Collioure sera toujours Collioure
4/27/2011 12:51:30 AM
Collioure is a village in southwest France, not far from the border with Spain. Facing the blue Mediterranean, it commands a fantastic view of the ocean from almost anywhere in town. Come here on a bright day and allow yourself to be embraced by the warm sun and caressed by the sea breeze, and you may not want to leave. It's no surprise this village has been attracting many painters, too, and some ended up living here for a while.
If you arrive here from other parts of France or Spain, you will notice there's a good mix of both worlds in [...]
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National Watercolor Society 2011 All Member Exhibition
4/25/2011 1:26:43 AM
It is with a great pleasure that I announce the inclusion of my painting in the upcoming exhibition of the National Watercolor Society.
I am honored that Juror Marciano Martinez has chosen "Marseille St-Charles II" for the 2011 NWS All Member Exhibition. The show runs from May 15 to June 12 at the NWS Gallery (915 S. Pacific Avenue, San Pedro, CA). The opening reception will be held at the gallery on May 15, from 2 to 5 pm.
Marseille St-Charles, France II
Click here for an enlarged view of this painting.
Media: Original watercolor on paperImage Size: 15 x 22 inches (38 x 56 [...]
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Harbor Café, Marseille III, French Landscape Painting
4/22/2011 11:04:56 AM
This is my third painting of the same sidewalk café right in front of the Old Port in Marseille in the south of France (click to see Harbor Café I & Harbor Café II). For this painting, I focused on one particular area of the café where the contrast of light and shadow caught my eye. Sunny spots just sparkled under the strong Mediterranean sun, and that's where I left the white of the paper. Then I dropped various warm and cool colors in the shadowy areas, so the white would shine.
Situated where the far end of the Old Port and [...]
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Gardanne, France III, French Landscape Painting
4/20/2011 12:09:42 AM
Gardanne is situated just south of Aix-en-Provence. Compared to the more famous and lively sister to the north, it is a sleepy, small village most travelers seem to pass through. I went there, knowing that this is the only village painted by Paul Cézanne, as I wanted to walk on the same streets and feel the air. He actually lived here briefly during the years he stayed in Provence with his family.
Most of the village is built on and around a hill. It was a very hot day and I tried to stay in the shadows of the houses as I [...]
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Cours Mirabeau, Aix-en-Provence, French Landscape Paintings
4/15/2011 4:59:13 AM
Le Cours Mirabeau is a main thoroughfare built on the old ramparts in the city of Aix-en-Provence. Houses on both sides, constructed by wealthy families, are from the 17th and 18th centuries. Many are elegantly decorated and they are beautiful. I think Le Cours is one of the most attractive avenues in all of France, so it doesn't surprise me that it's always crowded with visitors and locals.
When you arrive here and see busy sidewalk cafés, shops and restaurants, you may immediately feel like you are transported to the Champs-Elysées or the Left Bank in Paris. But this is Provence. Start [...]
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Eiffel Tower, Paris II - French Landscape Painting
4/12/2011 7:34:01 AM
Eiffel Tower, Paris II
You say it's an absolute beauty and one of the first things you must see in Paris? Rather, you are of the opinion that it's such an eyesore you can't stand it? There seems to be two kinds of visitors to Paris when it comes to their opinions about the Eiffel Tower. Whether you take one side over the other (or fall somewhere in between), wouldn't you agree that Paris wouldn't be the same without it?
Weighing 10,100 tons, soaring 324 meters tall, it is a massive structure, and I must say that getting an up-close-and-personal look at the [...]
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American Watercolor Society 144th Annual International Exhibition
4/10/2011 6:24:25 AM
The American Watercolor Society's 144th Annual International Exhibition opened on April 5 in the Salmagundi Club in New York City. I am very pleased that my painting, "Downtown Kyoto, Japan XXI" was accepted into the show and is now on display through May 1.
The jury of selection was chaired by Jim McFarlane and consisted of other nationally-recognized watermedia artists, Elaine Daily-Birnbaum, Don Getz, Carla O'Connor, Stephen Quiller and Janet Walsh. Having the opportunity to exhibit my work in such a prestigious show is an extreme honor for me.
Downtown Kyoto, Japan XXI
Click here for an enlarged view of this painting.
Media: Original watercolor [...]
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Paris (#30) - Tram, French Landscape Painting
4/9/2011 9:39:57 AM
Paris (#30) - Tram
The state-of-the-art trams are a fairly new sight in the cityscape of Paris (Tramline T3 opened in December, 2006). Compared to the city-wide Metro network, the tram service is still limited as it only covers the 13th, 14th and 15th arrondissements in south Paris. However, many stops along the line also connect to metro or suburban railway lines, so it can be very useful if one wants to avoid driving into the city.
Given the increasing popularity of this modern transportation system in many cities around the world, maybe we will see more tramways running across the City of [...]
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La Grande Dame de Paris, French Landscape Painting
4/5/2011 11:05:31 AM
Old Neighbor, Paris II
People living on this street have had this brown, 324-meter-tall neighbor for quite some time. She just celebrated her 122nd birthday on March 31. One of the most popular iconic symbols of Paris, she's often referred to as the Iron Lady (la dame de fer) or La Grande Dame de Paris. At the foot of the Eiffel Tower, thousands of people from all over the world line up every day to pay tribute to her.
Having such a famous neighbor could mean a lot of traffic or visitors to this area, but for the residents on this street and [...]
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Paris (#29) - Le Marais, French Landscape Painting
4/1/2011 10:28:53 AM
In the heart of Paris, on the Right Bank, there's a historic district called Le Marais. This area used to be where aristocrats lived. Long after they moved out, we can still feel their influence from those days in many old architectures around here. Today fashionable boutiques and lively sidewalk cafés and restaurants are attracting many tourists and younger people who fill the streets. The atmosphere here is full of life.A narrow alley in this painting is a stone's throw away from Rue des Rosiers, a main street in the Jewish quarter inside the Marais district, where Jewish bakeries and specialty [...]
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