Sorry but when I get a chance in a million to interview someone called Art, I then find it impossible to resist this title! (Although, as his family name is Guerra, it did cross my mind to go “Make Art, not War” but then again… this is supposed to be a serious blog so… maybe…
in bed with… two generations of Escodas!
Freshly made from sustainable ingredients in an ethical manner, seeped in olive oil and family tradition… might not be words you immediately associate with your brushes! And yet, there is a family in Spain, on the outskirts of Barcelona to be precise, who have been making elegant and intelligent brushes (yes, yes that too!) for…
the oldest profession in the world?
Could my trade -swapping something useful to me (money!) for something useful to you (colour!)- be the oldest one human beings have ever exercised? Based on a National Geographic article: The first artists, how creativity made us human, that is totally the case… One day in 2000, Christopher Henshilwood and his team dug out in…
to you my reader…
whoever you might be… you are one of the first lovely persons who have subscribed to my blog/site and… never heard from me again! Contrary to appearances I have been working very hard: first taking over a charming artist residency in Provence, the Ateliers Fourwinds, while still running our beloved art store/centre in Byron Bay,…
What is Art?
Cafe philo Byron Bay, this Friday April 4th, theme: What is art? How could I resist. Of course I went. A wonderful facilitator and philosopher from Sydney was there, to help the discussion going and to help the new born branch with a few practical hints as to how one runs a cafe philo. These…
Along the Left Bank of the Seine…
you can now browse into not only two but three amazingly charming and interesting art stores. Across from the Louvre, 3 Quai Voltaire, there has always been -since 1887 anyway- the delightful Sennelier shop. Sennelier is still the most comprehensive of the three stores as it represents not only their world renown brand of watercolours,…
Gouache… a cheap paint only for kids?
We’ve all played with these little discs of colour when we were young (and probably not kept very good memories of our experience)… that paint was gouache. However there is more to gouache than we might remember… please read my Gouache page which I’ve just finished!
No pastel… no CRY!
Amazing!! While some still think drawings inferior to paintings… a pastel has become a few days ago the most expensive artwork ever sold (nearly USD 120 millions). Well maybe it’s time to rethink that one and perhaps too a few more pastels will be sold worldwide in the days to come! GOOD… Apparently that version…
My “oil sticks” page is done!
Check it out! Simply click here and you’ll get to my OIL STICKS page and -hopefully- to everything you might want to know about oils sticks… including what is an oil stick, what is the difference with an oil pastel, how you can use oil sticks, how to take care of them, what you can…
in bed with… myself
I love this photo of me! Man Ray, who was a friend of my parents, took it in 1966 and I remember very well sitting very still in that wide chair in his wild studio. I was terribly shy then but I think he did capture some of the boldness-to-be. Around that time, I also…
My favorite books about colour…
Here is a list of my favorites. I’ve given them a number C (for colour) 1 / 2 / 3 etc so that if I quote them somewhere else in the blog, I don’t need to retype the whole reference… I hate typing (haha for a former secretary, graphic designer and now blogger). Please remember…
In bed with… David Coles (and Louise!)
They are both artists. He also makes lovely paint and… she sells it! How is this for symmetry and perfection? Well, at least on paper, all is well in the best of worlds. In reality, things are very very busy… Louise has just finished the Christmas tree in the shop (decorated with dried coloured swatches…
in bed with mona lisa 