Don't be a tourist. Be our guest!

Although it is a painting workshop, our guests have more to do in Provence: shopping on the  market and eating of course. Ah the wonderful French food!

Norwegian salad with all different seafood:

Here is rice with gambas flambes:

Donna is enjoying her Irish coffee:

Here is a chocolate cake with “creme anglaise”, prepared by Martine, our hostess at our hotel in Venasque:

Bust besides eating, there is shopping: We went to Isle sur la Sorgue to the provencal market. I was told in the morning that they wanted to only spend 30 min shopping and then painting of course. I gave everyone up to 1h15 and everyone came back at the last minute, even Victoria, the teacher, who is usually “obsessed about painting”.

And here is some of the shopping of the day:

Brenda bought a bright shirt/dress/all usage piece:

Linda bought a flowery shirt:

Susan bought some flashy sunglasses, perfect match with her outfit:

You too want to be in Provence? Make sure to check our site to find out more about our painting but also cooking or cultural tours to Provence but also Belgium Switzerland and Spain.

Yesterday, like I mentioned in my previous post, we spent the afternoon in Maubec, a very quiet village in the Luberon. When I say quiet, I really mean it. There was only one car that drove by during the 2 hours we were there. Yes, Victoria only allows people to paint the same painting for 2 hours. After that, the light has changed she said and it is a completely different painting.

Some people chose to paint the church in the background with vineyards in the foreground. Below is Victoria’s painting of the church and vineyards in Maubec.

Some people decided to paint th grapes. Harvest time is coming up, at the end of September, so the grapes are just wonderful. Jan painted the grapes because buidling is not her thing she said.

Brenda painted the grapes beautifully and finished before everyone else. The two hours window for a painting is not a problem for her, she is done way before that. She is quite fast…

Today we went to St Remy de Provence where Van Gogh painted most of his famous paintings like the irises, starry starry night, etc…Everyone was so inspired to paint where he painted and especially the same olive trees like Donna, below.

Susan M was able to paint because she found her glasses that she had forgotten in Gordes. Good for her.!

Karen made a killer today!!! She decided to put her hat on the ground, put a few euros in it and pointed to it when people wanted to take her picture by saying” Merci beaucoup”. One American woman asked her if she would accept American dollar and she gave her 50cents. If Karen is not going to become very rich, at least, she will not be bothered by too many tourists, which was her intention.

Susan H could have made more than Karen because one woman told her that her painting was beautiful and wanted to buy it. Susan was so overwhelmed, she didn’t know what to say and didn’t sell it. Oh well, next time maybe.

The new group of artists has arrived. It is an oil painting workshop taught by Victoria Brooks.

Yesterday, the day started with a demo from Victoria.

Then everyone started to paint a vignette from the terrace. Our hotel is so cute and charming, there is plenty to paint.

Today, we went to Gordes. If you have been reading my blog you know how beautiful that hilltop village is.

From L to R: Brenda, Linda, Susan H, Jan, Donna, Karen, Victoria and Susan M.

In the morning, the group painted from outside the village looking up to the village on the hill. Some people got intimidated by the complexity of the buildings and they decided to paint the landscape or a little shed by the side of the road. I didn’t take many pics because I was busy shopping for the picnic and then looking for Susan’s glasses (which we found!!!).

In the afternoon, we went to the cute village of Maubec but that will be for my post tomorrow.

Stay tuned for more adventures of our oil painters in Provence. See the complete itinerary of the painting workshop to Provence.

I think it is time for you to see what our guests did during this week. Each artist was asked to show one of their paintings they like the best and here they are:

View from the terrace of our hotel in Venasque by Ann:

Ochre cliffs in the village of Roussillon by Carole:

House in the village of Venasque by Bobbie:

Doorway from a house in Venasque by Pat:

Pottery shop in Roussillon by Loris:

Fabric pattern, displayed in Roussillon, by Pollie:

Courtyard from our hotel in Venasque, by the teacher JoAnne:

Last night, we celebrated Pollie and Carole’s birthday with a tropezienne (cake with vanilla custard) and some champagne. It was also Jerome’s, our chef, birthday:

Our lovely group after loading all the luggages in the van:

Since we can’t see Bobbie much in the picture (yes she is there, you can see her eyes under Carole’ fushia arm, I have taken another one. From L to R: Judy (our general), her mother Lois, Ann, Carole, Pat, Pollie (whose birthday was that day), Bobbie and JoAnne.

