Art Treks Europe

July 28, 2014

9″ x 12″ oil painting

Day 2, Paris Art Trek:

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

On the second day of our Paris Art Trek, half of our group visited the Louvres in the morning, and for any of my painters who had been to the museum before, we set up our easels across from this peaceful fountain in the Tuileries. It was a gorgeous day, and the light was soft and beautiful hitting the garden. We did a quick black and white value sketch to simplify the complexity of the scene, and then moved onto color. A perfect morning!

After we finished, we met up with the rest of the group for a picnic in the park, and in the afternoon some of us visited the Musee d’Orsay and their amazing impressionist art collection. That night we gathered for another amazing French dinner!

If you’d like more information or a brochure on one of our upcoming Plein Air Painting and Photography Workshops listed below, please let me know. For more details, e-mail Niki Gulley or go to nikigulley.com/artreks.

Upcoming Art Treks

Tuscany, Italy – Sept. 5-13, 2014 • Sept. 2015

Cinque Terre and Lake Como, Italy – Sept. 12-21, 2014 • Sept. 2015

New Orleans, LA – Oct. 22-26, 2014

Venice, Italy – Carnivalé – Feb. 7-14, 2015

Athens and Santorini, Greece – May 7-16, 2015

The French Riviera – June 16-25, 2015

Provence, France – June 25 – July 3, 2014

Day 1, Paris Art Trek with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

July 25, 2014

12″ x 9″ oil painting

Day 1, Paris Art Trek:

Plein Air Painting and Photography Workshop

with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

On the first day of our Paris Art Trek, the sun was shining and it was a lovely 80 degrees. A perfect way to start our trip! In the morning, we went up in the Eiffel Tower and enjoyed the amazing views of the city. That afternoon, we painted in a quiet park next to the tower while the photographers shot around the city, and we all convened that night for a delicious Parisian dinner.

Upcoming Art Treks

Tuscany, Italy – Sept. 5-13, 2014 • Sept. 2015

Cinque Terre and Lake Como, Italy – Sept. 12-21, 2014 • Sept. 2015

New Orleans, LA – Oct. 22-26, 2014

Venice, Italy – Carnivalé – Feb. 7-14, 2015

Athens and Santorini, Greece – May 7-16, 2015

The French Riviera – June 16-25, 2015

Provence, France – June 25 – July 3, 2014

“Surrounded by Sunshine” Palette Knife Sunflower Painting by Contemporary Impressionist Niki Gulley

May 16, 2014

24″ x 12″ textured oil painting on wrap around canvas

Inspired by our travels to Provence, I painted these cheerful sunflowers with extremely thick oil paint and palette knife so that the resulting image leaps off the canvas and is loaded with energy, color and texture.

“Surrounded by Sunshine” and several of my contemporary impressionistic landscapes are also on display at the Good Art Company Gallery in Fredericksburg, TX. For more information, please contact http://www.goodartcompany.com/gac/.

For more information on my plein air paintings and workshops in Italy and France, please e-mail Niki Gulley.

New “Primary Colors” Oil Painting by Niki Gulley from Burano, Italy

April 23, 2014

“Primary Colors,” Burano, Italy ©2014 Niki Gulley
12″ x 16″ textured oil painting

We have been leading Art Treks in Venice, Italy for the past 6 years and one of the places that I look forward to most when we’re visiting is the quaint, colorful island of Burano. Known for making lace by hand, what I particular love are all of the vibrant painted houses and the reflections they cast in the canals. I feel like a kid in a candy store, not knowing what to paint first. It is such a visual feast for your eyes! I was particularly drawn to this scene with the warm reds and yellows contrasted against the vivid calm blue water, fishing boats docked for the day and some clean clothes drying in the distance.

If you’d like to join us next February in Venice for our Plein Air Painting and Photography Workshop, please let me know. For more details, e-mail Niki Gulley or go to nikigulley.com/artreks.

Upcoming ArtTreks

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

New Orleans, LA – Oct. 22-25, 2014

2015

Venice, Italy – Carnivalé – Feb. 2015

Athens and Santorini, Greece – June 26 – May 2015

The French Riviera – June 2014

Provence, France – June /July 2015

Plein Air Painting / Photography Workshop
Led by Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

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

***

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

New “Building on the Past” Oil Painting of the Cinque Terre by Niki Gulley

April 21, 2014

“Building on the Past,” Cinque Terre, Italy ©2014 Niki Gulley
40″ x 30″ oil painting on wrap around canvas

Last year on our Cinque Terre Art Trek, we set up our easels in Riomaggiore and I tried to capture the intricate puzzle of stacked houses precariously balanced one on top of each other lining this cliffside. The engineering feat to build them fascinates me, and I love their bright hues contrasted against the Mediterranean’s blues. I wonder what it’s like to live there, to see that gorgeous ocean view out your window everyday and on the flip side, trying to navigate all of the uneven steep steps with groceries and daily tasks. Once back in my studio, I took my plein air sketch and photos and created this larger version of Riomaggiore in all of its colorful glory. I hope you can still hear the cathartic sounds of the waves crashing against the rocky shore and the joy of being on vacation in such a beautiful, uplifting place.

If you’d like to join us in Cinque Terre / Lake Como for our next Plein Air Painting and Photography Workshop Sept. 12th-21st, please let me know. For more details, e-mail Niki Gulley or go to nikigulley.com/artreks.

