Valley of Calanchi at the end of the Road

I have one week left to work here in Civita...

So as I go through the drawings and paintings I've done so far, I'm trying to figure out what I need to do here for my NIAUSI fellowship project, while I still can!

Yesterday afternoon, I walked to the end of the road in Civita.  Below is the Giardino del Poeta where an monestary once stood, a hairpin turn, then just below the road is closed off.  There are caves carved into the cliff wall below, one turned into a little chapel with an image of the Virgin Mary.  Then beyond is the entrance to the tunnel that crosses underneat the entire town and opens out to the chestnut groves on the other side, also closed off for now.

Really this sketch is about the calanchi, what you see in white in the middle of the image. These are stark, dramatic looking peaks and narrow ridges of eroded earth--once sand and clay under the sea.  The valley of calanchi only addes to the surreal feel of this place...