Sleeping Under the Stars - Auvergne, France

This was a fabulous place where we camped for quite a long time. We went, we stayed, we left. We returned. We stayed. We loved it. Rolling hills, beautiful cows, shooting stars. It is in the middle of the country, almost equidistant to Paris, Spain, the Mediterranean, and the Atlantic Ocean.

The colors in this painting are very bold because I feel really, really good about this place.

[Art on exhibit now of my French experience at Aurum Studios in downtown Athens, GA for the month of February. ‘Widening the Horizon’ with Suzanne Gernandt, textile artist extraordinaire, of Waynesville and Asheville, NC.]

Illustration: Sleeping Under the Stars. Chenerailles, Limousin, France. 2014. Hand-painted silk charmeuse. By René D. Shoemaker

Paris Rooftops

Who doesn’t love the rooftops of Paris? Even if you have never visited Paris, most likely you have seen photos of the Parisian roofline. If you can get up high, and look out a window, or standing on the top of the Pompidou Center, the Eiffel Tower, or Notre Dame, your eye travels as if you were looking over a field or a valley. Most of the Paris building heights are relatively standard, creating a space that feels good for people in the street. Somehow this rooftop view is quite romantic, and adds to the attraction Paris has for those who love it there.

This is the view out the back window of our apartment where we stayed - not very romantic maybe, but pretty beautiful anyway. I watched the moon travel the sky from this window, and saw the stars sparkling in the night.

[Art exhibit now at Aurum Studios in downtown Athens, GA for the month of February. ‘Widening the Horizon’ exhibit with Suzanne Gernandt, textile artist extraordinaire, of Waynesville and Asheville, NC. Reception: Thursday, Feb 6th, 6-8 pm, 2014 - this week!]

Illustration: Rooftop . Paris . 14th.  Hand-painted silk charmeuse. 2014. by René D. Shoemaker

Rue Campagne-Première - Paris - 14th

Some of the best parts of the trip were when we did something that was absolutely normal, yet somehow different, because of the fact that we were in a different country with a different language and different customs.

And now, here I am, back in the States, sharing these images of my experience with you. There are only two days until the art reception at Aurum Studios, where you’ll be able to see all this paintings for yourself. But only two more days allows only two more images that I can share with you until that time. How can I choose just two?

This painting was inspired by the laundromat on the street where we stayed. I enjoyed doing the laundry there and soaking up the atmosphere. The neighborhood was great. I would go back in a heartbeat.

[New art exhibit up now at Aurum Studios in downtown Athens, GA for the month of February. I am sharing the space with the fabulous textile artist Suzanne Gernandt, weaver extraordinaire, of Waynesville and Asheville, NC. Reception: Thursday, Feb 6th, 6-8 pm, 2014 - this week!]

Illustration: Rue Campagne-Première . Paris . 14th . France. Hand-painted silk crepe de chine. 2014. by René D. Shoemaker

Wine Merchant's House - Roujan, France

As we walked around exploring the village of Roujan in the heat, we noticed the cool recesses of the bays - an example of which you see here behind the VW. The wine merchants built these houses, and farmers used to deliver their grapes into the wide bays, where the grapes would then be made into wine. Now the farmers use a cooperative; in Roujan, it is a big building on the edge of town, down by the soccer field. As a silk painter, I am always searching for the perfect red. Come see this painting in person, and tell me how close I’ve come to reaching my goal.

[New art exhibit up now at Aurum Studios in downtown Athens, GA for the month of February. I am sharing the space with the fabulous textile artist Suzanne Gernandt, weaver extraordinaire, of Waynesville and Asheville, NC. Reception: Thursday, Feb 6th, 6-8 pm, 2014 - this week!]

Illustration: Avenue de Pézanas (VW) . Roujan . Languedoc-Roussillon . France. Hand-painted silk crepe de chine. 2014. by René D. Shoemaker