Grinzinger Hauptplatz

"Grinzinger Morgen" 18 x 24 inches, oil on canvas

Back some years ago, I was fortunate enough to live in a picturesque little village located in the 19th district of Vienna, Austria. Grinzing is known for it's quaint wine taverns (heurigen) that are frequented by tourists eager to try the area's home-grown wines. Living there brings back some of the fondest memories of my life: the slow pace of living; virtually no crime; countryside/vineyards interspersed among the neighborhoods; and charming historical buildings (no high-rises). On our second tour of Vienna, we lived in a garden apartment located on a little cobbled street (Probusgasse) only a few yards away from an old historical building were Beethoven lived. Around the corner was a Teddy Bear restaurant that was likewise decorated--a place my children loved to comment on whenever we strolled by it. Another well-known area of the district is Grinzinger Hauptplatz depicted in my latest painting above (from a photo I took in 2005). Behind the yellow building is the parish church of the area, Grinzinger Pfarrkirche. I generally don't do landscape paintings but I do have a plan to paint some of my favorite areas from around Europe that are meaningful to me. Back when I lived there, most businesses where closed on Sundays so things were very quiet on that day save for people out on walks and the tolling of the church bells (something that roused my romantic nature as well as my spiritual side). This normal cultural phenomenon was especially meaningful to me as I generally liked to set aside my Sundays as restful days out of respect for God, though I do admit as an American it was also something I had to get used to. When I painted this scene, I wanted to evoke the quietness of the morning. I had meant to paint more loosely but above is the result (reminds me a little of an  Edward Hopper painting though hopefully a little more cheerful). Thanks for looking. :)