Foggy Day Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/canvas 16 x 18 inches
View from Nice Blair Pessemier Acrylic/canvas 13 x 16 inches
Sailboat School Nice Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/canvas 12 x 12 inches
Daisies from the balcony Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/wood 13 x 5 inches
White Hyacinth Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/wood 13 x 5 inches
ARTNOTES: ROGUE WAVE
ARTNOTES: ROGUE WAVE
Blair and I have always wanted to go to Stes. Maries de la
Mer, so last Sunday, we hopped in the rental car and drove there from
Villefranche. We were likewise
attracted to the fact it was not raining there, actually SUNNY. So away we three went.
We stopped in Arles, Vincent Van Gogh’s town, first. Upon reaching the town, we saw his
landlady-model. We wound through the
pedestrian streets. People still
resemble the portraits he painted there.
Jet-black hair, swarthy complected, small, wiry people abound. We found a café to have lunch.
Harika, Blair and I shared the giant steak (450 gr). It was one of two dishes available that
day. The tables were packed with locals,
always a good sign. It was cooked to
perfection, served on a plank of wood with piles of salt, herbs and fresh thyme
alongside. We drank local wine, and wrapped
up early to get the Stes Maries.
Stes Maries de la Mer is really a city dedicated to Sainte
Sarah, even though her name isn’t mentioned.
It was she, who teamed up with Mary, mother of Jesus, and Mary Magdalene
who were leaving Palestine after the death of Christ. Sarah was originally from Egypt, which might
account for her patron saint status with the Gypsies. There is a special statue depicting Sarah,
the black saint, housed in the cathedral, along with her bones. The statue is carried to the sea by a
procession of Gypsies (30,000) each year on 24 May. We make a mental note to go, if not this
year, next.
Along the route we see the wild horses of the Camargue, and the
black bulls that the area is famous for.
I look for flamingoes, but only find storks, which to me are pretty
wonderful. I might have seen flamingoes flying. There are wonderful white stucco cottages of
the Camargue cowboys. They are two room
sorts of places, with a circular hearth at the end; the house is roofed in
black twigs, making for a dramatic black and white effect. I regret not having the time to paint on this
one-day trip.
Which brings me to the point: we drove three hours to get there and three
hours to get back, just to see the sun.
What’s wrong with this picture?
Go home, Laurie and Blair. The
weather in Paris is better. The next
day, just so nature could make her point, I was doused by a rogue wave: from head to toe, while painting along the
corniche in Nice.
On Wednesday, a nine days before our scheduled departure, we
got on the train to head back to Paris.
It was the first time I really smiled in weeks.
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