Showing posts with label landscapes of Provence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label landscapes of Provence. Show all posts

Thursday, September 29, 2011

"Rue de la Fontaine, Roussillon", 10x8, oil on linen

"Rue de la Fontaine, Roussillon", 10x8, oil on linen

Roussillon, the ochre-colored village in southeastern Provence has dramatically different architecture than other villages in Provence since its buildings are derived from ochre colored rock rather than the limestone we are so used to seeing associated with Provence. Its history is fascinating as well, and you can read about it here if you are interested in the Moors, and Catalans and the Crown of Aragon, since it's after midnight and I am too tired to write about it myself!

If you are interested in this painting, please send me an email at maryannejacobsen@aol.com.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

"Blue Door-Provence", 5x7, oil on board-by Maryanne Jacobsen, paintings of Provence, blue doors

SOLD

"Blue Door-Provence", 5x7, oil on board

What's not to like about Provence?

Old medieval villages perched on mountainsides like teetering wedding cakes bask in the golden sunlight all year long- the limestone turning from orange to soft pink as the sun sinks lower into the horizon at sundown. Bright blue doors and shutters provide just the right impressionist vibration against that orange glow of the old walls, and the various mountain ranges (Alps, Vaucluse and Luberon) fade to soft purples and grayish blues as they recede into the distance of the backdrop.

I recently finished Deborah Lawrenson's beautiful book, "The Lantern", and I have wanted to do another painting of Provence while her vibrant imagery of the region is still fresh in my mind. The setting for this modern Gothic romantic novel is Provence, and I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves all things Provence! Please check out the book here, and take a moment to visit Deborah's lovely blog here.

I hope to do more paintings of Provence in the future, and Deborah was generous in sending me some photos of that glorious golden light falling into bewitching patterns across her lovely property in Provence. The scene above is typical of the little villages that can be found throughout Provence, each having their own distinct personalities. As an impressionist painter, I am very envious of that lovely soft, diffused light quality that pervades the Mediterranean region.