Daily Sketch No.202 Knarr Lane, Saddleworth, England

This little lane just a few minutes walk from my UK based studio takes the viewer into the sketch. The blustery sky adds some excitement to the sketch.

Daily Sketch No.201 Roadworks, Manchester, England

Manchester, a thriving busy city is full of sketching potential. Even a main junction with roadworks can be interesting especially with the contemporary building of Urbis in the background.

Daily Sketch No.200 Rain again, Saddleworth Moor, England

Yet another day of drama in the hills. I like this type of weather - forever changing, rain one minute and then a glint of sunshine through the clouds, creating powerful images for a landscape artist.

Daily Sketch No.199 Heavy Rain over Saddleworth, England

Back in the UK for two weeks for an exhibition. My UK studio is in the Saddleworth area north of Manchester. Beautiful and rugged but also well known for rain!

Daily Sketch No.198 Dark Skies over Barga, Tuscany

The past few days have been unsettled, dark rain clouds drifting around. This simple sketch of the foreground trees silhouetted against the dark sky makes for a dramatic and bold image.

Daily Sketch No.197 Yellow House on the Hill near Barga, Tuscany

Just getting around to uploading my Daily Sketches. As you head down the hillside towards Barga, I came across this yellow house on the edge which stood out in the soft light of early morning.

Daily Sketch No.196 ‘Devils Bridge’, Serchio Valley, Tuscany

One of those legends involving the Devil, this medieval bridge near the small town of Borgo Mozzano further down the valley looks lovely spanning the River Serchio.

Daily Sketch No.195 View from Mologno Station, Garfagnana, Tuscany

Our local train station 4km from Barga brings school kids from as far away as Pisa, where they are ferried up to the school in Barga by bus. It is not particularly well kept but the view from the platform is beautiful - green fields and distant mountains.

Daily Sketch No.194 Porta Macchiaia, Barga Vecchia, Tuscany

This is one of the two entrances into Barga Vecchia. A bit harder than the other entrance as you have to come up the road and do a few shunts back and forward to get around this 180 degree corner so no delivery vans possible. Everything has to be brought in by the three-wheeled Ape vehicles if you have bought any furniture.

Daily Sketch No.193 Three Umbrellas, Mordimi Restaurant, Barga, Tuscany

Not long ago I sketched three umbrellas just within the walls of Barga and I saw these at the Mordimi restaurant. Do umbrellas hang around in groups of three? Anyway, they caught my attention so maybe I have a thing about umbrellas!

Daily Sketch No.192 Via Di Mezzo, Barga, Tuscany

This week has been very busy so just catching up uploading my daily sketches! 

Now that the school holidays are over and apart from visitors who do not have children, Barga has taken on a quieter atmosphere, although the weather is still warm during the day but cooler at night. Soon the locals will change to their winter weather clothes ready for several months of cold damp days.

Daily Sketch No.191 Cluster of Buildings near Barga, Tuscany

Another sketch done early in the morning showing the signs that summer has gone. Softer colours merge into one another. This cluster of buildings just behind Barga seems to be a holiday home to someone wealthly I would imagine. Not only have the buildings been renovated but the surrounding land has been seriously landscaped and the long drive up to the house has been recently tarmaced, an expensive job in Italy.

Daily Sketch No.190 8.15am Early Autumn, Barga, Tuscany

The past few days have shown signs that Summer is over and Autumn is approaching. Dew early in the morning, that intense summer heat has gone and the colours are softer.

Daily Sketch No.189 Boats on the Seine, Paris

This afternoon I walked down the Seine from the Louvre to Notre Dame. These lovely house boats moored caught my attention. Imagine waking up to this view everyday! I liked the backlit lighting and the big sky, creating a serene moment on the Seine.

Daily Sketch No.188 Windmill, Montmartre, Paris

This windmill, one of the two remaining windmills just reminds us that Montmartre was once a village frequented by several of the great French Impressionists. Despite frequented by millions of tourists every year, Montmartre still has a village charm, the locals hanging out in their neighbourhood cafes and bars.

Daily Sketch No.187 Richard’s Coffee!, Paris

The cafe scene in Paris is massive, part of daily life is to stroll down to your nearest cafe, usually on the corner of a street, have a coffee and people watch. This particular cafe even had a brand of coffee named after myself! Generally all the cafes I went to had average coffee, even the Lavazza brand which I noticed is very popular did not taste as good as in Italy.

Daily Sketch No.186 Sacre Coeur, Paris

Back from a fantastic week in Paris so just catching up with uploading my Daily Sketches. Everyone flocks to the front of the Sacre Coeur but I preferred this view, looking down a street in shadow which contrasts with the white church.

