The Square Blair Pessemier Acrylic/linen 16 x 12" 40 x 30 cm
Doorways to the Canal Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/canvas 12 x 8 30 x 20cm
Harika in Venetian Color Laurie Fox Pessemier 12 x 16" 30 x 40 cm
Artnotes: A Dog's Life
Two Jack Russell terriers in coats, perched on a delivery
boat, barked uproariously as the vessel plied the waters of our neighborhood,
Dorsoduro, in Venice. Harika was duly
annoyed, barked back, but eventually thought better of it, as there was no way
to engage with the two canines. We went
on our way, but for some time afterward I could tell where the boat was, by the
sound of the two sentinels.
Dogs are tops in Venice.
There are all sorts of breeds, often dressed up in coats. We regularly saw: a great Dane; a half dozen Jack Russells (one
that had been immortalized in a sculpture in an art gallery); a griffon that
Harika terrorized to the point it would run when it saw her; King Charles
cavaliers; Brittany spaniels; a boxer; two Bernaise mountain dogs; a few labs;
a golden retriever, and a collection of mongrels, from which Harika hails.
Venice is the perfect place for a dog, because there are no
cars. Although most dogs are still on
leashes, it is possible to let your dog run freely in a square and play, without
fear of being run over. There are lots
of dogs on boats, accompanying their masters at work. Harika was sad to leave our apartment, where
we had a yard, and a heated floor.
We left Venice this week to return to Paris. Three trains, two of them planned, got us
home seven hours late (the entire journey was meant to be a little more than 8
hours, so you get the picture).
It’s icy cold here but sunny. Not painting weather, but not too
terrible. I am wearing my fur coat,
which people like to “pet”, so I feel a little like a dog might. The pond in the Luxembourg Gardens is frozen
over, and watching the seagulls walk on the water always amuses us.
We’ve hung our Venice collection of paintings on the walls
here. Our apartment seems outrageously
cluttered, with canvases stacked up everywhere.
I can’t to go someplace else and start over.
