Peasant family and monks with animals near a church 

Achille Pinelli painted this watercolor, titled "Peasant family and monks with animals near a church", sometime before 1841. Watercolor as a medium lends itself to the play of light and atmosphere, a quality Pinelli exploits fully here. The magic of watercolor lies in its fluid transparency. Diluted pigments suspended in water are applied in layers, allowing light to pass through each stratum and reflect off the white paper beneath. This imbues the painting with a luminous quality, perfectly capturing the Italian countryside. Compared to oil paint, watercolors were cheaper and more portable, which made them popular with artists who traveled. The wispy brushstrokes and soft edges give the scene a sense of immediacy, as if Pinelli captured the scene en plein air, right on the spot. But it would have taken a practiced hand to make it look this effortless, since watercolor is also a very unforgiving medium. Every stroke is visible, and mistakes are difficult to correct. Ultimately, the painting's charm resides in its celebration of everyday life and the beauty to be found in ordinary scenes, and in the mastery with which the artist wielded a humble set of materials.