Daily Sketch No.185 Evening, Champs Elysee, Paris

This wide avenue with shops either side is a shopaholics dream but I was more interested in the kiosks and street furniture dotted along the roadside. The large trees make lovely shapes against the monument at top of the avenue.

Daily Sketch No.184 Evening, The Seine, Paris

Late afternoon looking over the Seine, the Eiffel Tower and surrounding landscape backlit against a lovely sky, with hints of pink and red.

Daily Sketch No.183 Eiffel Tower, Paris

This iconic structure can be seen from most vantage points in Paris. The leaning tower of Pisa looks minute in comparison! Built in 1889, it is a remarkable piece of engineering.

Daily Sketch No.182 The Vineyard in Montmarte, Paris

In Paris all this week. It is my first trip to the capital of France and I love it! We are staying in Montmartre, a perfect location for exploring, easy to get on a bus or metro underground. This small famous vineyard on the hill in Montmartre produces a very small crop of grapes for wine, the money made going to the pensioners of Montmartre.

Daily Sketch No.181 House on the Terrace near Tiglio, Barga, Tuscany

This house near the village of Tiglio, perched on the terraces must have amazing views. Surrounded by vines and trees for shade but its position means it must also be exposed to the harsh cold in winter.

Daily Sketch No.180 Late Summer Evening, Barga, Tuscany

Several days late uploading my daily sketches. Had lots to sort out before Paris, now in Paris all this week. Before I headed off to France, the weather had improved - nice warm sunshine, perfect temperatures for walking around. This is a lovely view looking across to the duomo of Barga.

Daily Sketch No.179 In the Shade, Piazza Garibaldi, Barga, Tuscany

After a few days of showers we are back to early autumn sunshine. Autumn is one of my favourite times of the year (after Spring), still warm but not hot like summer and the colours in October are amazing, yellows. oranges and deep reds. I liked this large expanse of shadow in Piazza Garibaldi, creating a good contrast with the sun-kissed building in the middle of the sketch.

Daily Sketch No.178 Cafe Scene, Lucca, Tuscany

Another trip down to Lucca for materials. Lucca is well worth a visit if you are in Tuscany. I prefer it to Florence - more relaxing, quieter, smaller and its the birthplace of Puccini and some lovely cafes!

Daily Sketch No.177 Sun and Rain near San Romano, Tuscany

Weird day yesterday - one minute warm sun, the next minute heavy showers. But this type of weather is great for the landscape painter, fast moving clouds, cast shadows, a few seconds of brilliant sunshine then dark rain laden skies. I was transported back to Northern England for a while!

Daily Sketch No.176 Umbrellas of Piazza Napoleone, Lucca, Tuscany

This morning I was in Lucca for the first meet-up of the Lucca Sketchcrawl group. This was the first demonstration sketch produced, a relatively simple composition as Lucca has many complicated buildings, shops and churches to frustrate the novice sketcher. If anyone is interested in meeting in Lucca on the first Sunday of each month, please get in touch. Email: richardclareart@gmail.com

Daily Sketch No.175 Old Bridge into New Barga, Tuscany

There are two bridges that cross into new Barga, this being the old original bridge. Notice the grey sky, after weeks of hot sunshine the weather has finally broken where everyone can now work without breaking into sweat after two minutes!

Daily Sketch No.174 The Road through the House, Barga, Tuscany

Just down the hill from Barga is the local cemetery and just near it is a tiny hamlet where the road goes through one of the houses! What I want to know is was the road made before or after the house was built? Imagine if it was the latter, someone comes around from the highway dept and tells you that your first floor is going to be demolished for a road!

Daily Sketch No.173 The day before the rain arrives, Barga, Tuscany

A very quick sketch today of Barga Duomo with the impending rain brewing over the distant mountains. Rain and cooler weather expected for several days!

Daily Sketch No.172 Bridge at Castelnuovo, Garfagnana, Tuscany

Back in the Garfagnana area of Tuscany, far away from the beautiful region of the French Riviera. This is the old bridge that spans the river that flows through Castelnuovo, a nice geometric contrast with the surrounding landscape.

Daily Sketch No.171 Palm Tree, Menton, France

Palm trees are symbolic of seaside resorts on the French Riviera and this large tree framed the old town of Menton in the distance.

Daily Sketch No.170 ‘The Invisible Man’ Menton, France

This piece of ‘street art’ caught my attention as well as many passers by. Florence has people dressed as statues down by the Uffizi Museum and Gallery but I though this was brilliant for Menton - a smart dapper gent dressed in a deep red suit, white trousers and hat with a walking stick and no head! 

