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Friday, April 11, 2014

Time Away From Home - Neuschwanstein by Fran



Watercolor and ink
My husband's job afforded us the opportunity to travel quite a bit, much more than we would have been able to on our own.  Though it was a working trip for him, we did get a good deal of free time explore and enjoy.

One of our trips was to Munich in the state of Bavaria in Germany.  So much history and beauty to experience.  One of the side trips we were able to take was to the mountain castle of  Ludwig II of Bavaria, Newschwanstein.  This is the beautiful white castle that inspired Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty castle.

The path to the castle was much steeper and longer than we anticipated and of course the air was thinner than we were used to.  Our guide urged her charges on to the top by using her umbrella like a majorette's baton. It was a misty day so it was a pleasantly cool day for a mountain stroll.  Our teen age daughters had no problem keeping up but my husband and I had to stop a few times along the way and fell quite far behind the group.  I remember at one of the stops I saw one of the biggest snails I have ever seen.  We finally made it to the castle and were reunited with our girls who were rather concerned about us.  The castle is a wonder of flamboyant beauty and architecture, a trip we will never forget. 


16 comments:

  1. Fran, I love the effects you've achieved with the ink and the watercolor!

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  2. You painted such a lovely view with your brush as well as your words!!! Thanks for sharing a bit of your travels.

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  3. Fran, your story and your painting take us there and tell what kind of beauty you experienced. Your painting shows that the castle really is beautiful and situated in a so beautiful landscape.

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    1. Thank you Sirkka. It truly is a fairy tale landscape for a fairy tale castle.

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  4. I love your colorful, washy background. It sets off the white castle perfectly.

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    1. Thanks Melissa. It was a wet washy day so watercolor was appropriate.

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  5. A lovely painting of a wonderful memory. I love the running paints that give this a story book look to me!

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  6. Scrolling down to comment I see you have painted a castle, but what a beautiful painting and castle - and memory. I can see how it inspired Disney. I love the way you have painted the trees, it gives such distance and perspective to the painting. Did you use torn card as masks? However you did it, it's very effective.

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    1. Thanks Jez. I painted each color layer on dry paper letting it run and puddle. I would let it dry before applying the next color of the tree layer touching. I know that is clumsy but basically painting a ragged tree line with a soft brush and waiting for each "layer" to dry before applying the next.

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  7. You do take us along with your words and the painting! What a rich experience!

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