Tenebrism Painting

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

I fell in love with an old wooden spool the other day. What fun we had! Perhaps you have read the stories of Giuseppe, the shoe flirt and his father (now flirting elsewhere). I had originally decided that my painting project of Tenebrism would be about the historical music of Firenze, such as in my pastel on black paper artwork “World Traveler.”

However, after the many interesting exchanges with Giuseppe, I changed my Tenebrism subject to something more personally connected to my life. "Mr. Kisses" was generous enough to loan me some old tools for repairing shoes, so old he said he could live without them for about four months. He also gave me pieces of leather, polish, and various doodads that I asked for, not knowing how I would arrange the items. I bought the old shoe forms from an antique market in Piazza Santo Spirito. The old sewing machine is borrowed from another artist friend. And the spool on top of it came from Norway, handed down from a mother to a daughter, who is living now in Firenze and is a sweet friend of mine.

I am using the Sight-Size Method, which is a time-saver for those who can draw, and a crutch for those who cannot. So, my canvas is situated perpendicular to my eye position about two meters away and alongside the grouping of objects in the middle ground of my composition. In this exercise, I have three distinct groupings, with at least seven centimeters between each section. I have arranged them in a way that I hope is pleasing, but also in a way that conveys depth. I want a feeling of space on my two-dimensional canvas. My first image here shows you my work station from my viewing position, where all judgments are made.

I prepared a canvas with a dark campitura of burnt umber, black, and white. Now I will sketch in the basic shapes with charcoal. I have drawn too much in my attempts to get the shapes right the first time, but since this is the first time I have painted this type of painting, I will give myself a break about it. It just means that I have done more work than necessary.

The next step is to take a mixture of raw umber and a smidgeon of white and make a tone painting of everything that is darker than the campitura. I only work on a section that I can finish in one sitting.

I then repeat the process, using black this time with a little bit of black medium. You may see in this image how little of the sewing machine remained in the raw umber stage. Actually, I left too much of it light just because I did not relish the time wasted in redesigning the shapes of some parts.

You may notice, though, that the spool on the top of the sewing machine did not exist when I painted the raw umber tone painting. I find this stage of painting subtlety in the darks glorious fun and wondered how I could ever make myself add any color to this painting! My goal is to keep everything soft, yet rounded as its form is, and in the right amount of light. So, now, I am off to the studio again to finish the black!

Shoe Repair Florence Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

In one of my earliest blog entries, I wrote about meeting the shoe repair team of Giuseppe and his father Signore Carmine. I had been walking down Via dei Pepi in central Firenze, Italia, when Giuseppe tried to entice me into his shoppe. He was not doing such a good job, but his father was much smoother in his approach and won me over.

Since then I have seen Giuseppe on various occasions over the years, including back in February of this year when a friend and I saw him in a bar we had ducked into for a drink. I asked after his father and learned that he had died months before my return to Italia this time. On June 9th, I posted on Facebook:

“Gotta love Italia! I got kissed today - smack on the lips, too! My favorite sandal broke in the studio this afternoon, so I went by to see Giuseppe at the shoe store. We met 6 years ago when I was walking down Via dei Pepi and G's father coaxed me off of the street and into his shoe repair shop. G ran after me after I left the stop that day and dropped some shoe polish in my bag, saying, "Nostro segreto" This evening, as he glued my shoe back together, he said, "sono innamorato a te." He would not let me pay for the shoe repair and also gave me a "regalo" of some cushion inserts (in my size, naturally), but was happy with his little surprise move on me - hahah. I suppose I will always have my feet taken care of! Sadly, his father died earlier this year....

Well, the responses were quite fun! Several women came forward to say that I told the story perfectly, just the way Giuseppe is with ALL the girls who pass his shoppe! One musician friend of mine said that his girlfriend felt she had to find a new shoe repair place because Giuseppe was so naughty. But I think that our Giuseppe is harmless, although maybe that is the cruelest thing to say to/about a man, especially a Romeo.

