Day 55: Afternoon at the Racetrack
That’s right, Florence even has a horse track. I’ve never been here before and got in through the open service gate. It’s an odd but beautiful place. I’ve never been to a horse racetrack, but this one is all grass and wild and grown up around the edges. Then it has the most spectacular view with the city and hills in the distance. I was a little nervous that someone would come and tell me to leave, but I didn’t see a soul.
Maybe I shouldn’t say so, but I think that this painting is a little odd, and I like it for that. I can see doing a big painting here if I got up the courage to venture farther into the place instead of staying on the outskirts like I did today. With a wider view you could show the whole track and the city in the distance or maybe the empty stands.
Today I realized that this project is presenting me with so many opportunities, one of them being exploring places that I’ve either never been to in the city or seeing them with a different eye.Going out to paint every day is seeing the city not as a tourist, but not as a native either, just as an observer. I’m sure that if I grew up in Florence I would chose entirely different subject matter, but I can’t say. Some of my favorite places I just don’t consider paintable or have yet to find a composition in them. Painting a place requires a different mindset, it’s not one of relaxing or hanging out, or even to go and enjoy a place per se, but rather finding something interesting in that moment that’s just right because of the light that day. I can’t count how many times I’ve seen something I want to paint and then have gone back another day only to have it look completely different and therefore not the painting that I was looking for.
Well today I’ve added a new spot to my list of cool places to paint and I’m glad I could share it with you.
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Thanks for hanging in and following the project, you’re all amazingly inspiring!