Well here it is August already and before I go on on with my rambling, I wish to thank you for all the wonderful responses I have gotten. I love hearing from you, it makes my work so much easier. To be honest, though, it is not all paradise. There are days of absolute frustration and often loneliness. Some days I think I will run away and join an ashram in India and meditate all day. But then again that might be just as difficult!!

We have had a perfect summer, warm days and cool nights. The hay has been harvested and hints of autumn are already in the air. The seasons change so quickly here it seems.

I have been working on a painting from a cast in the afternoons. It is a Greek copy of the Three Graces. It has been a learning experience. You can see the painting and the model behind it. The form and structure of the cast are those that we are working on with the live model.

In the morning, we have begun a long pose with Magda (our model) and after doing the block in(the initial sketch on canvas), I did a poster study and a rounding study to prepare for the form painting which I will start this week. It is an exquisite pose and I will attempt to apply all the principles that I worked on with the cast.

Sometimes the studio can be very quiet as I mentioned in a previous post, and as we are in the countryside, often flies come and annoy us and the model with their fly-ness.... (I don't know how else to describe it) buzzing around, in general being a nuisance. One day there was a big horse fly being a bother for a half an hour or so. Suddenly we heard a little tiny fly scream eeee! and realised that the resident spider in the upper corner had captured our marauder, and lo! nature took her course and the quiet of the studio returned.

I have also begun studies for a plein air painting. I am enjoying painting outdoors in the quiet by the river. The ducks come and preen themselves and laugh at my fumbling then are on their way as I sit and observe.

I have done a couple of sketches and a poster study. The thing is, I must wait for an overcast day to get consistency. This is the view I would like to attempt to paint. It is one of the old bridges that mark the gates of the village. It is beautiful!

Nantes, a city vivant, we visited the Museum and enjoyed a "city"day.

No one makes crepes like the French!

Painting en plein-aire

searching for the form in stones

finding the large masses in the tree

As I mentioned in the last post, I took a three day landscape workshop with Gundula Jacobs, an amazing painter and wonderful human being. If you get a chance to see her work, look at the site:

http://www.thebrighamgalleries.com/Artists/GJacobs/GundulaJacobsResume.htm

We were a group of six, three French women, one German girl, a Chinese lady and myself. Gundula was teaching in French, German and English! oolala

sunlit field

les fleurs

la tour

These are my first, and I went at it in a typical spontaneous mode,

Go-for-it- joyousness and w/o any knowledge...

I have begun the baby steps toward finding the light and form outdoors and found great satisfaction in the work. Particularly the stones were a struggle. How does one paint a pile of beautifully lit stones?

By the time I figured out to create some semblance of the form, the light had completely changed and was nearly gone.

One really needs to make quick accurate decisions because life does not hold still! Perhaps this is the challenge and that which gives us anima, the vital force!

All for now, this week back in the studio, a new pose and a new still life!

Bon Vacance! Happy Summer

Passage de Gois

As the heat of summer descended on Argenton Les Valleés this week,

we had a brief respite from the studio,

a one-week break.

Off to the Isle of Noirmoutier, a two and a half hour drive... In the photos one can see the bay and what is left of the passage de Gois that one can drive across at low tide! As we reached the island the water began to cover the road as you can see, within a short amount of time completely!

I took the two day trip to the island to "put my feet in the Atlantic." Well I did much more that that, pitching a tent right on the beaches of the bay of Bourgneuf, an early morning swim, and a day on a beautiful stretch of sand and beach, swimming and swimming until the tides brought in the little jelly fish and tired,

tan and happy headed back to Argenton.

Sunday

dancing and singing

I enjoyed a "randonnée" or walk called Les ponts et passerelles. Accompanied by a chorale group. called

Cant'Amus and a guide we visited the medieval granite bridges (ponts) that were the original entrances to our village and traversed the numerous beautiful passerelles. The group sang, standing on the dam of the Lac d'hautbus as we all passed, under the old tramway, and on bridges, stopping for a dance among the trees and picnic picnic in the shade by the river Argenton. We finally reached the village square for the closure with an authentic Renaissance music group and their show called Cromorne mem'pas peur.

artificial dam creating the Lac d'hautbus

What a super break week! I did not let my studies slide, however, and was fortunate to be accepted in a small group of students to learn landscape or painting in plein- air! Our lovely teacher was Gundula Jacobs, who chose delightful spots in the Anjou region. We worked three days, mornings and afternoons. As it was unusually hot a sunny, some days were a mixture of clouds and sun which makes difficult conditions for consistant light. I learned a lot in those three days an am anxious to continue. Working outside was great!

Poster vision is so important, compare, contrast, color and value, keeping the global vision dancing across the canvas and back to the model, making quick decisions. As this was my first experience, I tried to choose relatively basic studies, sketchs, done within 3-4 hours.

I will include the studies in the next post as then it is easier to add the photos

tout à l'heure(very soon)