I drove everyone to the train station this morning. A page is turned and a new one will start. Tomorrow I will go and pick up an oil painting group. Stay tuned for more painting adventures in Provence with French Escapade.

Part 2 of the testimonials from our guests on the Provence painting workshop:

“We had an awesome “surprise” today. After spending part of the day painting ( and knitting ) at the hospital in St. Remy, Jackie took our group to carrieres-lumieres (quarry of lights) to see a wonderful presentation of Van Gogh and Gauguin paintings. They are illuminated on the walls of a former limestone quarry. Tres magnifique! “

“The art of Van Gogh and Gauguin displayed in the “carrieres-lumieres (quarry of lights)” was very inspirational, especially with the music of Brahms and Pavarotti. I was so moved, I almost start crying.”

“It was amazing.You felt like you were in the painting, you were part of the art, it was all around you, even on the floor”.

‘When I first got in, I was disoriented because of the the images on the floor moving under my feet. Then I got used to it and it was fabulous. It affected all your senses: your vision, your motion, your hearing,… I had never seen anything like that”.

Below is a picture of the quarry without the show so you have an idea of the size of the walls.

Besides having fun, people have been painting as well. Yes, really!!! Tomorrow, I will post some pics of people “at work”….

More info about our tours to France, Spain, Belgium and Switzerland at www.frenchescapade.com

Today I asked people of the group to give their impressions of the trip. Here is a summary of what they said:

“What I liked in Gordes was to be able to find a quiet private and shady spot to sketch large shapes across from where I was sitting. It was very relaxing.”

“The view from the cliff in Gordes was spectacular and nobody fell off.”

“The abbey of Senanque was most inspiring and so quiet. I saw very interesting people like 3 nuns from India on a retreat. Their white habits stood out so much from the surrounding background.”

The carrieres-lumieres (quarry of lights) and the abbey have some similarities: it gave the same feeling of quietness and inspiration They were both cathedrals in different ways.”

“I painted a fruit market today and I was doing great until a truck came and parked between me and the market. He said he will only stay 5 min but he stayed 20 min so I never finished my painting. Nevertheless, I loved painting there and many people peeked over my shoulder to see what I was doing. Everyone was very friendly.”

‘It has been such a wonderful experience! The colors and the light here in Provence blow my mind.”

“This group is fantastic and I am glad I came on the trip and I am glad Bobbie and Carol came and I am glad Joanne is teaching, she is such an inspirational joy.”

“Everyone is doing wonderful work and it is hard to do when you are on the go. I am amazed on how everyone is doing her maximum.”

“I am taking tons of pictures to get a feeling of the place and be able to paint big paintings when I go home.”

“Today I bought a very powerful painting, made by a patient of the asylum where Van Gogh stayed. I am very excited about this painting. I just don’t know how I will get it home!”

“Since I have been here, I have felt more aware of the French culture and the friendliness of French people. I was moved when I heard a mother singing to her child  yesterday in the park. Some Americans think French people do not like us. It is so untrue. They are so friendly to us.”

“In this tiny village of Venasque where we are staying, we feel part of a family. Martine and Jerome, our hosts, are great. They make me feel at home, a guest in their home. Their meals are gourmet delicious. I am so happy to be here!”.

“Our daily picnics prepared by Jackie are fabulous. Jackie is such a wonderful driver, she is so calm and precious, she knows so much history, she is so cute and delightful as a guide, a real pleasure.”

Today we went to the biggest market tin Provence, the market of Isle sur la Sorgue.Isle sur la Sorgue is the little Venice of Provence, with canals all around the town.

The market is very colorful with tablecloth, poteries, shoes, clothes, jewelry, food, lavender products, etc…

Everyone bought little souvenirs…except Ann adn Pollie!!! They bought a big bag and of course many souvenirs that they hid inside.

I had asked people to only bring one medium suitcase per person because the space in my van is limited. Ann and Pollie didn’t follow my advice and came with the biggest and heaviest suitcases. Now, they bought an extra one!!! I think I will make them carry it on their lap on the way back to the train station……

The weather was very nice, in the high 80ties. We had another picnic in a small and quiet village of Oppede le Vieux, a real gem in Provence. I brought a folding table, a tablecloth that I bought in the market and everything else needed for a real French picnic.

