One of our last painting locations during the workshop in Provence was an olive grove. Provence is known for its olive groves, some of which have trees that are hundreds of years old. The olive trees are a quintessential element of the landscape. What's more, their twisty limbs and silvery leaves have captured the imaginations of painters in the South of France for over a century. Vincent van Gogh is one such artist. Here is one of his paintings, painted in St. Remy, about an hour from where we stayed:
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| "Olive Grove" Vincent van Gogh, 1889 |
Olives like full sun, and in case you have not had the occasion to stand in an olive grove in August for three or four hours, I can tell you---it's HOT! And the olive trees don't cast a very big shadow for shelter. Despite the heat, some of the strongest paintings of the workshop came from this location. Here is Rachel Egen at work on her painting...and the finished painting is below.
(c) Rachel Egen
One of the most fun things about painting with a group is seeing the different way that each person interprets a scene. Everybody has a unique "take". My hope in sharing images of the other paintings is to allow you to share in this fun. I especially liked this one by Audrey Scherr, and its wonderful bold foreground:
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| (c) Audrey Scherr |
Last by not least, here is my set up, with my finished painting, at the end of the session. As you can see, the easel is definitely listing to the right. It's a miracle that either of us were still standing after all those hours in the hot sun! You can see the finished painting here.
Fellow workshoppers, are you reading?? Coming up next: the final post on the workshop in Provence with Maggie Siner.
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