Beyond Excited!

I am beyond excited

about my upcoming art show

in Paris!

I've been trying to remain calm and stay focused on my work, but now that the time for departure is near (October 14th), I find myself dancing in my shoes without moving my feet. (Did I really just make up that saying? - But, it's the way I feel!)

There is a Facebook Page for the exhibit & reception created by the venue; the reception will be held November 12, 2014, at 6:30 p.m. Please share the news with your friends who might be able to attend; I'm sad that my U.S. friends won't be able to be there with me, but I am certainly intending to make new friends while I am in Paris. I love art receptions!

I've been working hard printing all new beautifully colored prints for this exhibit, and I'm very happy with the results. I will have all the new café prints uploaded to my website before I leave, so you can see the results of this labor of love.

The image, above, is of the café table at La Caféothèque in Paris. Their coffee is superb! You can see the bag of coffee beans I bought and the delicious latte I was drinking when I made this sketch. Très fantastique!

Un café, s'il vous plaît 

Lino prints of the café experience by René Shoemaker La Caféothèque de Paris 52, Rue de l'Hotel de Ville Paris, France November 12, 2014 - January 7, 2015 Reception: Tuesday, Nov 12, 6:30 pm

Do You Love to Travel?

 

Travel is a gift - do you feel the same way?

To explore a new place; even if it's in familiar territory.

To sit in the sun on a street you've never been to before.

To notice that the trees you are seeing on the horizon are totally unlike the ones you pass on your way to work every day.

To smell unrecognized spices wafting from a restaurant on a crowded city street.

To recognize the hum of conversation all around you, but maybe not all the words.

To sit at a quiet café on the corner of Rue Cassette & Rue de Rennes

                                                                                                            in Paris, France.

  ******

My cafe' prints and I are traveling to France soon for their exhibit starting November 10, 2014 at La Caféothèque in Paris. A selection of the prints are currently on exhibit at The Grit, in Athens, Georgia through October 5 for you to enjoy now.

Urbino, Italy

The new owner of my sweet painting-on-silk of the piazza in Urbino, Italy, of a view looking through the town at the hillside beyond, asked me to write about the painting, and the experience that inspired it:

Urbino was a Roman town that eventually became a center of learning, sophistication, and the fine arts in the 15th Century. It is located towards the north of Italy, an hour from the Adriatic Coast. The great artist Raphael was born in Urbino; his father was court painter for Fredrico da Montefeltro (1422-1483), the Duke known for supporting the arts who lost his right eye in a tournament, and would only allow his portrait to be painted showing the left side of his face.

My daughter, Kate, studied Art History & Italian at the University of Urbino (founded in 1506!) for the academic year 2004-2005, and we visited her there during Thanksgiving-time. A few kilometers from town we stayed on a farm overlooking the beautiful rolling Italian countryside. A Giant Schnauzer named Ula lived on the farm, and she would visit us every evening, come in, and stay awhile. In Urbino, I had the best hot chocolate ever - it was dark & thick, thickened with potato starch! Besides the hot chocolate, I must say it was wonderful to be in an Italian hill town with its Renaissance Architecture and fabulous use of space. The hills were steep & the pathways winding, and there was one main street, Via Giuseppe Mazzini, that seemed to go straight up into the sky. The views revealed at the top made any climb in the area well worth the effort.

Roujan Hillside-Languedoc Roussillon, France

Shown here is another view of Roujan, which I introduced to you earlier with the paintings of the Roujan Medieval Quarter, and in another street scene (with the Volkswagen). This view is from the bottom of the hill while standing between the soccer field and the wine cooperative; the school is in the forefront, and at the top of the hill is the town bell tower made of wrought iron.

One evening, as we explored the perimeter of St. Laurent Churich in the twilight, the priest offered us a personal tour of the building, along with stories of the history and architecture. On the feast day of the patron saint, St. Lawrence, the sunlight shines in a small window, illuminating the rose window at the back of the church.

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

Illustration: Roujan Hillside, Roujan, Languedoc-Roussillon, France. 2014. Hand-painted silk twill. By René D. Shoemaker