JoAnne gave a quick lesson about perspective.

Then, Ann, Judy and I climbed to the top of the hill to see the 12th century church. Ann asked me to take a picture of her climbing as a proof for her daughter who always tells her to go out there and walk….Maybe her daughter is reading this blog?

Judy, who by the way has been called the general on this trip, sat on the stone that was used in the middle ages for animal sacrifices. That was just before she swallowed a fly while talking about how some people died at the Grand Canyon. This is true. Just like the song: “the old lady swallowed a fly”…oops, I didn’t mean that the general is a old lady!!!

Back home, everyone disappeared in her room for a shower or a nap while I wrote the blog. Tonight, we ate at home so we didn’t have to go out. Jerome and Martine, our hosts, are excellent chefs. They used to run a restaurant.

More tomorrow…

Jackie, the owner of www.frenchescapade.com

My season has started, this time with a watercolor workshop taught by JoAnne Anderson.

6 women from South Carolina, one woman from Michigan and one from California. Seven painters and one knitter!!!

Today was the first full day. After a typical French breakfast with croissant, baguette, jam, cafe…..(muesli requested by some but that is really not French!!!!), JoAnne gave some tips to the group about painting.

Then I toured them in the village, the very quiet village of Venasque, listed one of the most beautiful villages of France.

I went with Judy, the non painter, to the next village to shop for our picnic. After a very healthy picnic, everyone went off painting.

I was asked to pick them up at the cemetery. I drove there and nobody was there. I went back to the hotel but nobody was there either. JoAnne came with me to look for the rest of the group who was supposed to be painting by the cemetery. Nobody was there. JoAnne was sure she saw them earlier. How did they disappear? We thought we were losing our minds…maybe too much sun on our head or something. I finally saw a little entrance in the wall, I entered and right there, practically sitting on the tombs was our group. I can’t believe they were actually painting inside the cemetery and not by the cemetery looking up at our village. Judy was knitting, very quietly….in the cemetery. She said she wouldn’t do that at home. For some reasons, I believe her!

Oh well, the story has an happy ending.

For dinner, we went out (about 200 yards) to the nearest restaurant. Quite a view from the terrace. Everyone followed my advice: tasting the tomato tart tatin (see pic). A real treat.

An excellent day after all and an excellent group so far.

To see our itinerary and more info about our tours to France, check www.frenchescapade.com

Is Provence the lavender fields in front of the 12th century cistercian abbey of Senanque? In every tourist shop, you can find postcards of the lavender in front of the abbey even though the lavender is only there 45 days during the year.

Here is the picture I took yesterday:

Or is Provence, the small medieval villages without any tourists because there are no shops, ice cream places, souvenirs, etc…Just the cicadas and the sunflowers. Oppede le Vieux is one of them:

There is no right or wrong answer. Provence is what ever you like. I know what my Provence looks like. Of course!!!!!!The moto of my company is “Don’t be a tourist, be our guest.” Check my site at www.frenchescapade.com

Today, we ventured to Gordes, one of the most beautiful villages in France.  It is a hilltop village built in the medieval times. The bad news is that it is so beautiful that there are many tourists there.

That didn’t stop some of us to paint. Here, Barbara and Cathy are sketching the hilltop village. I call them the “A” students versus the ‘F” students who decided to go shopping in the village instead!!!!! Just kidding.

Below is the view Cathy and Barbara sketched. Sonja, the teacher was there too of course, but in a different shady spot. There weren’t too many of those unfortunately and the weather was very hot.

But France is not all about painting. It is also about eating. For lunch, we always do picnics. While everyone paints (or shops!!!!!) I go to the market and buy fresh veggies, fruits, salami, cheese, baguette. Eating outside with all the cicadas around is quite magical.

In the evening, we go to different restaurants or eat at the hotel. Food is superbe. Here is a picture of Linda H and Sonja sharing a lemon-meringue dessert. After tasting it, they wished they had ordered one dessert each. Too late!

Sorry for the delay in posting but we have very bad internet connection at the hotel, not long enough to post so hopefully today I will have enough time.

