Paul de Longpré

The self taught artist Paul de Longpré was my inspiration 

to take up watercolor painting.

I fell in love with a large watercolor painting of roses, 

bumblebees and butterflies that I had the joy of viewing 

at the Irvine Museun years ago.

What a pleasure to spy one of his originals 

currently on display just inside the 

entrance to the  Laguna Art museum.

It is the inspiration for my latest ceramic creation currently being fired.

When it comes out of firing any touch up needed will be done and a clear finishing glaze.

Then it becomes the perfect serving piece for the annual 
Art in the Garden Party 

held here each May at Summerland Cottage.

Paul de Longpré (1855–1911), was a French painter of flowers.

He was born in Lyon, France in 1855

 In 1876, at 21, he first exhibited at the Paris Salon. 

De Longpré arrived in Southern California with his family in 1899. He found inspiration in the 4,000 rose bushes he planted on his 3 acre Hollywood estate.

.

Kauai

Kauai is known as “The Garden Isle”

for its tropical rain forests,

fertile valleys and lush abundance of flora.

The island seems to be teeming

with numerous varieties of exotic flowers and plants

the showy red ginger, the magnificent torch ginger,

sensational birds of paradise, sweet smelling plumeria

and hundreds of species of orchids,

and an endless supply of vibrantly colored hibiscus varieties.

Kauai is like a gigantic tropical botanical garden

with inspiration everywhere you look !

Take time to play with your friends, nurture your heart and feed your soul.

Happy Summer !

A little back story.

A dear friend and fellow flower enthusiast that I have known since I was 17

lost her sweet husband suddenly 3 months ago.

In one of our late night conversations

she mentioned that she always wanted to go to Hawaii.

I googled, I researched and within 2 weeks we were " living the dream ".

We spent one sweet week together in gratitude and friendship.

Magenta and yellow color scheme

this is how one thing can lead to another...

beginning with these beauties found in the garden

and natures color scheme

add in miscellaneous found scattered about the studio

next thing you know the lid to one of my bisque boxes is being decoupaged

using the graphics from a decorative napkin torn to size

with a little watercolor painting added to accentuate the pink

& complete the look

more about playing with napkins on bisqueware here

Another watercolor

.

This one I did from a photograph,

unlike the others in my journal that I sketched and painted on site.

I like this one well enough to frame.

.

Mediterranean Travel Journal

I kept a journal of all the charming places and people

I met this past 2 weeks

My adventure began in Rome and continued through

some of the Mediterranean's

and Adriatic's most unique ports,

including Monaco in France, Portofino, Sorrento,

Corfu in Greece, Split in Croatia,

Slovenia, the island of Malta and my all time favorite Taormina.

The journey coming to an end with several days in Venice.

While visiting Corsica, France

I had an opportunity to do a water color of the Cathedral

Santa Maria Assunta in Ajaccio

I loved all the architectural details on this building in Portofino,

it is called Casa Dei Leoni

as there are 4 large concrete lions guarding the entrance.

Nearby the town of Monaco is the sheltered bay of Villefranche sur mer

where I painted this view from a shady town square.

The main square in Sorrento is the Piazzo Tasso.

This is my rendering of the statue of San Antonio Abate.

Directly behind the statue is the Corso Italia,

one of the most beautiful streets in Sorrento.

Welcome to Valletta,

Malta with the oldest free standing structures in the known world,

megalithic temples on Malta date from circa 3250B.C.

a mass of honey colored limestone with a history larger than life.

Marsaxlokk is Malta's main fishing village.

It is the best place to see the colorful traditional Maltese fishing boats,

the luzzo, with the mythical eye of Osiris

( Phoenicians' god of protection from evil ) painted on the prows.

With a latte and the waiters ball point pen

a rendering of an ancient cathedral located in Saint Trupiano Square,

Kotor becomes my subject matter.

This was a quick rendering of the coast as our ship was pulling out of port

and circling around slowly with one last glimpse of this ancient town

I step out side the crowded ancient Roman palace

built between 295 and 305 by the emperor Diocletian

as his place of retirement in Split, Croatia

and find a quiet place to paint in the large square

with the beautiful water fountain.

I stop for a respite and latte at a sidewalk cafe

and sketch a rendering of the architectural details

on the building across from the bustling square.

Just having fun with paints and adding the eye of Osiris in the sky...

Portofino Painting

Grateful to return home to my own little seaside paradise

after exploring so many other ports across the globe.

A ripped page from an Italian magazine becomes the perfect canvas

for a fun watercolor painting

I created while visiting the colorful town of Portofino, Italy

Art in the Garden Party

The guests were greeted with

sunshine, blue skies, and cool ocean breezes...

The perfect garden party weather

{ Photo credit top by Pat Klotz and below by Robin Cambre }

There was a constant flux of camaraderie, creativity and conversations...

Sherry Ford's lovely watercolor rendering of the garden fountain was created...

The swing was a favorite perch,

and the talented Lorenzo George gifted the guests with conte sketches

by 6:00 cocktails with excited afterglow conversations were enjoyed

then an impromptu dinner was created and served alfresco style in the courtyard

the party finally coming to a close at 10:30 pm

having been enjoyed by all...

Here is a snap shot of Mary Aslin's pastel painting begun in the garden

(see top photo of her working on this piece )

& more Art in the Garden Party here