French Country

This lovely chateau was located in the countryside in the Burgundy region of France. I couldn’t resist painting the house reflecting in the still pond.

The Vineyard

After wine tasting and a fabulous catered lunch in the cellars of Chateau de Marsannay just 10 minutes outside Dijon, we found this old vine keepers cottage right in the middle of the vineyard. The placid fields seemed to go on for acres.

The Calanques

The group stayed a week in Cassis in southern France and traveled to see the calanques by boat and mini-train. This scene was on our journey to our farewell dinner along the Mediterranean. Our mini-train drove us by these trees that stood watch over the vast fiord like area.

Cassis by Day

This is a view of Cape Canaille which seems to guard the harbor of Cassis. A most beautiful mountain with such subtle colors, I had
difficulty figuring out just what paint colors to use.

Cassis by Night

Cape Canaille is illuminated at night against the black of the sky. It is very dramatic and haunting at the same time.

St. Paul de Vence Street

Every twist and turn on any street of St. Paul de Vence produced a multitude of paintable subjects. This particular scene interested me because of the shadow patterns and the intense light and dark contrast.

St. Paul de Vence from a Distance

As we drove to St. Paul de Vence, we stopped the bus so we could take photos of this lovely city perched on top of it's own hill. Our next painting group will visit this walled village again in September of 2004.

In the Sunshine

This complex of buildings is located at the edge of the walled village of St. Paul de Vence. And how fortunate to find an art gallery located there. The countryside rolled on for miles past the half wall.

Les Colettes

The home of Pierre A. Renoir is named 'Les Colettes' and is located north of Nice at Cagnes-sur-Mer. We toured his home and studio and I finally figured out why I have always been attracted to his life and his artwork. His studio is painted a beautiful butter yellow...just like my favorite color - Naples Yellow. To see where he worked at the end of his life was was truly a moving experience. His wheel chair is in the center of the room as if he just left a minute before we arrived. I also had the opportunity to shake the hand and look into the steely black eyes of Pierre A. Renoir.....the great grandson of the artist. Amazing how a change in the schedule a week before leaving resulted in such a wonderful experience.

Dance of the Moon Flowers

These lovely trumpet flowers were at the entrance into the 'Les Colettes' the home of Pierre Renoir. He lived here
the last 12 years of his life.

Cezanne's Hill

This is the location where Cezanne perched himself to paint Mt. Sainte Victoire just outside Aix-en-Provence. We could see for miles but I was most fascinated with the immediate surroundings where he would have positioned himself to paint.

Monet's Garden

A day trip took us out of Paris to Giverny to visit Claude Monet's home, studio and garden.(We also found his grave sight) We were told that several trees had to be removed because of violent storms but the garden looked as if Monet had just finished a most recent painting days before.

Monet's Home

Monet's home stands as it did many years ago, tall and strong and bathed in a wonderful pink. How delightful to have it be pink in the midst of all the colors of the garden.