Tag: Italy

Plein Air Painting in Tuscany with Niki Gulley

February 17, 2012
“Magical Light, Tuscany” • 8” x 10″ oil by Niki Gulley
ART TREKS: TUSCANY
 with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams


During our plein air painting workshop in Tuscany last September, we finished a delicious antipasto lunch of prosciuttos, local pecorino, fresh fruits and vegetables, and we headed into the hills for our afternoon painting location. Starting fairly late in the day, we timed it so that the light would be soft and golden as we were putting the finishing details on our paintings. For this painting, we focused in on one of the tuscan farmhouses, with just a suggestion of the peaks and valleys in the background. Between the quiet surroundings, the quintessential Tuscan vineyard behind us and the perfect weather conditions, this proved to be a very inspiring afternoon.




If you would like to join us on future ART TREKS to Paris, France in May, Tuscany, Italy in September, or Cinque Terre / Lake Como, Italy in September visit nikigulley.com/artreks. Registration deadline is Fri. Feb. 17th.

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E-mail Niki Gulley for more information.

To see more of my plein-air paintings, visit my website at NikiGulley.com.

“A Pause in Time,” Venice, Italy pastel

July 22, 2011


“A Pause in Time” Venice, Italy ©2011 Niki Gulley
18” x 24” pastel
Mysterious, enchanted, dreamlike – Venice is a fairytale at night.
Evening has drawn its starry cloak over the city, the crowds and pigeons are gone and three women enjoy the evening at a café in Piazza San Marco.
This changeling city, this artist’s muse now is unhurried, relaxed and romantic
and this one perfect moment in time is held in artful pastels, satiated colors–rich velvet textures capture ebony/violet chairs that Peggy, Pollock or Cole Porter may have sat in,
paintings of angels from old Venice and three modern women of today complete this delicate balance in a point of time.
“Venice is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs in one go. ”

– Truman Capote

To see more of my pastels, please stop by my booth at the Ann Arbor Art Fair this week.
State Street Area Art Fair
July 20 – July 22 • 10 am – 9 pm
Sat. July 23 • 10 am – 6pm
Ann Arbor, MI • Liberty & State St.
Booth #B212 on University between Thayer & State Streets
E-mail Niki Gulley for more information, or visit my website at

Venice Painting and Photography Workshop

January 5, 2010

Twilight, Venice

“Twilight, Venice” by Niki Gulley
11″ x 14″ pastel

In anticipation of our upcoming painting/photography workshop that my husband and I are teaching in Venice, Italy this spring, I thought I’d put my excitement down on canvas. I can’t wait to get back to the beauty and magic of Venice. I love entering a different world and time when we visit. This piece is inspired by the glow cast from the sun setting beyond the lagoon. Most of the gondolas have returned from their romantic cruises and have been put up for the night. There is a calmness to the usually bustling waterway that I thoroughly enjoy this time of day.

If interested in “Twilight, Venice” or in more information about our next painting/photography workshop in Italy, e-mail me at [email protected].

Or, visit nikigulley.com/ng2/?page_id=13 for more information. The registration deadline of Jan. 30th is quickly approaching!

Plein Air Painting/ Photography Workshop – Venice, Italy

October 6, 2009

12″ x 10″ oil by Niki Gulley • SOLD

I actually completed this piece in May as part of our Plein Air / Photography Workshop that my husband, Scott Williams, and I led in Venice, Italy. We had painted several other grand locations, but decided on day three to paint a more intimate vignette of the canals. Since the whole city is on water, I love how their “garage doors” are actually for thier boats! In this painting, I wanted to focus on all of the wonderful architectural textures and age of the homes as seen in the peeling stucco, crumbling bricks and weathered wood.

To view more of my paintings from Italy and see some of my students’ work from our Venice Workshop, stop by our gallery in Dallas as part of the White Rock Artists’ Studio Tour, Oct. 17th & 18th. We also still have a few places open for our next Venice Workshop in May 2010, with the deadline fast approaching. We’d love to have you join us! For more information on the workshop, visit nikigulley.com/ng2/?page_id=13

To find out more about the White Rock Artists’ Studio Tour, go to dallasartsrevue.com/WhiteRock.

To view my paintings from Italy, see nikigulley.com

or e-mail me for more information.