Upcoming ArtTreks

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

New Orleans, LA – Oct. 22-25, 2014

2015

Venice, Italy – Carnivalé – Feb. 2015

Athens and Santorini, Greece – June 26 – May 2015

The French Riviera – June 2014

Provence, France – June /July 2015

Plein Air Painting / Photography Workshop
Led by Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

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

***

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

New “Creating Memories” Palette Knife Oil Painting of Venice, Italy by Niki Gulley

April 18, 2014

24″ x 36″ • textured oil painting

Inspired from our very first trip to Italy, I fell in love with everything about Venice. The city feels preserved in time with all transportation happening on water versus roads. The architecture, art, history, and people are all fascinating, the food and wine delicious, and it was such a romantic place to visit. So in this painting, I captured a lone gondola to convey that feeling of lazily drifting along with your loved one down this brick canal filled with history and future memories.

If you’d like to join us in Venice for our next Art Trek during Carnival in February 2015, please let me know. For more details, e-mail Niki Gulley or go to nikigulley.com/artreks.

Upcoming ArtTreks

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

New Orleans, LA – Oct. 22-25, 2014

2015

Venice, Italy – Carnivalé – Feb. 2015

Athens and Santorini, Greece – June 26 – May 2015

The French Riviera – June 2014

Provence, France – June /July 2015

Plein Air Painting / Photography Workshop
Led by Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

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

***

To see more of my contemporary landscape paintings, please visit NikiGulley.com.

New Sunflower Palette Knife Painting by Texas Artist Niki Gulley

April 4, 2014

30″ x 48″ • textured oil on canvas

Inspired by our trip to Provence last summer, I was awestruck by these massive fields of sunflowers blooming. Seeing this brilliant carpet of gold, with its sea of faces smiling towards the sun, just made me feel happy and I wanted you to experience that joy, too. In person “Sun Drenched” practically leaps off the canvas with its vibrant yellow petals and extremely thick three-dimensional oil paint.

Next summer we will be leading an Art Trek to the French Riviera and Provence in June, so if you’ve always dreamed of painting, photographing and sightseeing during lavender and sunflower season in France, and following in the footsteps of Monet, Van Gogh and Cezanne, please join us for this amazing trip! For more details, visit nikigulley.com/artreks.

To see more of my palette knife contemporary landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com or if you are in the Dallas area this weekend, please stop by my booth at the Deep Ellum Arts Festival.

Deep Ellum Art Festival (TX)

Fri. April 4 • 11pm – 9pm

Sat. April 5 • 11am – 9pm

Sun. April 6 • 11am – 7pm

Dallas • booth #39 on Main @Walton

DeepEllumArtsFestival.com

***

E-mail – Niki Gulley

Niki Gulley at Deep Ellum Arts Festival this Weekend

April 2, 2014

24″ x 12″ • textured oil on canvas

Inspired by our trip to Provence last summer, I was filled with joy by these massive fields of sunflowers blooming. Wanting to paint a tall vertical and capture enough sky to show the fluffy white clouds drifting by on this beautiful summer day, I included the tree branch on the left so that it would lead your eye down to the sunflowers and fill the negative space such as done in Asian art, which I’ve always admired. Loaded with unexpected happy colors, diagonal strokes creating energy and movement, and thick paint causing extreme dimension, this painting shows the beauty and power of nature to uplift your spirits, and cast sunshine on life.

To see more of my palette knife contemporary landscape paintings, visit nikigulley.com or if you are in the Dallas area this weekend, please stop by my booth at the Deep Ellum Arts Festival.

Deep Ellum Art Festival (TX)

Fri. April 4 • 11pm – 9pm

Sat. April 5 • 11am – 9pm

Sun. April 6 • 11am – 7pm

Dallas • booth #39 on Main @Walton

DeepEllumArtsFestival.com

***

E-mail – Niki Gulley

Painting the Back Canals of Venice with Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

March 17, 2014

Venice Art Trek, Day 3, Afternoon Location: Back Canals

7″ x 5″ textured oil painting by Niki Gulley

After pizza fortifications for lunch, we set up our easels on a back canal near our hotel while the photographers went off in search of more costumes and scenery to photograph. The architecture in Venice is fascinating and in every direction there is so much ornate detail, that I wanted to capture all of the unusual elements in this one little doorway.

For dinner that night, we went to a local recommendation with amazing seafood pasta. Yum!

If you’d like to join us on one of our upcoming Art Treks, please let me know. For more details, E-mail [email protected] or go to nikigulley.com/artreks.

Upcoming Art Treks

Paris, France – June 19-27, 2014

Provence, France – June 26 – July 4, 2014 – wait list only

Tuscany, Italy – Sept. 5-13, 2014

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

Athens and Santorini, Greece – May 2015

French Riviera – June 2015

Provence, France – June 2015

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!

***

www.NikiGulley.com

New Tuscany Painting by Texas Artist Niki Gulley

November 18, 2013

SOLD • 24″ x 12″ textured mixed media on wrap around canvas

Just Sold at the Good Art Company! Inspired by our travels to Italy, cypress trees rise out of the vast open landscape signaling that you have arrived in Tuscany! Working from my oil sketch that I painted during our Plein Air Painting / Photography Workshop last year, I created this larger version back in my studio, including more of the dramatic clouds swirling above the cypress trees for a tall vertical panorama and added energy.

If you’d like to join us in Tuscany next year for our Plein Air Painting / Photography Art Trek, Sept. 5th – 13th, please let me know. This is one of our most popular workshops and space is going quickly. For more details, visit nikigulley.com/artreks.

Also, several of my contemporary impressionistic landscapes are on display at the Good Art Company Gallery in Fredericksburg, TX. For more information, please contact http://www.goodartcompany.com/gac/.

Or, to see more of my palette knife paintings, please visit nikigulley.com.

For more information on my plein air paintings and workshops in Italy and France, please e-mail Niki Gulley.