People watching, Rome

I recently went to an exhibition of work by NEAC artist Peter Brown. I have been an admirer of his paintings for a while particularly those of Bath. Something which he did for the exhibition was to provide an audio of some of them, giving a bit more information about the paintings which I thought really added to the exhibition and brought the paintings to life.

People watching, Rome

I thought it might be interesting to write something about my own paintings so here goes. This painting is called "People watching, Rome". It started out life from sketches made outside the Pantheon in Rome. There are a number of cafés around the square and I sat down in one to sketch the comings and goings. What started to catch my imagination was the way that the colours of the canopies seemed to lift the scene with the people, waiter and waitress. Part of it is in bright sunlight which really shone on this particular day. I was lucky that the café was not too busy and the waitress was happy for me to sit around for an hour or two. The sketches in pencil and watercolour help to give me a feel for the atmosphere. When I paint in the studio I try to recreate the feeling of being there again which isn't always easy when it is dark and raining! I really loved the buildings around the Pantheon, it is so unexpected in its position. It definitely has an awe and wonder about it which is difficult to describe until you go and see it for yourself. Painting this painting has given me a great deal of pleasure, I hope you enjoy it.

Crop of People watching, Rome