more detailed illustration would provide. Yet in this simpler form it seems altogether cleaner and more contemporary – and for that reason I love it.

Positano III (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 9

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Art-in-Amalfi – Painting 2: Positano II (the other side of town)

So excited was I by my first gouache interpretation of the Italian town of Positano, that as soon as I had completed it, I started another. This one is based on the other side of town, Positano viewed from the densely packed cluster of houses which had inspired the first painting, with only the rooftops of that view visible in the immediate foreground. Otherwise, the town’s iconic domed duomo takes centre stage in this depiction of the town, alongside a number of buildings which, like before, are stripped back to their basic cubic elements, devoid of all of the architectural details which might have spoilt the simplicity of the image. Meanwhile, in the background, the awe-inspiring silhouette of the Amalfi Coast’s mountainous scenery fades gradually off into the background, towards the little white-washed down of Praiano.

Positano II (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 8

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My travel sketchbook: Positano 2 – View from the Beach

You will have seen from yesterday’s Positano beach post just how incredible the views of the town were from the average sunbed on its wide pebbly beach. They were indeed the same views that inspired my first gouache painting of the holiday (posted last week). The views were so good in fact that it felt sinful to simply lie out on a lounger, eyes closed against the sun, ignoring the view. Rather, not only did I feel compelled to keep my eyes on the view for fear of wasting such an incredible sight, but I also felt the inspiration rise within me to sketch it.

And so, stretched out on a beach lounger, a glass of wine in one hand and a pen in the other, I set about sketching this very detailed but fairly quick impression of the town of Positano – the gem of the Amalfi coast. Unlike my gouache interpretation of the same scene, this sketch is more fastidious in capturing the details of Positano’s buildings, and all of their details – windows, balconies, garden terraces and so on. But devoid of the pastel shades contrasting against the grey-purple and forest green backdrop of the mountain, the whole architectural force of Positano appears to melt more permissively into the mountainside, as though nature and mankind have become a single inseparable form. And it’s a beautiful form to behold, both in reality and, I think, on the pages of my sketchbook.

Positano Sketch 2 - View from the beach (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen on paper)

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jul 3

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Art-in-Amalfi – Painting 1: Positano I (viewed from the beach)

Having seen my post of photos on yesterday’s Daily Norm, and perhaps even my photos of the incredible views which we were lucky enough to enjoy for our week’s stay at the Palazzo Talamo Hotel, you will easy to understand why I was inspired to create by the town of Positano on Italy’s Amalfi Coast. Not only is the town a picture perfect dazzlement of beautiful houses clustered against a vast imposing mountain backdrop, but it is also a riot of pastel colours in an otherwise natural landscape of verdant greenery and sheer greyish purple rock. The most striking thing about Positano is the fact that the small town appears to defy nature as a small cluster of dwellings clinging, almost like limpits, to the sheer side of the otherwise inhospitable mountain sides. The effect is a stark and beautiful contrast between the man-made regularised geometric forms of buildings and the irregular looming presence of the nature-made mountains, and it was this contrast which struck me the most as I set about painting my first homage to the town.

Positano I (viewed from the beach) (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, gouache on paper)

Stretched out on the beach a day after our arrival, I started work on this piece: Positano I (viewed from the beach). Using simplified geometric forms and stripping away all of the details which otherwise characterise the houses and hotels of Positano (windows, balconies and so on), this painting purposefully reduces the buildings of Positano to their most basic cubic form in order to emphasise the contrast between rigid geometry and rugged mountain, all the while expressing the beauty of Positano’s very colourful cluster of houses. The result is a painting I love. Made in gouache on paper, for me its colours and sunshine brightness sum up the mediterranean mood, while the geometric gathering of cubes echoes the shape of this small town which makes it so unique on much publicised postcards and travel guides throughout the world.

As with all of my travel-inspired art works, this painting gave me great satisfaction to create, all the more so because it was started on the beach and completed on my balcony with a view. Now who can ask for a better art studio than that?

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com