A Seaside Castle: Santa Severa

A Seaside Castle: Santa Severa

Santa Severa is a wonderful small beach with a big castle less than an hour’s train ride north of Rome. I first painted here while enjoying a day at the beach years ago and since then have been dreaming of painting a series here around the fortified castle which sits right on the sea and its surroundings.

The Castle at Santa Severa
Oil on Linen
10 x 14″
$650 | Available

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This is an ancient place with a very long history. First an Etruscan village, it was taken over by Rome in 264 B.C. and the little village we see today inside the castle walls was built on top of the Roman ruins in the 9th century.

I chose this view from the beach looking back at the castle in shadow for the contrast of the dark surrounded by the most gorgeous light this particular morning.
I love this area, it is entirely agricultural with the slow rolling hills butting up to the wheat fields that reach the sea. To walk to the castle from the train station you have to cross the only major road, which is frequented by tractors and cars alike.

It is not easy to paint a small painting of a big castle and not make it completely dominate the painting, so the castle being in shadow allowed me not to go into all of the details of the castle structure itself and let your eye also be interested in the light and beach surrounding it.

There were lots of locals coming to the beach to look for shells, get some sun or have lunch and many of them stopped to chat. Many artists have painted this castle through history and just down the beach stands a 3 meter painting of the castle mounted outdoors and maybe is more appropriate for gaining a sense of its magnitude.

Sometimes it is difficult, especially for an American, to really wrap your head around these places that have existed for millennium and even more important to paint them as they are today to have the chance to document and remember them through time. Who knows what the castle will be like in just 100 years from now. Hopefully not too much changed.