Arno River Sunset, Florence

Sunset in Florence and the Renaissance cityscape is reflected in the slow grace of the Arno River flowing to the sea. The sky shifts from pink to turquoise to pastel orange. It’s an impossible color, a sunset blessing. But in the rush hour traffic, no one notices the blessing from above or the flowing Arno. The image makes use of strong leading lines, the line of apartment, the thick, reflective river and curve of the street. My compositions are an almost mathematical weighting of elements. And here the street and rushing pedestrians are mere edging – pushed to the side by the image’s need to feature the river. The river is central to the image as it is reflective of the city itself. The sky takes up most of the art work’s real estate. It acts as negative space to the busy city. And the only part of Florence that intrude on its domain are the string of street lights – trying to measure the infinite. The colors of the heavens that evening were a gift, both infinite and momentary.