New Orleans Garden District Painting by Texas Artist Niki Gulley

"Oak Beauties," New Orleans  ©2015 Niki Gulley

12" x 9" palette knife oil painting

On our plein air painting and photography workshop my husband and I taught in New Orleans this fall, we rode the trolley to the Garden District and set out to capture the beautiful architecture so distinctive of the area. I was attracted to this grand pink house, and in particular I loved the huge old oak tree framing it. The dappled light hitting the trunk was so striking that I decided to accentuate that in my painting with a multitude of colors and values while making the background soft to keep the composition from becoming too cluttered. The sheer size and age of the trees in New Orleans is incredible, which I set out to show juxtaposing the massive oak against the smaller two-story homes in the distance. Created with palette knife and a lot of oil paint, this canvas is loaded with texture and uplifting colors so that you feel the joy and energy of hanging out in New Orleans.

"Oak Beauties" along with several of my new palette knife paintings will be featured in my One Woman Show, hosted at the Good Art Company Gallery in Fredericksburg, TX. If interested in more information on pricing or purchasing this palette knife New Orleans painting, please contact The Good Art Company.

The Good Art Company Gallery

Niki Gulley - One Woman Show

Opening Reception / Meet the Artist - April 3rd, 5pm - 9pm

Show continuing through April

218 West Main St.

Fredericksburg, TX

goodartcompany.com/gac/

For more information on upcoming Plein-Air Painting and Photography Art Treks workshops, please visit http://www.nikigulley.com/artreks.

To see more of my contemporary impressionistic landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com.

E-mail - Niki Gulley

Painting Jackson Square with Niki Gulley, New Orleans Art Trek 2014

SOLD •  5" x 7" palette knife oil painting  ©2014 Niki Gulley

New Orleans Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 2: Jackson Square

On the second day of our New Orleans Art Trek, we set up our easels near Jackson Square to capture the architecture and energy of the city while the photographers went on to visit the downtown streets and infamous cemeteries. Some of my painters chose to record the whole street scene, while others focused in on interesting architectural details. I liked this tangled oak tree branch framing the coral wrought iron French Revival building behind it. Again, we couldn't have asked for a more perfect day! On the way to our second painting location, we fueled up on Po Boy sandwiches and refreshments.

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If you're interested in joining us on one of upcoming Art Treks, please let us know. 

Spaces are filling up quickly, so don't wait!

Athens and Santorini, Greece - May 8-16, 2015

The French Riviera - June 18-26, 2015

Provence, France - June 25-July 3, 2015

Tuscany, Italy - Sept. 4-12, 2015

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.nikigulley.com/artreks.

***

E-mail Niki Gulley with any questions.

To see more of my contemporary impressionistic landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com.

New Orleans Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

  7" x 5" palette knife oil painting  ©2014 Niki Gulley

New Orleans Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 1: Fabourg Marigny

Later that afternoon, the light had changed so much on our morning subjects, that some of us had to switch gears and look for a different idea. I loved this tangled oak tree and with the golden light coming on, I set to capturing its vibrant colors before the glow was gone. That evening we went out for a delicious Creole dinner of oysters, jambalaya, shrimp and grits, and other New Orleans favorites while swapping stories from the day and getting to know each other better.

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If you're interested in joining us on one of upcoming Art Treks, please let us know. 

Spaces are filling up quickly, so don't wait!

Athens and Santorini, Greece - May 8-16, 2015

The French Riviera - June 18-26, 2015

Provence, France - June 25-July 3, 2015

Tuscany, Italy - Sept. 4-12, 2015

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.nikigulley.com/artreks.

***

E-mail Niki Gulley with any questions.

To see more of my contemporary impressionistic landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com.

Last Day, Lake Como Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

"Unveiling Sunshine," Lake Como ©2014 Niki Gulley • 10" x 8" oil painting

Cinque Terre and Lake Como Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 8: Varenna

On the last day of Lake Como Art Trek, we stayed right at our hotel and painted the gorgeous view of the town and water below while the photographers explored some more. We reconvened later that afternoon to see what the painters had created each day and watch a slide show of the photographer's work. That evening we dined on a delicious meal of local meats, lake fish, pastas and of course, wine, while enjoying our last night together with new friends. A perfect ending to a wonderful trip!

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If you're interested in joining us on one of upcoming Art Treks, please let us know. 

Spaces are filling up quickly, so don't wait!

Athens and Santorini, Greece - May 8-16, 2015

The French Riviera - June 18-26, 2015

Provence, France - June 25-July 3, 2015

Tuscany, Italy - Sept. 4-12, 2015

Cinque Terre and Lake Como, Italy - Sept. 11-19, 2015

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.nikigulley.com/artreks.

***

E-mail Niki Gulley with any questions.

To see more of my palette knife contemporary landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com.

Day 7, Lake Como Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

"Villa with a View" ©2014 Niki Gulley • 12" x 9" oil painting

Cinque Terre and Lake Como Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 7, afternoon location: Villa Babianello

After a busy schedule the day before, several of us opted to take it easy and join a cooking class while others visited the castle in town and one of the villages across the lake. We were whisked away to a tiny nearby hamlet where the chef, Moreno, prepares all of the dishes himself that he serves for dinner at his restaurant. He started the morning out by feeding us cappuccino and homemade cake to enjoy while he began showing us how to roll out and form pasta for cheese tortellini and marinara from scratch. Next up, was a decadent potatoes gruyere with ham slices, all of which we got to sample. The finalé was the creamiest mushroom risotto, local red wine, and don't forget the limoncello for dessert. Yum!

