Niki Gulley paintings

Painting Venice Canals with Contemporary Impressionist Niki Gulley

March 14, 2023

12″ x 9″ textured oil painting by Niki Gulley

Venice Art Trek – Led by Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 2, Doge’s Palace and Painting the back canals

On the second day of our Plein Air Painting and Photography Workshop, we visited the Doge’s Palace, in all of its glory and were awed by its impressive art collection by Italian masters. Taking the “Secret Tour” we learned about parts of the Palace that you can’t normally see, including the prisons, the torture room and stories of Casanova.

That afternoon we chose a canal to paint near our hotel while the photographers covered off the beaten path parts of the island. I liked the way the sunlight reflected across the water’s surface, and I really wanted to capture a gondola in the distance. With it being Carnival, luckily there was a steady stream of them rowing past us. At one point, a live violinist drifted by playing the most beautiful tune that echoed off the buildings. What a magical moment!

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

For more information on my Venice and other travel paintings, please e-mail Niki Gulley.

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If you’d like to join us on one of upcoming Art Treks or Foodie Treks, please let us know. Spaces fill up quickly!

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.ArtTreks.org.

Plein Air Painting in Venice with Niki Gulley

March 10, 2023

SOLD • 12″ x 9″ textured oil on canvas panel by Niki Gulley

Venice Carnivalé Art Trek – Led by Niki Gulley and Scott Williams

Day 1: Venice

We just got back from teaching our latest Painting and Photography Art Trek in Venice during Carnivalé and had the most amazing time! The weather was ideal our first day there, and we found our way to this picturesque spot. Normally this is one of my favorite places to paint in Venice. It’s quiet with almost no onlookers for my students, and yet gondolas frequently row by to entertain us. However, today during Carnival, it was like experiencing rush hour on water! There was a constant barrage of boats making deliveries at our dock, construction barges across the way and about 100 gondolas forming a serious traffic jam. The good news is we had a steady stream of gondolas to paint into our scene and they certainly weren’t moving very fast or at all.

Since the whole city is on water, I love how their “garage doors” are actually for their boats. And, in this painting, I wanted to focus on this beautiful entrance and the textures of the buildings as morning light cast its glow. Even with the slow parade, it wasn’t enough time to fully capture the gondolier so I added those finishing touches and some sparkle to the scene back in my studio. I hope you can hear the baritones breaking into “Amoré” as they drift by us.

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

For more information on my Venice and other travel paintings, please e-mail Niki Gulley.

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If you’d like to join us on one of upcoming Art Treks or Foodie Treks, please let us know. Spaces fill up quickly!

For more information on upcoming Art Treks, please visit http://www.ArtTreks.org.

Painting in Venice with Painting Teacher Niki Gulley

March 9, 2023

5″ x 7″ • textured oil painting on panel

On the second day of our Venice Art Trek, we headed to the islands of Burano and Murano. Burano is known as a fishing community (and for the homemade lace that they make there), and to help the fisherman find their houses while coming back from sea, they painted their homes every color of the rainbow. With the picturesque canals and so many great colored buildings to choose from, it’s hard to pick a single subject matter! We were drawn to this quiet location, however, and the vibrant yellow stucco wall with that morning’s laundry being hung out to dry and the bicycle waiting for a ride. Today I chose to work with thick oil paint and palette knife to capture the rough surface of the walls, resulting in a final painting which is loaded with texture and color.

If you’d like to join us on one of our upcoming Art Treks, please let me know.

For more details, E-mail Niki Gulley or go to ArtTreks.org.

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www.NikiGulley.com

“Dining al Fresco” Venice pastel by Contemporary Impressionist Niki Gulley

March 3, 2023

Dining al Fresco, Venice – 12″X18″ Pastel by Niki Gulley

A warm evening breeze stirs, caressing your face as you dine. The sights and sounds of Venice mingle before your eyes, an unfolding opera of color and light. A couple strolls, enamored with the beauty that envelopes them, drawn into the Italian night, hand in hand. The love between them is nearly palpable, and as they pass you by, you feel it radiate off of them, just as the light spreads itself against the encroaching night.

The soft touch of the pastels help to capture the calm evening. Venice is filled with the romance and this scene really resonated with me. The warm palette gives one a feeling of calm, a comforting touch, as if by a summer breeze.

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If you’d also like to experience the beauty, history and culture of Europe, join me and travel photographer, Scott Williams, for our Plein Air Painting and Photography Art Treks. We’d love to have you along! E-mail Niki Gulley for more information or go to arttreks.org for more details.

For more information on “Dining al Fresco,” please e-mail Niki Gulley nikigulley@sbcglobal.net .

Or, visit NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary impressionistic landscape paintings.

“Dreamlike Journey” Pastel from Venice by Contemporary Impressionist Niki Gulley

March 2, 2023

12” x 9” pastel

I created this pastel during a workshop my husband and I taught in Venice. We love the city, and there is so much inspiration there between the art, architecture, canals and magical light that it’s really hard to narrow down what to paint! On this day, we decided to stick with a classic view of the canals. I like the way light peeks through the narrow passageway and leads your eye from building to building, and the gondola that happened into the scene created the perfect finishing detail.

