Lovers in Santa Croce
Original oil painting by Matthew Holden Bates
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Lovers in Santa Croce - oil on canvas by Matthew Holden Bates
Florence, Italy
Original painting sold / Prints available
About this painting
This painting depicts a quiet moment in Piazza Santa Croce, one of Florence’s most beautiful and historically resonant public spaces. The figures in the foreground bring a sense of intimacy to the scene, while the surrounding architecture gives the moment its Florentine scale and atmosphere.
Like many of my cityscape paintings, this work began with direct observation and photography, then developed slowly in the studio through drawing, composition, and layers of oil paint. The painting balances the grandeur of Santa Croce with the small human gestures that give a city its living presence.