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!