If you’d also like to experience the beauty, history and culture of Italy, join me and my husband / travel photographer, Scott Williams, for our Plein Air Painting and Photography Art Treks.. Our unique Art Treks afford you the option to choose which aspects interest you, whether it is painting, photography, both or neither, thereby giving you an opportunity to make the most of your experience. Our trips are designed to hone your skills and expand your creativity, all while you further your artistic voice and immerse yourself in the region’s culture and lifestyle. Non-participating partners are encouraged to join us for a reduced price, and we’ll help with travel arrangements, tours, transportation, etc. while we’re painting and photographing.

E-mail Niki Gulley for more information or go to ArtTreks.org.

NikiGulley.com

“Bon Appetito” Venice pastel by Contemporary Impressionist Niki Gulley

March 1, 2023

“Bon Appetito” by Niki Gulley
Pastel on board • 24” x 36”

On my first trip to Europe, my husband wanted to take me to Venice since it was one of his favorite cities, and I fell in love with almost everything about it. The timeless quality created by living on canals free of cars, the history in the architecture and even the cobbled walkways, the beauty of the scenery and the magical quality created by the light to name just a few of my favorite things. I love how food and meals play such an important role in Italian culture – a time to slow down and enjoy friendships while savoring the locally grown cuisine and wines over the course of the evening. In this pastel I wanted to communicate all of those joyful feelings in addition to capturing the energy and romance of the city at night. Bon Appetito!

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If you’d also like to experience the beauty, history and culture of Venice, join me and travel photographer, Scott Williams, for our Plein Air Painting and Photography Art Treks. We’d love to have you with us! E-mail Niki Gulley for more information or go to nikigulley.com/artreks for more details.

For more information on “Bon Appetito,” please e-mail Niki Gulley.

Or, visit NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary impressionistic landscape paintings.

“A Pause in Time” Venice pastel by Contemporary Impressionist Niki Gulley

February 28, 2023

“A Pause in Time” Venice, Italy by 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.

This piece won an award at the Southwest Pastel Society’s National Juried Show Exhibit.

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If you’d also like to experience the beauty, history and culture of Venice, join me and travel photographer, Scott Williams, for our Plein Air Painting and Photography Art Treks. We’d love to have you join us! E-mail Niki Gulley for more information or go to nikigulley.com/artreks for more details.

For more information on “Bon Appetito,” please e-mail Niki Gulley.

Or, visit NikiGulley.com to see more of my contemporary impressionistic landscape paintings and pastels.

“Drip Dry” Palette Knife Plein Air Painting by Niki Gulley

February 24, 2023

SOLD • 12″ x 9″ textured oil painting on panel

With the picturesque canals and so many great colored buildings to choose from, it’s hard to pick a single subject matter in Burano, Italy. But, today I was drawn to this quiet location with its vibrant blue stucco wall as the backdrop for that morning’s laundry being hung out to dry. I chose to work with thick oil paint and palette knife to capture the rough surface of the walls, resulting in a final painting which is loaded with texture and color.

NikiGulley.com

E-mail Niki Gulley.

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If you’re interested in joining us on one of our upcoming Art Treks or Foodie Treks to France, Tuscany, or Venice, please let us know. Spaces fill up quickly!

For more information on upcoming Treks, please visit http://www.ArtTreks.org.

2023 Schedule

Venice – Carnivalé

Art Trek – Feb. 12-18

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Tuscany

Foodie Trek – May 27 – June 3

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Provence

Art Trek – June 24- July 1

Pastel Home Portrait by Texas Artist Niki Gulley

January 30, 2023

SOLD • 11″ x 14″ pastel by Niki Gulley

Just Delivered! My final request for 2022 was to create a special home portrait. I no longer advertise that I make these, but I am still happy to paint something special for my collectors or their referrals by request. So for this particular pastel, someone new reached out to me with the craziest 6-degrees-of-separation story! They had purchased a home in the M streets of Dallas and the previous home owner (who turned out to be one of my early collectors) had gifted and left them the home portrait I had created for her in 2004.

Fast forward to this year, and these home owners were ready to move into another place, so they wanted to pass on the gift again to the new people purchasing their home and leave my home portrait from 2004 with the house. So, of course when they moved into their new place (and no one had left a home portrait here), they asked me to create something special for their Christmas gift. So fun! I was even able to include their doggie in the window this time. I hope they enjoy the new memories, and a big thank you to both home owners from 2004 and 2022.

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

For more information on my large floral paintings, please e-mail Niki Gulley.

Santa Fe Pastel by Texas Artist Niki Gulley

January 27, 2023

During our Santa Fe workshop, one morning we headed to a quiet street in downtown. It was a beautiful day, and we were all drawn to the unique adobe architecture typical in Santa Fe, the soft morning light, and the vibrant color accents on each home. I chose this periwinkle doorway, both for the striking contrast against the orange pueblo and also because the Russian sage everywhere was so beautiful, and added some balance on the left hand side of the composition. We all thoroughly enjoyed the morning, even if a passing homeowner or two were disappointed that we hadn’t picked their doorways to paint!

To see more of Niki Gulley’s New Mexico and Southwest paintings, visit NikiGulley.com.

E-mail Niki Gulley with any questions about my plein air travel paintings.