In the last post, I mentioned that everyone was going to make their own paint with the ochre from Roussillon. It was a process but not too bad afterall. You need to melt gum drops in boiling demineralized water and add it to your pigment. Here Sonja is showing Jan and Dianne the process of preparing the paint.

Below is a picture of lavender fields painted by Linda P (as you can see she is not using the paint they she made because there was no lavender paint. I guess you may say she is cheating……).

Everyone spent the day painting in the studio or almost. Some people disappeared for a nap or to go in the pool for a little while before coming back to the studio.

That was a good day relaxing before going out the next day.

More details of our itinerary of our tours to Provence on our site at www.frenchescapade.com

Our new group of painters has arrived. The teacher is Sonja Hamilton. This is her fifth trip with us. She taught twice in the French Alps, once in Belgium, last year in Switzerland and now in Provence.

Here she is in the middle of the lavender.

If you read my blog, you saw pictures of red poppies in May. Now the red poppies are gone and the lavender is starting.

From Left to Right: Jan, Cathy, Barbara, Diane, Sonja, Linda H, Linda P, and Diane.

The lavender was all around Roussillon, the ochre village. All the houses are painted with ochre so they are red. It is a very unique village.

The most adventurous, who were able to survive the heat, walked the ochre trail. Roussillon has the biggest ochre vein in the world, up to 15 feet. Sonja said that it also has the finest ochre.

The whole group bought some ochre pigment to make paint tomorrow. Apparentely, it is a slow process. Everyone will make her own paint and use it to paint a skech from …..Roussillon of course.

Here is a picture of the lunch bags Sonja made for everyone, with her paintings of Provence on them. Very nice.

Stay tuned for more, tomorrow!

Oh, if you want to join us next year, Sonja will teach again a plein-air workshop in Provence end of June when the lavender is there and there is only one spot left!!!!!!!!! Check our site at www.frenchescapade.com

Today was a gorgeous day in Gordes. This hilltop village is listed one of the most beautiful villages in France and rightly so.

We first went for a view from outside the village, on the “monkey hill”, name given by the villages to the rock where all the tourists stand to take pictures.

Then, I drove everyone to a more quiet place where everyone but Arlette decided to paint.

Here is a painting by Karen of the hilltop village:

This painting is a little shelter from the 19th century still standing, next to the road,  painted by Robin:

Bruni, the watercolorist, used her imagination to paint lavender, red poppies and more….

Julie, an other watercolorist on the trip, started to sketch way before everyone else was set up:

We had a delicious lunch with camembert cheese, walnut salami, blue cheese, cherries, fruits, rabbit pate bought by Julie especially for our picnic, etc…All under oak trees.

The afternoon was dedicated to shopping and everyone found treasures like donkey soap for Jeannie, tablecloth for Arlette, …

These tours are organized by my travel company.

Today, the weather is not great in Provence. It is actually raining. That doesn’t stop our painters. We have three watercolor painters (Bruni, Arlette and Julie) and four oil painters (Karen, Kathy, Robin and the teacher Jeannie).

They decided to put their easels in front of the big window in the guesthouse, facing the valley and the famous Mont Ventoux and paint the landscape.

I went to buy the picnic during that time.
After lunch, we strolled in the village, taking a lot of pictures. We visited the 12th century romanesque church from Venasque and the 6th century baptistery, the oldest in France.

They then decided that they wanted to see the cemetery. French cemeteries are very different than the American ones with huge thumbs, porcelain flowers, marble frames with poems, etc…

I then took them to a winery to do some wine tasting. We tasted (I should say they tasted) Mont Ventoux wines: a white, a rose and a red. It was mostly syrah grapes with a bit of grenache. It is called “Terres cachees”. Jeannie bought some for our daily picnics.

Everyone is now home, some reading a book in front of the fireplace. Soon we will go for dinner in a very charming place in St Didier.

If you would like to travel with us, you can choose either a cultural tour, a painting workshop or a painting trip to Provence.

My new group arrived. This time the art instructor is Jeannie Breeding, an art teacher from Colorado.
She came with her friend/student Bruni.

There are also 3 women from California, one from New York and one from Australia. Very international. So far, so good. Everyone is cheerful, happy and is getting along.
More tomorrow.