Seaside sketchbook

The vielle ville of Villefranche-sur-Mer is exquisite, but I have battled with the colourful palette painting here demands. In the Lot, the houses are stone and for the most part, the shutters are either grey or brown. The landscape is green, green and more green.

Here the houses are every shade of yellow and red and some are even blue and turquoise, and the sea is emerald, blue, pink, grey, silver and even gold depending on the time of day.

By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea...

A little escape to a late summer in southeast France: a painting holiday in Villefranche sur Mer. View is from the small apartment of lovely new friends (students from a 2008 watercolour workshop) in the old town.

Bad weather caught up with me today so tomorrow its off to Italy...

One-eyed gargoyle

Sushicat lost an eye this summer. He gets a kick out of spooking unsuspecting tourists, posing as a gargoyle.

Cat naps

Here are some of my drawings from last Monday's sketch evening. Alisa was actually wearing a two piece bathing suit, but I ignored it. It is very important for the model to feel comfortable posing in front of a group of painters. If the models are self-conscious, they make the whole evening uncomfortable and awkward for everyone else. But as I have not been running these evenings very long, I can't often find experienced models to pose for us.

This was the first time Alisa had posed, and she was terrific. She was very relaxed: almost like a cat stretched out next to the fireplace

Oh Happy Days!

Four years ago I flew back to the US to vote the day before the election, and fell asleep as the returns were still coming in, secure that the country was turning blue, but woke up to four more years of W. I packed up my apartment and bags and moved to the country of cheese eating surrender monkeys. (OK ok, the fact that my lovely apartment had been turned into a windowless cellar had something to do with it.)

Last night I didn't take any chances and stayed up till 5:30 am. I chewed my fingernails to the bone, worried that inherent racists and tax-stingy plutocrats would sway the election, no matter what they or the polls said.

This morning I woke up singing and am sitting here in front of my computer looking at the photos on The New York Times website, tears streaming down my cheeks! This is the happiest I've been since I voted for Madiba!

It's pissing with rain here but my day is full of sunshine! Wish I was there to celebrate.

Oh HAPPY DAYS!