Dressing in A Girl Reading a Letter.....

Dressing in A Girl Reading a Letter..... by ninamleung featuring 14k stud earrings

Dolce & Gabbana short red cocktail dress / Charlotte Olympia ankle booties / ALDO clutch / Bracelet / Vintage enamel brooch, $270 / Brooks Brothers 14k stud earrings / Christian Dior fragrance / JINsoon nail polish

Rich fabrics and textures and a Vermeer color palette: red, green, blue, and gold. The more Vermeer paintings I look at, the more I recognize the same textiles, the same room (of course), and the same objects. He obviously loved these objects and colors. I do wonder if the actual object was this exact color or if he altered it a little bit.

The modern Vermeer woman would wear something like this. It's the same richness of texture and color, just modernized. The film A Girl with a Pearl Earring was a bit of an inspiration as well. The color palette, the costumes,and the atmosphere were all inspiring.

Travelling in A Girl Reading a Letter...

If Vermeer's A Girl Reading a Letter by an Open Window were a place, it would be.......

Amsterdam!

Vermeer's A Girl Reading a Letter....

By an Open Window.

Ipad rendering of Vermeer's Girl Reading a Letter

Inspiration can come from the strangest places. For the last few days I've been thinking about what painting I wanted to work with next. Would it be a Motherwell, a Rothko, what to do?

Finally, I was reading a New Yorker article on Eileen Fisher (the clothing designer/company) and the writer was describing the office of the Color Designer. She had a picture of the Girl with a Pearl Earring on her inspiration board. Finally, it clicked, Vermeer! It's a Vermeer kind of week!

One of the many things I love about his work are his utterly strange and even confusing compositions. To illustrate this, I chose the painting A Girl Reading a Letter By An Open Window. Why is that green curtain there? Was it absolutely necessary for him to place his subject in the middle of the frame? Why is she standing behind a still life? It's so bizarre and so doesn't follow the "rules" of composition, but it totally works. It's mysterious, intriguing, beautiful. This should be a fun week!

Interpretations of El Greco's View of Toledo

Starry Sky, watercolor, copyright Nina Leung 2013

 I've always loved dark skies and light colored landscapes. Since the sky is normally lighter than the landscape, it's appealing to see the opposite. Could that be why we like the look of stormy skies so much?

Dark Desert Sky, graphite and colored pencil, copyright Nina Leung 2013

 The two above were also partially inspired by a great Georgia O'Keeffe painting. I took her technique.

Umbrella Tree, watercolor, copyright Nina Leung 2013

 This tree is right down the street from me and it really does look like this. the colors really do blend from yellow to red. The strong contrast reminds me of the View of Toledo.

Big Sky, watercolor, copyright 2013

Gio's Story Sky, tempera and crayon, copyright Nina Leung 2013

 The boys did their own version of a stormy sky. They first did some finger painting. I gave them one color at a time and let them go crazy. They loved it!

The next day, they received a piece of green paper to cut in half. Eamon needed a little help as he's not yet 2. Then they colored it with some brown and black crayons and then glued it to their stormy sky. They were pleased with the results.

Eamon's Stormy Sky, tempera and crayon, copyright Nina Leung 2013

Living in View of Toledo

Living in View of Toledo by ninamleung featuring a rectangle mirror

Woven blanket, $795 / Arte italica / West elm / Rectangle mirror / Simon Pearce silver bowl / Be the Light NY Spanish Saffron Heat Candle / Home decor

Dark browns, natural materials, gold decorative touches, all remind me of medieval Toledo. I like to think that El Greco himself had a few items like the one's above.

While we were in Toledo, we learned that trestle tables were first created there. The point was to allow the monks to put their feet up while they were eating so they stay warm. Those darn stone floors are pretty chilly!

Favorite Finds for View of Toledo

The stormy sky that inspired this weeks posts.

Loving these inspiring photos of stormy skies.

Really?! There are people that love clouds this much?

A fashion designer inspired by El Greco.

What it's like to go to Toledo.

Looks like I'm not the only one that compares El Greco to Cezanne!

Very informative El Greco info.

Dressing for View of Toledo

Dressing for View of Toledo by ninamleung featuring long sleeve sweaters

Object Collectors Item long sleeve sweater, $68 / Balmain mini skirt / Burberry ankle booties / Valentino clutch / Guerlain italian home decor

The city of Toledo is medieval, so it was necessary to choose an inspiring film set in the medieval period, The Three Musketeers from 1973. Doesn't Raquel Welch look amazing?