Before the kiss he gave me, I had told him that I had a pair of winter shoes that needed repair (in fact, they were the same pair that I wrote about many years ago). As luck would have it, the bottoms of my favorite sandals became separated. So, I returned to the shoe repair shoppe and left my two pairs of shoes with Giuseppe’s mamma. She wanted to up the ante and offered to replace the heels of my winter shoes. So, I agreed hesitantly and went to the studio.

However, I returned a day later to find that not only had they not started the work (because the mother was not sure if I wanted the extra service), but Giuseppe told me that he would lower the price and glue my sandals for free if I would wait a moment. He also gave me another regalo; this time it was BLACK shoe polish for the pair I had left with him. Of course, he got another kiss, as he asked me to dinner. I joked with him that now I know for a fact that I am not the only woman he is “enamored” by and I think he is quite the playboy. He laughed, denied it all, but then exclaimed, “Well, at least you know that I am not gay!”

It was a week or so before I was able to get back (this past Friday). My leather shoes look lovely again! And again Giuseppe asked me about my boyfriend and also how long I would be in Italy. To deter him, I told him that I would be returning to Santa Margherita for a few days (true). It did not work. He simply asked if we could have dinner together after I return. Ha… persistence is the key, man. I also received another gift, this time a pair of black shoe laces since he noticed how worn mine were. I asked for his permission to take photographs of us together and to talk about him and his shoppe on my blog. He gave me his address too. so if you need some shoe repair and want a bit more personal attention . . .

Petrocelli Giuseppe - Lavorazione e Riparazione - Pelletteria e Scarpe
Via dei Pepi, 28-30 R (R stands for the red lettered address numbers)
50122 Firenze, Italia
Tel. 055 2345099

Leather Shoes Florence Italy

Back around 1997 when I was working as a copyeditor at hoovers.com in Austin, Texas, US, my coworker Regan gave me her old leather lace-up shoes. I love them.

Then in September 2006, I was walking down Via dei Pepi in Florence, Italy, when I was coaxed into a shoe repair place by a man about my age, Giuseppe, and an older man. They were kind enough and I politely looked around their neighboring tiny shops before resuming my course. I had never had shoes professionally repaired before, apparently preferring to “Shoe-Goo” them until they are completely ruined.

Giuseppe ran after me in the street and dropped something into my drawing bag, saying, “segreto” while placing one finger across his lips. I was a bit confused, but thanked him, and we exchanged names and smiles. And this is the way one learns Italian. (The something turned out to be some clear shoe polish in a vertical tube: un regalo, a gift, and apparently a secret one. Hence the reason I am posting this blog, right!)

Then one morning last fall in Florence, I ran into a new friend, Maria. She held a pair of lovely boots in her hand and was searching for a repair place. So, remembering my exchange with Giuseppe, I gave her direxions to Via dei Pepi. Maria was pleased with the service and the negotiated price.

With rain for many days in a row, I recently had to admit that my cherished leather lace-ups were separating at the toe of the soles. Always being shy about bargaining, Maria offered to go with me. We met the older man, a real charmer. Maria told him that she was from Spain and since he loved to travel, the bartering went very well. It also helped that we live here. He handed me a copy of an article that had been written about him in a newspaper, describing him as a giramondo (world traveler).

When I returned at lunch, I had caught the 84-year-old Signore Carmine taking a nap, as though he were simply waiting for my return before closing up shop at 13:00. I had asked him only to repair the separating toe (and not the worn-out heal), but he must have decided that was just wrong. In addition to the repair I had asked for, he cleaned and polished my old shoes, giving them new life. He was so charming. He seemed genuinely happy to see me and even took my hand, pulled back the mitten a little, and kissed my wrist, exclaiming, “Che bella!”

So, my shoes can be worn in the rain again safely, I had a lovely experience, and now I look forward to walking down Via dei Pepi even more than before.

If you find yourself in Florence, Italy, in need of anything shoe- or leather-related, feel free to walk down this street not too far from Piazza Santa Croce. Here is the address:

Petrocelli Giuseppe
Lavorazione e Riparazione
Pelletteria e Scarpe
Via dei Pepi, 28-30 R (R stands for the red lettered address numbers)
50122 Firenze, Italia
Tel. 055 2345099