By JQuisumbing
I have not sketched nor vicariously roam the world for some time. Let me explain in a nutshell.
Since I became paralyzed from the neck down, I thought my days of traveling were over and I would resign myself to spending the rest of my life just watching TV in bed. But the Lord would not have it so. By His word, I must not lose heart and remember that though my outer self will decay but yet my spirit, He will renew day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16). He even doubly blessed me by mounting me up with wings like eagles (Isaiah 40:31), figuratively, of course. To this day, even with my limitations, I have been blessed with enough ability and imagination to travel the world through the internet wonder of Google Earth/Maps. I thank the Lord for them.
Anyway, a travel photograph of a lone castle on an island was recently posted on Facebook. The post did not offer much information about this castle but ‘Fairytale island, Lake d’Iseo’. I don’t mind admitting that I’m a sucker for castles. You just have to go through my sketch portfolio of other castle renditions.
Well, I was inspired and I decided to sketch this castle, but first I needed to locate this place. It’s a tradition of mine. So, I googled Lake d’Iseo and I got Lago d’Iseo which is a 13 mile long body of freshwater nestled among the alpine mountains of northern Italy about 26 miles from the Swiss border. From the satellite point of view, Lake d’Iseo is somewhat J-shaped and somewhere down there is a tiny island with a fairytale castle on it.
Do you see the large mountain island called Monte Isola? I decided to start my search from there and a good thing too.
Whenever I go exploring (vicarious, of course), I always switch from the bird’s-eye-view to Google’s street view mode 1. Choosing to virtually stand on several high vantage points of the island’s mountain top, so that I can panoramically scan the lake for a tiny island. I actually spotted 2 small islands, one at the south and the other at the north end of Monte Isola. The one at the north won.
[1] Google Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth that provides interactive panoramas from positions along many streets in the world.
When I zoomed in, the picture was blurry but I did notice some similarity on the island’s features to the photo posted on Facebook. Below is that photo.
Going back to Google Maps, the island was labeled in Italian as Castello dell’isola di Loreto. In English, it translates to Castle of the Island of Loreto. The Internet provided a lot of factual data for this little island, but there was one article that that I wanted share with you here.
The Mysterious Island of Loreto
By Marica Musumarra
On Lake Iseo, north of Montisola, there is a fairy-tale, magical, almost dreamlike place that stands out not only in Lombardy, but also throughout Italy: it is the island of Loreto, with its exceptional history and numerous curiosities that make it even more special.
The island of Loreto dates back to the fifteenth century, when a convent of the nuns of Santa Chiara was built, and continued in the seventeenth century, then it was passed into the hands of several wealthy families.
The island is so beautiful and fascinating to tempt many, but it is with the arrival of the knight Vincenzo Richieri that it acquires its maximum splendor: by his will, in fact, is erected a neo-Gothic castle enriched by a precious and lush garden. Even today the castle is majestic and imposing, with its crenelated towers and fortified walls and, over the centuries, has become a real symbol of the island.
The island of Loreto is really small but, at the same time, it is so fascinating to have been able to enchant and inspire world-famous artists and poets, first of all the writer Costanzo Ferrari who chose it as a location for the writing of some passages of his novel “Tiburga Oldofredi – Historical scenes of the thirteenth century”.
But not only: even the Hollywood actor George Clooney, already super in love with Lake Como, after being entranced by the island tried to buy it to give it to his flame of the time, our Elizabeth Canalis. Unfortunately (or fortunately) the deal did not go well and the island remained in the hands of the old (and current) owners.
That said, the answer is yes: despite being a must-see attraction, the Island of Loreto is a private paradise.
[www.italian-traditions.com/the-island-of-loreto-on-lake-iseo]
Satisfied that I now know where the location of this island is, I opened up my old Photoshop 7 and two and a half hours later, I present to you a charcoal drawing. Charcoal art, by the way, was my favorite medium during my college days when I still had working hands.
By the way, if you find yourselves touring this part of Northern Italy, send me a line. Looking forward to another Sketching subject.
Johann Quisumbing 