# 89 - Painting in the South of France

                                                "Gigondas - Les Vacances"

Fellow art Lovers:

Yes, this is an artist’s blog, not a travelogue. But I just want to let you know that we’ve made a couple of short trips here in France. The one I want to tell you about now was to the south of France, the area called the Midi. Frankly, France has so many beautiful regions that you tell yourself it’s too bad you’ll never be able to spend much time in most of them. 

But as fellow art lovers, I have to tell you about one place in the south of France, Albi, that we visited that’s important from an artistic point of view. First of all, I’ve always wanted to visit Albi, mainly because it’s the site of the museum devoted to Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. 

The museum itself is beautiful, with a garden that will take your breath away. Inside, the collection of paintings and other works of art, like posters and sculpture, is so extensive that you see so many of the works that that you’ve only seen in books and online. And seeing the works themselves lets you learn a lot about Lautrec’s style and his painting process. 

The other place I want to tell you about, where we spent a week, is the village of Gigondas, where our friends Barbara and Jean Marguin live during the summer. Of course, because the countryside, the vineyards and the village are so beautiful, Jean and I had to spend some time painting. And this brings up the two paintings I want to show you. 

The first one is of the village square in Gigondas, which is a gathering place and is circled by restaurants, stores, some art galleries and the city hall. The centerpiece of the square is a metal sculpture, by our friend, the French sculptor Jean Marguin. The sculpture includes fountains and a model of a wine bottle, representing the area’s major industry. As you see here, with a boy named Selim, kids often try to touch the bottle as it swings. The painting is entitled “Gigondas – Les Vacances.” 

                                                       "View from the Village"

The other painting I want to show you, “View from the Village,” is what you see from the edge of the village square – some rooftops of the village and the valley, mountains and sky beyond.  Frankly, the scene struck me as so beautiful that I just threw myself into it, and I felt great painting it. Of course, that’s the way – I believe – painting is supposed to be. 

Thanks for listening. 

Best, 

Bill