Pirogh Hesse

I did a small travel this week-end in Méaudre, in the Vercors massif, and tried to find some mushrooms. I funded very few of them but I did some sketches.

Fineliner-pen, about 21x15cm.

I did this week-end a travel in Martigny, Swissland, to visit an exposition about fauvism at the Gianadda fundation. The road crossed Mont Blanc massif, where I did some sketches.

Fineliner-pen, about 21x15cm.

I travel this week-end in Lovagny, Savoy, and painted a chalet:

Watercolor, about 21x30cm.

During a bike travel in Bavaria with saddlebags and camping tent, I did some sketches with a fineliner-pen and also painted on the spot in a small A4 watercolor sketch book that I've done myself, as described in my previous blog post Travel by bike. I started from Mulhouse, progressed along the Rhein and joined the lake Constance.

Then, I reached Füssen where is the famous Neuschwanstein castel by by Ludwig II of Bavaria.

I then turned north on the Romantische Straße during about 400 kilometers. I was impressed by the old cities, some of them with buildings from medieval times: Augsburg, Nördlingen and Rothenburg.

I finally turned west, reached Heidelberg and next Strasbourg.

Sketches, about 15x21cm. Watercolors, about 21x30cm.

Grenoble is surrounded by breathtaking scenery. One of them is la dent de Crolles: After a little travel, I put my easel by the river.

Acrylic, 50x65cm.

I participated to a painting workshop organized by Nadine-Nacinovic in his beautiful atelier in Drôme, close to the lavander fields and we painted on the motif.

Nadine gave us specific feedback on our work and insisted that we prepare, using a marker, several preparatory sketches, of which here is an example.

Acrylic, 50x65cm.

This painting is inspirated by the roman Pêcheur d'Islande by Pierre Loti (1886). More precisely, this painting illustrates a paragraph of chapter 8 in part 5 of this book: "Elle s'en allait toute seule à l'extrême pointe de ce pays de Ploubazlanec qui se découpe en corne de renne sur la Manche grise, et s'asseyait là tout le jour aux pieds d'une croix isolée qui domine les lointains immenses des eaux... Il y en a ainsi partout, de ces croix de granit, qui se dressent sur les falaises avancées de cette terre des marins, comme pour demander grâce ; comme pour apaiser la grande chose mouvante, mystérieuse, qui attire les hommes et ne les rend plus, et garde de préférence les plus vaillants, les plus beaux. [...] Et Gaud, assise au pied de sa croix, restait là, au milieu de ces tranquillités regardant toujours, jusqu'à la nuit tombée, jusqu'à ne plus rien voir". The full text of this roman could be freely downloaded in various format here.

Acrylic, 50x65cm, painted at l'ESAD.

Back from a family meal on mother’s day, I stop my travel at the Bourget lake to swim and make a quick watercolor, just before the storm begins.

At the end of April, Clematis opened on my balcony: I was so happy that I did a painting of one flower. Next, I did a travel to Lovagny, close to Annecy in Savoy, and visited the family. I also painted a chalet.

Watercolor, about 21x30cm.

In April, I did a travel a week long in Corsica. I first visited Bonifacio in the south of the island. I painted a view of its famous houses above the sea with watercolor in a small A4 sketch book that I've done myself, as described in my previous blog post Travel by bike.

Next, I went to the north of the Corsica island in L'Île Rousse. These watercolors are about 21x30cm and took about 1 hour each. I also prepared some postal cards, about 10x15cm, that I sanded to family and friends:

When walking in the maquis shrubland, I also draw quick sketches with a fineliner-pen, about 15x21cm and about 10' each of them. I visited a small portion of the GR 20 footpath that started in Conca crosses the island. I also walked in the Agriate, with scenic views over the sea and smell of flowering maquis in spring.