Aix with friends

Last year in Rouen we met a family with whom we became fast friends: Rebecca, a transplant from Oakland, California, Eric, originally from Aix-en-Provance, and their then 2-year-old daughter, Emanuelle. They were a lifeline for us in Rouen and we were thrilled when we heard they'd be in Aix this summer, with their 5-week-old son, Issac.

Since they have a newborn, we mostly stayed close to home, though Eric led us on a brief tour of the older part of Aix (as a local, he was appalled by the newer, trendier side). The rest of the day was spent playing in the beautiful pool and eating (of course). Eric introduced us to a local specialty, La Tropezienne, a custard-like cake that I'm still thinking about. It was definitely one of the best cakes I've ever tasted.

The following day, David, Anna, and I went to see the other half of L'Atelier du Midi at the Granet Museum. This summer has been an interesting art experience for me. Though I've been chasing my familiar favorite 20th-century-modern masters, it's been a few artists who were unknown to me that caught my attention. I've got a list of names to research when we get home, including Emile Othon Friesz, Raoul Dufy (whose name I knew, but not really his work), and Henri-Charles Manguin.

Friends, Marseille, and a new plan

The beautiful Musée Des Beaux Arts in Marseille.

This past week our friends from Paris came to visit. I've written about Curtis, Leila, and Lily-Rose before (here and here). This week was a mix of business and pleasure (Curtis and Leila have just launched a new business). In addition to introducing them to Arles (and our monster mosquitos), we fit in a trip to the beach and a day in Marseille to see one half of the Modern Art exhibition Le Grand Atelier du Midi (David, Anna, and I will see the second half in Aix-en-Provence this Saturday).

Here are a few highlights:



Waiting for the train.


More of the Musée.


Stairwell at the Musée des Beaux Arts.


The port of Marseille. Approximately 110 years ago my great-grandfather (Paul Rappaport, age 8) boarded a ship headed to Pennsylvania from this port.




In Arles, at the Espace Van Gogh.




Looking up, at Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer.

As for our new plan, we're ready for some big city action (and more art, of course!) so we're headed to London for a week. I was only briefly there 25 years ago, and David's never been, so we're really excited. All the new museums!! (ok, that part may just be me!) From there, we're going to take the Eurostar to Paris and stay in Curtis and Leila's apartment while they're traveling. One thing we've learned from this house-swap is that we're much happier in a city. Next time!

Les Baux-de-Provence

The village seen from the castle ruins

Last week we took a short drive to Les Baux, the site of a now-ruined castle perched on top of the rocky Alpilles mountains. The area was inhabited by the Celts around the 2nd century BC and was the seat of a feudal lordship in the Middle Ages. The castle has a really rich, varied history, ending with it's destruction ordered by Cardinal Richelieu in 1632 (all this from the wikipedia site, if you are dying to know more).

We were with our friends from Portland, and the girls were real troopers. It is a huge site, and it was a bloody hot day, so we even though we were there for hours, we only saw a fraction of the ruins.
















The highlight of the day, at least for me, was a trip down the hill from the castle to Les Carrières de Lumières, the site of a former rock quarry that has been turned into an amazing sound and light show. Apparently the show changes annually — we were lucky enough to catch one featuring Monet, Renior and Chagall, although many other artists were represented. Imagine walking into a massive rocky quarry, with walls 40-feet high, and rooms hundreds of feet long. You're in total darkness for a moment. Then, one by one, the walls around you are covered with art. The art is constantly changing though, in time with the music that's also filling the space. You are free to roam around the space, every moment a new discovery. We stayed for at least an hour, and had the pleasure of discovering a 2-minute-long bonus show with images from nature starting with a storm in the quarry and ending with a trip through space. The whole thing was fabulous.





Can you see Anna spinning Mattea around in the foreground? The girls began dancing to the classical music the minute we entered the quarry.






Anna and David become part of the art.


In some cases the projections went along the floor as well.




The walls “filled up” with water starting at the bottom. Here we are surrounded by floating jellies.

Sketching

Last year when we came to France I brought tons of art supplies, most of which sat untouched all summer. This year I decided to keep it simple; I brought a small sketchbook and a few pencils and it's been a revelation. I sketch everywhere: in museums, in parks, but especially at the beach. Having really only ever drawn models who stay still for many minutes, I had no idea how much people really move around. I'll start in on a sketch and a few seconds later, the pose is gone.