Medieval cities in paint

I love medieval cities, especially the parts where the buildings are chaotic mixes of construction and decay from various centuries. I am constantly in awe of how beautiful they manage to be. I mean, how is it that people 600 years ago could create buildings that could age into something this charming, while my culture’s predominant architectural calling card is the strip mall?

These days I have been experimenting with ways of capturing the layers of walls, arches, and brickwork that one sees when wandering the narrow, cobblestone streets of a medieval European town. The panting above is a scene from our recent trip to Rovinj, Croatia (from last week before I switched to oils). Below is a painting of a building I photographed in Assisi, Italy, at the beginning of the year. I’m considering doing a larger (and more colorful) version of this one.