watercolour – Page 29 – Africantapestry

Posted on January 6, 2009 by Myfrenchkitchen · 23 Comments

Fish

We had snow yesterday. Not very normal for us to have snow and so much of it, so it’s a big thing. Even bigger for me…what does a South African know about snow? I know when an elephant is going to charge… Last night at nine I even drove to the train station in the snow, forgot a little bit about brakes and speed when I got to the roundabout and slid “gently” into the curb. No problems, I was the only fruitcake out there. Off to the train station again early this morning, better equipped with common sense and humility and even dared turning off to buy a fish or two. I wanted to paint fish on this beautiful snowy day, inspired by Jeanette’s fish and then Katherine’s fish a while ago. I skidded home (safely) and took out those fish.

From top to bottom: Dorade grise, Truite rose, Sardine bretonne. Done in watercolour and pen on Fabriano artistico HP.

…found in the snow…

Posted on January 4, 2009January 4, 2009 by Myfrenchkitchen · 9 Comments

A river to discover

The swans were back this year after 3 years of absence – a quick sketch in the moleskine done in pencil and back home worked over with gouache. I have never worked with gouache and after buying a beautiful sketchbook (Baie de Somme by Laurent Somon – Ronan Olier) done in gouache, I wanted to try it too. See some of Ronan Olier’s work, which I love! I find it a strange medium and feel very stupid with it, which resulted in a completely overworked effort.

…swans…

The Watermarks project stirred up a desire I’ve had for a long time, but which always got pushed to the back of my list. Discovering and researching the Loire.

Living right next to it, it forms a big part of our every day life. In summer I stress about the extreme low level of the water and in winter I stress about being flooded away rooftop and all. In winters, it welcomes the gray and embraces the cold and I want to run from it, but it’s hypnotic powers keep drawing me to it, to the mystery that envelops it. In summer, I revel in its blue water and noisy birds and green foliage and crazy busyness.

One of my projects(I still have to run into the others..) will be to trace the Loire back to it its origin, snaking alongside it down to where it finally joins the Atlantic ocean in the west.

If interested, continue reading here…

Posted on January 3, 2009January 3, 2009 by Myfrenchkitchen · 22 Comments

Clowns

I sat around a coffee inTours the other day, then still the Old Year, waiting for our youngest who got her hair trimmed. All around me in the brasserie hung these clowns along with clown paintings. They made me giggle. A clown does that. And they make me sad. But these clowns can’t make me sad. Because they aren’t real. And because it was the last day of the Old Year. I didn’t want to end the year sad and I want this year to be filled with much more laughter. I didn’t laugh enough in the previous one. And so the clowns worked their way into my moleskine.

May we all have a year overflowing with good, old fashioned, unashamedly wild laughter and may we laugh the hardest at ourselves.

…haaa ha ha ha ha ha!…

Sketches in moleskine, pen and watercolour.

Posted on December 18, 2008 by Myfrenchkitchen · 22 Comments

A perfect road.

When I look back on the road I have followed, life had forced me on many occasions to make difficult choices. (Do easy choices exist?) True to my nature of reflecting on the past, I often wonder where and what I would have been had I chosen the opposite direction. I don’t believe we make wrong decisions (given of course that we make a decision for the right reason) , only different ones: some leading us into learning curves, some leading us down the path of pure joy, some into unwanted hardships… But in spite of all my wondering where the other road would’ve taken me, I am content with where I am now. Is it perfect? I have no idea. How can we ever be sure of perfection? Something can always be worse and it can always be better. And tomorrow perfection might even be different. Art. Motherhood. Love. Sadness. Happiness… Today, my happiness of 26 years is perfect.

I’m taking a break for the rest of the season to spend some time with my family and do deliciously illegal things which only this season allows – eating cookies and foie gras and chocolate, champagne, lazing by the fireplace…

Sorry for being so slack in visiting and commenting, I’ll make up for it! I wish you all a wonderful Christmas with tins full of cookies!

Posted on December 13, 2008May 17, 2009 by Myfrenchkitchen · 17 Comments

A mountain house called Coin Perdu.

A few weeks ago we did the final signing for a little house, Coin Perdu, in the mountains in Corréze. It dates from the 1880’s, was built by the farmer himself, then handed down to the son and we bought it from the granddaughter, who inherited it from her brother. Complicated. Like all French administration.

We’ll be doing some restoration, keeping the spirit of the house with all the fixtures and just adding some modern day comfort and running water. I’ll keep a journal of this whole process, as we’ll be rolling up our own sleeves, climbing the ladders ourselves and stacking the stones ourselves.

We were down there this past week to meet the mayor: an interesting woman with a charming accent and an obvious love for chatting. We asked permission to buy a stretch of “municipal road” that goes through our propery. (for peace of mind) Nobody sees a road, it is somewhere in the brush, but because it is shown on the map, it does exist. Therefore it has to be put before the community of 200-something inhabitants of Puy d’Arnac, to contest should they “need the road”. Complicated. French freedom.

…coin Perdu…