I did this painting in oil just before I left for France, to sort of get myself in the mood for plein air painting.  Ironically, the heat and low humidity this day in CT were very much like what I was to encounter each day in Provence, so it served as a good “warm-up” for the trip.  It’s called “Apple Blossoms at Farview Farm” and was painted on a friend’s property in CT.

Apple Blossoms at Farview Farm

Here are a few more of the plein air studies I did in Provence.  One is of the “Dancing Trees” in the morning light, the next is of the scene looking north from the wooden drawbridge outside Arles that Van Gogh painted many times, and the last is a little study of some potted herbs outside the door of the monastery’s dining room.  There was a warmth to the air in this region that made everything glow with a slightly peachy light.  Also, wild herbs grew all over the place at the monastery, and the air was always scented with wild thyme blossoms.  Pretty close to heaven, IMHO.

Dancing Trees II

View from Van Gogh’s Bridge

Herbes de Provence (SOLD)

Well, I’m back from 8 days in beautiful Provence, painting the countryside with a group of plein air pastelists.  We stayed in a monastery not far from Arles and Avignon, called L’Abbaye de St. Michel de Frigolet, and each day took a painting excursion to a different locale, including Nimes, Arles, Les Baux, and the Camargue coastal region.  We also spent a few days painting the hills and meadows of the monastery property, including what we called the “dancing trees” which were trees whose trunks were tilted as a result of the strong Mistral wind that blows through the Rhone Valley.  Here’s one of my plein air paintings of the beautiful afternoon light of Provence as seen through the trees at the monastery.

Lumiere de L’Apres-Midi