Late that afternoon, we visited the Botanic garden in Varenna, which is spectacular with its colorful tropical plantings, elaborate villa, sculptures and fountains, and fantastic views along the lake. What a great day!

***

If you're interested in joining us on one of upcoming Art Treks, please let us know. 

Spaces are filling up quickly, so don't wait!

Athens and Santorini, Greece - May 8-16, 2015

The French Riviera - June 18-26, 2015

Provence, France - June 25-July 3, 2015

Tuscany, Italy - Sept. 4-12, 2015

Cinque Terre and Lake Como, Italy - Sept. 11-19, 2015

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.nikigulley.com/artreks.

***

E-mail Niki Gulley with any questions.

To see more of my palette knife contemporary landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com.

Day 6, Lake Como Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

"Villa with a View" ©2014 Niki Gulley • 12" x 9" oil painting

Cinque Terre and Lake Como Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 6, afternoon location: Villa Babianello

In the afternoon, we visited the impressive Villa Babianello, made famous in both the James Bond and Star Wars films. It lives up to its reputation, perched atop lush formal gardens with a gorgeous scenic overlook of the water. After such beautiful views of the lake that day, we treated ourselves to an elegant dinner with another breathtaking panorama of Lake Como below. Dinner was amazing with red pepper prawn soup, scallops in pumpkin risotto, caprese salad and delicious wine to wash it down!

***

If you're interested in joining us on one of upcoming Art Treks, please let us know. 

Spaces are filling up quickly, so don't wait!

Athens and Santorini, Greece - May 8-16, 2015

The French Riviera - June 18-26, 2015

Provence, France - June 25-July 3, 2015

Tuscany, Italy - Sept. 4-12, 2015

Cinque Terre and Lake Como, Italy - Sept. 11-19, 2015

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.nikigulley.com/artreks.

***

E-mail Niki Gulley with any questions.

To see more of my palette knife contemporary landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com.

Visiting Bellagio with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

"Bellagio Beauty" ©2014 Niki Gulley • 8" x 10" Textured oil painting

Cinque Terre and Lake Como Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 6, morning location: Bellagio

The next morning we awoke rested and raring to go, so we boarded a ferry that would first take us to Bellagio. The photographers and tourists spent most of their morning exploring town and the botanic garden, shopping and shooting, while we set up our easels in the lush public gardens nearby. The morning was a little overcast so we chose to focus on the vibrant foliage and plantings rather than the view of the harbor, so that our paintings would be full of color!

***

If you're interested in joining us on one of upcoming Art Treks, please let us know. 

Spaces are filling up quickly, so don't wait!

Athens and Santorini, Greece - May 8-16, 2015

The French Riviera - June 18-26, 2015

Provence, France - June 25-July 3, 2015

Tuscany, Italy - Sept. 4-12, 2015

Cinque Terre and Lake Como, Italy - Sept. 11-19, 2015

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.nikigulley.com/artreks.

***

E-mail Niki Gulley with any questions.

To see more of my palette knife contemporary landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com.

Tuscany, Cinque Terre Lake Como Art Treks with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

8" x 10" textured oil by Niki Gulley • SOLD

Day 7, Transitional Day:  TUSCANY / CINQUE TERRE / LAKE COMO ART TREK

Plein Air Painting and Photography Workshop with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

The next day, some of our group left to go back to the states and a few stayed with us another week to be a part of our Cinque Terre / Lake Como Art Trek. For those staying on the second week, we had a leisurely morning at the villa to relax, swim in the pool, pack, etc. I had time to work on one last painting, a view that I had been admiring for the week from the back of our villa. I was attracted to this stone house with its window awning casting the diagonal shadows across its facade, nestled in between cypress, and the rolling countryside as a backdrop behind it.

That afternoon we headed to the airport to collect the rest of our group and drive to the Cinque Terre, five hill towns that are connected by a hiking trail on the west coast of Italy. After we checked into our hotel, we looked around Monterosso and grabbed a delicious seafood dinner that night.

If you'd like to join us in Tuscany for our next Plein Air Painting and Photography Workshop Sept. 5th-13th, please let me know. Early registration deadline of Nov. 16th for a $600 savings is quickly approaching! And, the final deadline to register for our Cinque Terre / Lake Como Art Treck, Sept. 12th-21st is Nov. 2nd. For more details, e-mail Niki Gulley or go to nikigulley.com/artreks.

Upcoming Art Treks

Venice, Italy – Carnivalé – Feb. 22-Mar. 1, 2014

Paris, France – June 19-27, 2014

 Provence, France – June 26 – July 4, 2014

Tuscany, Italy – Sept. 5-13, 2014

Cinque Terre and Lake Como, Italy – Sept. 12-21, 2014

Plein Air Painting / Photography Workshops

Led by Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

These workshops are filling up quickly, so we encourage you to register soon!

E-mail me at Niki@NikiGulley.com for more information.

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To see more of my contemporary landscape paintings and plein air oil paintings, please visit my website at NikiGulley.com.