Impressions

from this summer Art Lab in Civitella D'Agliano by Linda Kunik

In the article used images by Linda Kunik and Lark Pilinsky

I wake up to the sound of birds chirping and a rooster crowing. It’s 5:00 a.m. Jet lag. I can’t sleep. There is a cool breeze coming through my open window. Where am I? Oh yes, Civitella d”Agliano, a medieval hillside town in the Lazio region of Italy, a two-hour bus ride from Roma. I arrived yesterday. I’m here for a two-week painting residency organized through Academia Luciana and Lark Gallery. I quickly put on my shorts, T-shirt, sneakers, sunglasses and sunscreen and walk down the cobblestone path. I see Diana, from Colombia, walking in the courtyard. Mist everywhere. Larissa is up too.

We take a walk through Civitella. Everywhere you look it’s a picture postcard. Geraniums spilling out of window boxes. Cats sleeping on doorsteps.
We wander around towards the edge of town and find a small plum tree with ripe plums. I pick one. It’s delicious! Then we see a blackberry patch. The sweetest berries ever! Finally, we find our way back to the center of town and see the Roxy Bar. It’s almost 7:30 a.m. and we’re hoping it’s open. “Buon giorno,” I say to the lady behind the bar.

She informs us the bar opens at 5 a.m. We order our colezione. Café latte, succo de arancia (orange juice) and un corneto (croissant). Quanto costa? —2.5 euros!

We are an international group of about 23 artists hailing from Russia, Colombia, Tunisia, Australia, Germany and, of course, the United States. We are all staying in 3-4 bedroom apartments within walking distance of our studios, which are in the old fortress on the piazza. We’re on our own schedule except for some group dinners and a field trip to Sacro Bosco in Bomarto next week.

It’s just the first day, but everyone is quickly choosing a space and setting up their studio. By the end of the day, everyone is either sketching or painting.
We will have a group exhibition at the end of our stay to coincide with the 3-day wine festival, Nelle Terre del Grechetto, La Cultura del Vino, which will take place on the fortress grounds.

We all have fully equipped kitchens, so we will be making a lot of our own meals, but it’s the first night, so we are having a group dinner at Ristorante Pizzeria, La Quercia, the one restaurant open in town. We walk 20 minutes up the hill to a charming outdoor restaurant. A long table is set up for us among the shade trees, while we watch the sunset from the top of the hill and listen to the water gurgling in the small fountain nearby. Christian, the president of Academia Luciana, has ordered a special dinner for us. 6 different types of pasta and sauces for us to try, and, of course, plenty of red and white wine. Pasta carbonara pomodoro, cannelloni with meat sauce, tagliatelle with white pork, ravioli and gnocchi with 4 cheeses. That’s only five, but I don’t remember the other one. I’m stuffed, and now they bring out a salad. Where to put it all? We walk down the hill and find room for gelato. We’re at the Roxy Bar again, our go-to place on this trip for breakfast, lunch, drinks and gelato. Time for bed. I fall asleep immediately. What will tomorrow bring?

Please sign in to our RSS and be one of the first readers of our materials