Our Italian Adventure

La Nostra Avventura Italiana

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Chili Parlor Art - Italian Style

And now for something completely different...

Back in the late '70s, Vicki and I were grad students in Austin, Texas. We would often take a break from our work to grab dinner at the Texas Chili Parlor near campus. (I know what some of you are thinking...usually we were there all night drinking Magnums with friends. True.) On the more quiet occasions, however, I would sometimes draw a picture for Vicki on a napkin using a ball-point pen, just a simple sketch of something on the table or at the bar. The technique is as follows: lacking any training and with no fear of failure you put your pen on paper and draw with minimal preparation or planning and, once begun, the paper should be filled quickly. With little talent for straight lines or perspective but lots of line shading these drawings developed a distinctive style that we both grew to like (at least Vicki said she liked them). Ecco, Chili Parlor Art.

On recent vacations I had the grand idea of recording parts of the trip with drawings. I kept wondering, would you have a different perspective and recollections of the travel if you tried this? But I became too caught-up in whether the pictures were any good, so they took too long and I drew too little. This year, during our Italian Adventure, I decided to revive the Chili Parlor art-form and determined to do one sketch each day always remembering the two keys...fast and without fear.

While Vicki blogged (new school), I sketched (old school). Now, I invite you to have a look at the resulting seventeen pictures as my contribution to the blog.

Can childish drawings be art? Well, I considered my childish Italian to be a foreign language. And, for the record, doing both was immensely satisfying and contributed to "il spirito del viaggio". Perhaps these postings try to make too much out of some lame drawings...

...it's the internet, that's what it's for.

(1) We are going to Italy, but we wait in Toronto (2) We arrived in Florence (southern view off the sun porch) (3) We are living in a little tower (interior of our turret bedroom) (4) No Comment (5) Tourist tools in Italy (6) How sad (it's how we stayed connected) (7) Mosaic floor of the Basilica in Siena (8) Two arches with doors - Pitti Palace (9) A garden on the terrace at our hotel - Monterosso al Mare (10) A good trip (tickets for the Cinque Terre mini-adventure) (11) Motorscooter - Italians prefer them (12) A genuine black leather jacket (which I now own) (13) Dinner - we've finished (14) Ancient Rome (we arrived) (15) A statue of Pope Pius X (patron saint of the family church in Norfolk) (16) The Roman Forum (17) Near Trevi Fountain - Goodbye, Italy!

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