Bathed in Color -- Art Projected

Our trip last week took us to Carrières de Lumières in Les Baux de Provence.

We visited two years ago when our sons were in France. Now we had the opportunity to take Grace and Jack. 

Love these blues

The show changes twice a year. When we went before, it was Pop Art along with Picasso and the Spanish Masters.  We preferred the Pop Art because it was so cheery and the music was upbeat.
This time, the exhibit was Gaudi and Dali.
The Gaudi exhibit started first. I loved it.

You can imagine how it feels to stand in these colors. 

Gaudi, of course, is the architect for the famous basilica -- La Sagrada Familia --  in Barcelona

We could visit the basilica while hundreds of miles away in France. 

The colors make the old mine come alive.

Earl had to go back to the car because he had his prescription sunglasses on and wisely figured he might need his regular glasses in the dark. So he missed the beginning of the Gaudi exhibit. I insisted he stay for the next one so this is what it looked like as I filmed it. It begins with Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue." Heavenly.

As the music plays and the art comes to life, people can walk around, moving into different areas of the exhibit. Because of Coronavirus, everyone was required to wear masks and we had our temperatures taken before we walked in. They also limited the number of people inside the building so we were able to avoid others.
The second exhibit was Dali, and I'm intrigued by Dali, but have to admit that he is much stranger.

Most of the music they picked for the Dali exhibit could be traced to the 60s and 70s, like Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall," which wasn't bad.

The music and pictures are a bit more intense in this one.

After watching the exhibits, we wandered to the open air cafe for drinks. The air outside was clear, the sky an eye-watering blue.

Here's a picture we took earlier that day at the Pont du Gard. 

How lucky were we to see the exhibit and then return to a fabulous day as we drove to Aix en Provence for the night? 

Dreaming of France -- What do you love about France?

Thank you for joining this weekly meme. Grab a copy of the photo above and link back to An Accidental Blog. Share with the rest of us your passion for France. Did you read a good book set in France? See a movie? Take a photo in France? Have an adventure? Eat a fabulous meal or even just a pastry? Or if you're in France now, go ahead and lord it over the rest of us. We can take it.

This morning, as I drove my college son back to college, because he had missed his bus, he asked me why his father and I hate the U.S.
"We don't hate the U.S.," I hastily said, and he knew that already.
We don't want to move to France because we are unhappy with the United States, we want to move to France because we love it.
Mostly, people could say, "Of course, you love France. You've only been there on vacation."
But I did spend three months in France working as an au pair, so I have some experience working in France.
While there, traveling from Corsica to Bourges, we spent a few days in Aix en Provence. A relative we were staying with, took me to the main street of Aix -- the Cours Mirabeau, and while we explored shops along this street, I had a strange tugging at my heartstrings, as if this was the place I belonged.
I've felt that every time we traveled there.

Here's a plaza in Aix en Provence

We also appreciate the culture in France -- the importance of long, slow meals. The emphasis put on education and music and art. The value of spending time with family and friends.

Enjoying dinner at a Moroccan restaurant with friends in Aix en Provence. 

A musical interlude by our friends' children. 

 And all of these things draw us to France without even talking about the food and wine.

Without even considering the beauty of the diverse scenery throughout France and the glory of the history.

We biked across the Pont du Gard, a Roman-built aqueduct in southern France. 

We realize how fortunate we are to live in the United States, to have been able to raise our family here, to earn a good living that may allow us to move to France in the coming year.
What do you love about France?

Thanks for playing along with Dreaming of France. Please leave your name and blog address in Mr. Linky below, and leave a comment letting me know what  you think about my love affair with France, or your own passion for the country and its people and cultures. Also consider visiting the blogs of others who play along so we can all share the love.

Dreaming of France -- Waterlilies

Thank you for joining this weekly meme. Grab a copy of the photo above and link back to An Accidental Blog. Share with the rest of us your passion for France. Did you read a good book set in France? See a movie? Take a photo in France? Have an adventure? Eat a fabulous meal or even just a pastry? Or if you're in France now, go ahead and lord it over the rest of us. We can take it.

I saw Monet's Waterlilies when I visited Paris as an au pair. Then for years, we were unable to see them as Paris redid l'Orangerie. I was so happy when it reopened and I could show them to be husband. They did  not disappoint.

Have you visited the display, or even better, Monet's gardens where he painted the waterlilies?

Thanks so much for playing along with Dreaming of France. I'd appreciate if you'd leave a comment and visit the blogs of others who decide to play along too. That way, we can all experience the joy and beauty of France.

WEBPAGE!

I know, I'm probably the last person in the United States to get a website, but I'm very excited about it.

I've been working with the guy who created it to perfect it. The home page was a little blah, so I decided to use paintings as the buttons. It made me realize how little I know about art. I was doing image searches with things like "artist who throws paint" which was Jackson Pollock, of course, I just couldn't remember his name. I never did find the name of the artist who uses dots.

Magritte was an easy choice. I love his clearer than life painting. Hopper was another artist I wanted to use. I was leaning toward a painting of his that shows a woman sitting in front of a table with a cup of coffee for "About Me." But she looked so depressed. I didn't want everyone to think I'm that sad. So instead I went with a Seurat. I think it's a Sunday picnic painting that looks a little formal for my life. I did use a Hopper painting for the "Home" button. It shows a woman looking anxiously, maybe anticipating something fabulous, out of a gorgeous bay window. We're buying a new house in the next month or so. Maybe I'll have a window like that as I peer out the window, waiting for the perfect offer to come from a publisher.

Stop by my webpage and look around. Hopefully, all the changes will be made today.