Artnotes: The Backstroke

At the Panaro   Blair Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  12 x 20"  30 x 50cm  490.00 Maybe the ONLY good thing about sweltering hot weather is SWIMMING.    Almost every afternoon this past week Blair and I have gone swimming in the Panaro River  (aka the Ganges) with all the people of the world.  On Sunday, there were Sikhs (yes, the turban), Pakistani  women in saris (fully dressed, carrying dress shoes through the water), Egyptian divers, big Russian ladies, two  robust women of uncertain heritage wearing bras (clearly not bikini tops) over shorts, an  Arab mother, in a burkini, trying to teach her son to dive…There were young black men with skinny legs and sinewy bodies that could carry them 100 miles across the desert (and did); girls with perfect brown bottoms in cutaway teensy bright bikinis.  Maybe, just maybe, THIS is heaven.  Oh, yeah, I was the blue-hair in the polka dot one piece bathing suit. At the Beach  Laurie Pessemier   Acrylic/vintage paper 12 x 8.5  30 x  21cm   95.00 A friend used to tell me, “Laurie, I think when we die we go to a big hot tub of energy and it’s beautiful.”  I think this is the hot tub.   The water is the perfect temperature for me, I would say about 75 degrees Fahrenheit (24c).    We also go to the Fountain of Youth, which is less desirable than it used to be (shallower) at about 65 (18c) degrees, my submersion rarely exceeds 5 minutes.   The Fountain of Youth, is in fact, prettier, in the woods, but there are rarely any other swimmers.  Yesterday it was 107 (41c) at the river, and if that continues, we’ll be at the  Fountain of Youth more often.   Berlino will not go in the water at either location, because he’s a field dog. Field Dog (Berlino)  Laurie Pessemier  acrylic/vintage paper   12 x 8.5"    30 x 21cm   95.00

There are swimming pools in the area, but unless they are cooled, I can’t imagine swimming there.   Once we had an interior design job in Palm Springs California and the water in that pool was 92 degrees (33c) – it was disgusting.    The best water I ever swam in was the ocean off the island of Malta – it was 76 degrees (25c) and kind of “effervescent”.   I’ve never liked pools as much as “wild” swimming, a term that casts fear in the heart of any Italian.    The Panaro and the Fountain are full of “shiners” – little tiny fish:  a sign of healthy water.  Both are moving bodies of water -- there is a big waterfall just beyond where we swim in the Panaro.   It gives the impressing of an infinity pool.  I always mean to paint, but am so taken by the scene I can’t stop to put it all on paper. Toulouse Lautrec Blair Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  14 x 10.5 "    .35 x 27cm    425.00 Honestly, the heat is beyond the pale right now, with little relief in sight.  This has gotten to be a usual summer phenomenon, and the only thing that will save us is shorter days ( September).  As it is, Berlino and I are walking right after sunrise, just after 6:30.  There are animals galore out there:  I saw a martin this week, and roe deer are a daily occurrence.  I saw a dormouse in the tree outside my bedroom window, which made me consider closing it.  No, too hot. Apples out the Window   Laurie Fox Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  12 x 16 "    .30 x 40 cm    425.00 We’ll be complaining about winter before you know it, but for now, we’ll do the backstroke. Housekeeping:    All works on Paper also available as prints. Although I have taken down my Pessemier Workshops website, we are still painting with others, all supplies included, throughout Europe. sign up for Artnotes, our weekly art missive, by contacting me at lfpessemier@gmail.com or https://mailchi.mp/341f508cecf8/artnotes INVITING All Artists to present their Work:   Paint, Literature, Crafts, Food.... Pessemier's Sunday Salon Weekly on Sunday  No Reservation Necessary   How it works: Bring a piece of your ART: that could be visual, like painting or printmaking; or literary, as in poetry or prose; or crafts, like metalwork or knitting; or food, or music.  Something you made, or feel particularly inspired by.  You have about 5 minutes to present, and we'll ooh, ahh, or answer questions you have.  You can also come and see how we work before diving in.  Just show up on Zoom at a minute or two before the hour.    No selling, no networking until after everyone has presented.  No politics, no sales pitches, please. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88093708954?pwd=M04zNHB4dFZkREp3bThweUd1YnVDZz09 Meeting ID: 880 9370 8954 Passcode: 886402 Rome 8PM; NY 2 PM; LosAngeles 11AM