Thanksgiving in St Malo (view at Dinan) Blair Pessemier Acrylic/linen 14 x 20 35 x 50cm
Christmas Rue de Rivoli Blair Pessemier Acrylic/ 15 x 21.5" 38 x 55 cm SOLD
Snow in Connecticut Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/panel 11 x 14 28 x 35 cm
Steve (portrait commission) Blair Pessemier Acrylic/paper 12 x 12 NFS
Winter in Italy
I’m scouring the vacation rental sites for a winter home in
Venice. I know, it will rain, it could
be cold, but I love the idea of painting Venice in the fog. I am just back from seeing my Dad in
Winsted, Connecticut, with 11 inches of snow and freezing temperatures. Venice might be ok. But then there's Siracusa, Sicily.... sunshine, the sea, history.
We had originally hoped to return to Cervo, where we spent
the last two weeks in October. No response – a lot of people in Italy take a Christmas
holiday and our frescoed apartment is likely rented.
I loved the snow in Connecticut and painted a picture from
inside my father’s apartment looking out.
It was an extraordinary snow – everyone there said so too. It was a wet snow which coated the branches
of the trees all the way around, and it stuck.
There were no dingy gray limbs showing, and the white on white makes
the most lovely shadows. The sky was darker than the earth.
The snow kept me from my shopping rounds on Wednesday – only
in America can I buy size 10 shoes and stockings which are long enough. Paris has this crazy idea that one size fits
all and no decent woman would have feet larger than an eight and a half. They
also
think I should be skinny, but I guess I don’t have that French woman
“je-ne-sais-qua”. I like to think I have that American love-of-life
look.
I had lunch with my marketing guru, Steve Feldman, at the
Venetian Restaurant in Torrington, Connecticut.
We talked about more ways to sell
paintings on line. I am thinking about
letting people take the paintings, off-stretchers, on approval, and return
those they don’t want. There will be a
shipping label for returns: to and from Paris. Nothing ventured, nothing gained -- and he’s
always steered us right. We’re alive and
prospering.
We had the standard Thanksgiving family get together – my brother-in-law
had a fresh turkey from friends who raise them.
It was head and shoulders above our usual grocery store fare. I made a butternet squash and coconut
casserole, creamed peas and onions and bought a couple of dozen oysters to put
us in the mood.
I LOVE the US, when I am there. I speak English and can really connect with
friends who share my same vocabulary, not only of words, but of cultural
concepts. But then there's Siracusa.
