This blog is a repository for all my watercolor painting memories of the nineteen years that I lived in the Memphis, TN area. For my contemporary work, please click on the TRANSATLANTA link just below.
Since I was a young boy, I was a fan of watercolor paintings. The transparent paint allows the light to go through it and to be reflected back to the viewer by the white surface of the paper. This results in a luminosity difficult to achieve through other methods. My favorite subjects are buildings and townscapes of historical interest. I admire many watercolor masters, especially Winslow Homer, John Pike, James Fletcher-Watson and Edward Wesson. And, from my native Portugal, Roque Gameiro, Alvaro da Fonseca and Julio Amaro. ****************
Julio Rodrigues was born in Portugal and emigrated to the United States (New Jersey) in 1978. After a career in the engineering field, watercolor painting is his favorite hobby.
He is a self-taught artist who likes to work primarily with transparent watercolor due to the freshness and luminosity of the medium. He also works with pen and ink, and pencil, sometimes combining these media.
His favorite subjects are buildings and townscapes of historical interest. In his watercolor paintings, he strives for transparency and strong light and shadow contrasts with as few layers of paint as possible. His greatest challenge is to arrive at just the right amount of detail without overworking the painting.
Exhibitions and Awards:
2020 Best Overall Artwork Award, Forks Area Art Society, Easton, Pennsylvania, May 2020;
2017 The Gallery at St. John’s, Easton PA, solo exhibition, Easton: Watercolors And Other Thoughts;
2008 Second place plus Honorable mention, Fur Fin and Feather Festival, Middleton TN;
2007 Burch Library, solo exhibition Collierville TN;
2004 Selected artist, Fedex Forum Permanent Lobby Mural, (Memphis, TN);
If you are hungry, you can’t go wrong here, on the north side of the Collierville Town Square. The lingering snow that fell a few weeks ago made this place look even more inviting. ****** Watercolor, 12x9", Fabriano Paper
Last week we had a winter storm that left about six inches of snow on the ground. Here, this happens maybe once every ten years, especially this late in the season. I knew it would not last long, so I got up Saturday morning and promptly drove to our old Town Square with my camera. The snow covered several blooming trees, one of which helped frame this view of the old Train Depot. ******
Back in 1989, I had to complete a work assignment in Florence, Italy. Yes, I know...it's a tough job. Well, I courageously volunteered for the task. This is Pallazzo Vecchio, one of countless architectural wonders in this fantastic city.
Ok, just to mix it up a little bit, there is no arquitecture here. Just a very quick study of a humble Clematis flower in my backyard. ****** Watercolor, 2.5 x 3.5 ", Fabriano Paper