Finding Meaning

Finding Meaning

On the go! That has certainly been the theme of this last week and it isn’t over yet.Yesterday took me to yet another painting competition in another small town outside Rome. This town was spectacular! Rocca di Papa is a town built into the side of a mountain and is way up there. Climbing the narrow winding stairs up the hill through this village, a complete panorama of Rome opened up.I’d never seen Rome like this, tiny and sprawling in the distance. You can’t tell what a great expansive city it is from up above, instead it just sits quietly in the distance.Via del Crucifisso, Rocca di Papa50×40 cmOil on Linen© Kelly Medford, 2012I loved everything about this place and wish I could have painted in every direction. My canvas seemed small when I got here and I debated for almost an hour before starting. The clouds were really rolling yesterday, giving the 40 participants in the competition even more of a challenge with the ever changing light.This nook that I chose is an ancient part of the city as one could guess by the crumbling stairs. The families living here were so curious to see me, no one had come to paint their corner of town before. I had company all day long. The kids stood and watched me for hours. They asked hundreds of brilliant questions that kept me entertained. They really couldn’t fathom why I had all of those paintbrushes, they thought a few should have done the job.I’ve painted in a lot of places and had thousands of interactions, but this one was special. The family living in the orange house insisted that I eat lunch with them in their home where they had prepared homemade pasta and brought me coffee and snacks throughout the day.At the end of the day the father brought out a portfolio of his children’s school artwork. I was amazed. This kids are copying Cezanne, Manet, Ligabue and other famous artists. They had a wonderful sense of color and design and I thought that they should of course keep up their practice. I hated for the day to end. I had been so welcomed there and I couldn’t even leave them my painting as a thank you, I had to turn it in for the competition. I was so touched and honored by this family that I was returned to the reason why anyone would paint anything: just because.Just for the love, passion and beauty of a place and for the opportunity to capture it as it is in this moment in time.In these small Italian towns and even in Rome, painting these places gains more importance to me each day. I know that they will continue on in history and that many are unchanged, but who knows what the future will bring and how it will effect the landscape. With more people moving out of towns and villages to big cities in search of work, more foreigners move in, if at all, causing places to change and evolve.My work becomes more and more about the telling of a story of a place and time. This has become my personal mission. With each painting my love and profound appreciation for Italy and Italians grows deeper. I can only  hope that it will show in my work.You can see today’s painting or purchase it here from my website.Thank you for your interest in my work!