Series
Italy Watercolours
Context
Travel study
Discipline
Watercolour on paper
Location
Florence, Italy
Urban observation
FLORENCE STREETS
Architecture, movement and a brief pattern of light
This Florence watercolour looks beyond the city’s monumental image to the experience of moving through its streets: tall façades, compressed perspective and people passing through alternating light and shade.
The architecture provides a strong framework, but the figures keep the image from becoming static. Loose marks and softened edges allow the scene to breathe, while a few sharper accents establish direction and depth.
BETWEEN DRAWING AND WASH
Structure without losing freshness
The drawing sets the rhythm of the street, but watercolour carries the atmosphere. I let washes connect buildings, road and shadow before returning with a limited number of marks—enough to locate the scene without closing it down.
A STREET CAN BE PRECISE WITHOUT DESCRIBING EVERYTHING.
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