Artnotes: Wasn't She Something?

 

Daudet’s Windmill  Blair Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas 12 x 12”  30 x30cm  390.00

Towards the end of our trip to Paradou, Blair and I went to Daudet’s Windmill, in Fontvieille.  I sat on the ground in the heavy wind (this was the windiest place I ever vacationed) and painted the scene; Blair painted in the shade of the tree.  Along with my coat, we forgot the easels at home in Roccamalatina, adding a further challenge to painting on vacation.  Daudet was a famous f19th century French author who wrote about Provence (and other places)  He composed many charming short stories, particularly about southern France.  This Windmill was his inspiration.  I found the windmill inspiring myself, and was amazed to see a half dozen of its 21st century cousins on the plain below.  It was a good place to paint.

Windmill Fontvieille  LauriePessemier  Acrylic/canvas panel, 8  x 12”  20 x 30m  290.00

It always takes me a long time to sort the input from vacation.  Usually, when Blair and I travel, I stay home one day out of four, just to process.  On this trip I found myself waking up at 3 AM, alive with thought.  I thought a lot about food, and dining out.  Blair and I rarely dine out by ourselves.  On this trip,  we dined out (courtesy of our friends) every day, at least once a day.  We ate at the Bistro de Paradou; the Café de Provence (Mouries); Café de Commerce (Mouries, twice); L’Escaravats near Pont du Gard; Café Castillon (twice, in Paradou); The Tabac in St Remy; Lou Mao in Aix-en-Provence; L’Essentiele in Arles (my favorite!); La Pitchounet in Arles; Chateau La Coste; and Les Luanes in Stes. Marie de la Mer.  Blair ate out one day with our friends in Nimes, and I had a grilled cheese sandwich, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  I used three kinds of cheese, a little pate, with  cornichons (pickles) on the side.  I thought of MFK Fisher, authoress of How to Cook A Wolf, and how she took her daughters to Aix-en-Provence.  They ate out, and cooked market food – it inspired two of her books.

Picking Olives    Blair Pessemier Acrylic/canvas  12 x 12”  30 x 30cm   390.00

I love to cook in France.  My older subscribers might remember we cooked at the Petite Lux in Paris for a couple of years. We really learned so much, about French cuisine and running a small restaurant.   I tried to make dinner every night at our rental house, but people always feel its too much, or maybe they just don’t like my food.   For me, part of traveling is working with local products.    I managed to wrest away part of a rotisserie chicken we bought to make into soup -- I think it might have been my most impromptu dish.  I did manage to cook lamb chops, duck breast, and confit du canard, with local accoutrements; Blair made a couple of dishes, too.

Paradou House  Laurie Pessemier  Acrylic/paper approx. 11 x 8”  27 x 21cm 90.00 each 3 for 225.00

For me, vacation is the joy of seeing new people, bumping into things, being a little discombobulated.   When we parked the car to eat at L’Essentiale in Arles (we dropped off our friends) we ran into a beautiful gypsy woman blocking the parking place we wanted.  We spent more time than we should have examining her bright yellow skirt and magenta scarf, like it a silky combination from a Renaissance painting.    A little later we looked at each other and exclaimed, “wasn’t she something?”

Plane Tree Paradou   Laurie Fox Pessemier Acrylic/canvas   12 x 8”  30 x 20cm  290.00

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