Sicily Sketches

May 8, 2014 | Palermo, Sicily

Sicily Map

Watercolor map of Sicily referencing some of the cities referred to in the sketches below.

September 26, 2015 | Trapani, Sicily

Castellammare del Golfo

The town of Castellammare del Golfo was historically the port for the city of Segesta; one of the major cities of the ancient Elymian people. Sketched with copic markers.

April 1, 2016 | Palermo

Palermo Streets

Palermo houses so much historical architecture, often fused together side-by-side. But I was really caught by the dereliction of buildings still partially crumbled from the 1943 bombardments. Here is a sketch of a side street off of Via Vittorio Emanuele.

November 3, 2015 | Palermo, Sicily

Palermo Taxi

Three-wheeled taxis, which are frowned upon by foreign tourists for price-gouging and safety issues, are common in Palermo. I captured this driver with a pair of locals stuck in traffic at rush hour on Via Oreto and Via Buonriposo.

March 16, 2015 | Trapani, Sicily, Italy

Trapani Windmill

I sketched this refurbished Sicilian windmill, used to grind salt. I sketched this windmill with copic markers.

March 16, 2015 | Palermo, Sicily

Run-Down Alley in Palermo

I was drawn to this run-down alley in Palermo,filled with shuttered shops and draped with linens. I used copic markers to sketch this scene.

September 3, 2014 | Palermo, Sicily

Piazza Pretoria Sketch

The Fontana Pretoria sculpture, built in 1554, features animal heads, gods, goddesses, nymphs and horned patronesses. The fountain sits at the center of the Piazza Pretoria, which is known as the most striking square in Palermo, as two large historical churches sit across from each other.

Because homes were demolished for the construction of this fountain, and because of the use of nudity in the statues, the fountain has a long history as a symbol of outrage against corruption and excess in Sicily, and is sometimes referred to as the Fountain of Shame.

Behind the fountain is the San Giuseppe dei Teatini, a 17th century masterpiece of Sicilian Baroque architecture.

August 21, 2014 | Erice, Sicily

Chiesa di San Martino

A sketch of the main door to the Chiesa di San Martino, which is dedicated to the souls that endure the muted pains of purgatory.

July 13, 2014 | Trapani, Sicily

Greater Flamingos near Trapani

The salt flats of Trapani have produced perfect conditions for salt farming for millenia. They also host Greater Flamingos in large numbers. I wonder if flamingo feet contribute to the unique taste of Trapani salt?

July 10, 2014 | Palermo, Sicily

Porta Felice Gate

The Porta Felice gates, built over 500 years ago, are one of the main gates to Palermo.

July 10, 2014 | whereabouts

Chiesa di Sant'Ignazio all'Olivella

June 15, 2014 | Palermo, Italy

Piaggio Ape

Watercolor and ink sketch of a Piaggio Ape carrying citrus in Palermo, Sicily, Italy. These little three-wheeled commercial trucks are common in urban Sicily. They date back to 1948, when Italy's transportation infrastructure had been devastated by war, and larger four-wheeled commercial trucks were simply too expensive for the economy (and small roads) to support.

The Ape is still produced even today, looks almost the same as the original models. Many of those three-wheeled taxis we see in countries like India, Thailand and Vietnam are extended Apes.

November 13, 2014 | Sicily

Sicilian Reptiles

Marker sketches of two common reptiles from Sicily - the Sicilian Wall Lizard, which often have brilliant and striking green markings, and the Moorish Gecko.

January 01, 2010 | whereabouts

Palermo Alleys

Narrow apartment building in Palermo, Sicily. Many of the buildings off the main lanes are heavily adorned in graffiti, and evidence of the scars of World War II is everpresent in these back streets.

June 19, 2014 | Erice, Sicily

Commercial Truck in Erice

A tiny commercial truck produced by Fiat is used to haul rubble from reconstruction efforts in the medieval mountain town of Erice.

June 23, 2014 | Palermo, sicily, Italy

San Domenico Church in Palermo

The Chiesa di San Domenico in Palermo, Sicily features rich, baroque facaSdes in bright gold and white with stone Dominican figurines atop two story columns.

June 25, 2014 | Cefalù, Sicily, Italy

Sicily Moleskine Journal

Below are pages from my Moleskine journal. I have been showing pages from my journals since the year 2001, and the purpose is to show my readers how you can use a simple analog journal as a way to organize your entire travel. I use my journal to make notes and sketches of birds; turning it into a compact field guide. I also use my journal as a way to compose or come up with ideas for photo shoots by visiting and sketching the scene earlier in the day.

I always begin writing my journal months before I actually visit a place, allowing me to enter notes from books, magazine articles and even Wikipedia.

I used different media in this journal - gouache and watercolor with a waterpen, sepia and black Micron pens, and Winsor Newton ink.