Stromboli, under the volcano in 3D

by Simo Capecchi in Sicily, Italy

In Stromboli sketching it’s too easy. Colors are simplified. Shadows are strong. To paint, you just need Black and Payne’s Gray. Loose yourself observing the see and the sky is the main job here. And reading, or drawing. The rock in the middle of the sea is Strombolicchio, a past neck or volcanic plug.

Lots of climbers are here as well, since volcanic rocks are great to train. But the volcano itself is the main attraction. “Iddu”, or “him” as they call it here, has been really active lately. Every half an hour  there is at least one big explosion, with hight columns of incandescent lava. In the night, the show it’s terrific. Going up to the top (926 mt) in these days it’s dangerous and has been forbidden but you can admire the explosions even from a lower viewpoint, as the pizzeria Ossevatorio.

In the past, the island was not such a fancy place to spend your holidays. What a contrast with sixty years ago, when Rossellini and Bergman where here. Anyway, the volcano’s power is the same.

UPDATE: I just had a close encounter with a drone! It belongs to a group who’s shooting a docufiction on the island: Stromboli 3D, a crowd funding project. They have been filming around since last year, with a small HandSteady and have flight over the volcano with the 3D drone. “We are the future!”, said Victor Ortega, from the crew. Watch Stromboli 3D teasers and making of, the potential of these equipments is really impressive! Can’t wait to see their movie.