I imagined him coming to work in this attire (he cannot change on the street as that would give the game away) on the bus or train reading his newspaper or even driving his car through Menton. Imagine pulling up at traffic lights, you look across and see this man with no head! Maybe he is not a man but a child or even a woman, that is why I love this ‘Invisible Man’, the mystery of not knowing what is underneath this disguise!

Daily Sketch No.169 Illy Coffee, Menton, France

From this cafe in Menton you can just about see the sea - and the cafe also serves Illy coffee, my favourite although the French cannot do good cappuccinos, the milk is too frothy and not steamed but the French do better pastries!

Daily Sketch No.168 Le Brazza Cafe, Menton, France

This very welcoming shady square in Menton is one of my favourite spots in the town, sometimes spending a whole afternoon just sitting watching people go about their daily life.

Daily Sketch No.167 Glimpse of the Sea, Menton, France

Just come back from a trip on the French Riviera with limited internet access so the next five Daily Sketches (of Menton) will be uploaded together!

This is a view from the old town of Menton, just catching a glimpse of the sea between the buildings.

Daily Sketch No.166 San Romano, Garfagnana, Tuscany

Up in the lovely village of San Romano this morning dropping off some framed sketches for a customer. This sketch looking towards the village shows the large amount of trees that surround this area although the valley is more open with pasture land than around Barga.

Daily Sketch No.165 Panda Police Car, Barga Vecchia, Tuscany

The local municipal police in Barga still drive around in the original Fiat Panda, perfect for getting around narrow alleys but not great if in hot pursuit of a stolen car like a Ferrari. Although I have never heard of any stolen cars in Barga, only frozen cakes from the Gelateria a few years ago!

Daily Sketch No.164 Evening, Barga Vecchia, Tuscany

This is a classic view of Barga Vecchia, the soft evening sun shining on the warm coloured buildings with the duomo as the focal point in the sketch.

Daily Sketch No.163 The Three Umbrellas, Barga, Tuscany

These three umbrellas outside the L’Altana restaurant just within the walls of Barga Vecchia reminded myself of the three Amigos with their large sombrero hats protecting them from the hot Mexican sunshine, like these umbellas protecting their customers from the hot Tuscan sunshine!

Daily Sketch No.162 Barga Jazz, Barga, Tuscany

Every year Barga hosts a jazz festival when the first Sunday of the festival is dedicated to live jazz within the medieval walls of Barga Vecchia. Hundreds of people come to the city, walking from one piazza to another taking in the lively atmosphere.

Daily Sketch No.161 Tuscan Cacti, Barga, Tuscany

Our neighbour in Barga Vecchia has the most amazing views from his terrace including a collection of Cacti which grow very well especially in this heatwave summer!

Daily Sketch No.160 Gallicano, Tuscany

Most people would pass this mundane scene hundreds of times but through artist eyes the mundane becomes a thing of beauty especially with a bit of artistic license and colour!

Daily Sketch No.159 Bar next to Mologno Station, Tuscany

The bar next to the local train station is not in a picturesque area, modern houses and a new shopping complex across the road but as I passed this morning, the two big trees created some nice shadows and the sun shining on the bar gave me inspiration for my Daily Sketch.

Daily Sketch No.158 This Washing needs some Sun, Gallicano, Tuscany

If you live in a medieval town or village with narrow streets, you may be lucky and catch some sun to dry your washing. Unfortunately the washing on the right may never see sun. What a difference a few metres can make!

Daily Sketch No.157 Passing Storm, Barga, Tuscany

Finally the rain arrived this afternoon. A passing storm that only lasted half an hour but badly needed by not just vegetation but also myself! This view, sketch several times already shows the storm above the distant mountains.

Daily Sketch No.156 Night, Bagni di Lucca

20 Minutes drive from Barga is the spa town of Bagni di Lucca. In the 1800s the town became popular with the English aristocracy. Now it is frequented by visitors from all over the world.

Daily Sketch No.155 Tractor near Ghizzano, Central Tuscany

A trip to south east of Pisa today where the landscape is typical Tuscan - rolling hills, fields of sunflowers and Cyprus trees, very different to Northern Tuscany. Many visitors come to this area and tourism is important to the local economy but it is still a farming area, famous for wine and olives.

Daily Sketch No.154 Cafe Capretz at Night, Barga, Tuscany

Originally the undercover market hall, the Cafe Capretz is busy throughout the day but after midnight there is tranquility, just the bats flying around.

Daily Sketch No.153 Fosso Arch from Via di Mezzo, Barga, Tuscany

Via di Mezzo is the main road through Barga Vecchia although only small cars can use due to not only the narrowness but also one 90 degree turn near the Gelateria. The longest vehicle I have seen drive through has been a Volvo estate and that has been in reverse gear!