French Art School - Part 3

vanessaosborneart
Sep 3
4 min read

I woke up that first morning in La Forêt and truly had to pinch myself! I still couldn’t believe how lucky I was to have this experience, and knowing what lay ahead was so exciting. For me, this trip was all about the painting, and I wouldn’t have cared if that was all I did! I got myself ready for the day, and the three of us staying at La Tonnellerie made our way up the hill to l’Hirondelle for breakfast with the others.

We were welcomed to table laden with all the good things in life... Croissant, Pain au Chocolat, crunchy baguette, platters of fruit, cheese, honey, orange marmalade and jam – and let’s not forget the creamy butter with sea salt crystals! I definitely made the most of these delicacies. While in France...

(Photo: Vanessa Osborne Art, 2024)

The flowers had already been worked into gorgeous arrangements by Lizzie, our talented in-house floral artist and fellow French-Art-Schooler. They were just stunning and completely intimidating to think we were going to be painting them very soon!

We eased into the art experience with charcoal drawing and creating some loose sketches using paint. Definitely a great way to shake off any cobwebs and get warmed up for the days ahead. Our little sketch books started to look loved and we had painted some colourful and pretty little poppies and tulips on boards. Before the end of the day, we had our big canvases drawn up and ready for painting the next day. That first painting was probably the hardest thing we had to do. Starting with a blank canvas is always a challenge, but they ended up beautifully and we were well and truly warmed up! After that I was ready for anything. This first painting was using oil paint as they would need time to dry, and the weather really was not on our side (cold, rainy and cloudy does not make for ideal drying conditions for oil paint!).

(Photo: Vanessa Osborne Art, 2024)

Leading up to this holiday I was watching the weather forecasts closely and it was looking like France was very much like Adelaide – cold... except over there it was raining... It was Autumn in Adelaide, and in France, Spring had not properly sprung, and sunny warm days were rare. I was painting, and I did not overly care what the weather was doing, however, there were some welcome breaks from the rain that we took advantage of. Although La Forêt is a small hamlet there are plenty of roads to explore - and many walks were taken. There are no shops in this tiny place, but it did not matter to me. The peaceful serenity was well worth it. Every building has its own character and, I’m sure, many stories to tell. Walking along those roads I in constnat awe of how their ‘weeds’ are flowers that we would pay good money for. There were buttercups, bluebells, and Queen Anne’s lace (or Queensland Lace as it was quite often called – a tongue twister indeed!), and many others! Dear Lizzie was very diligent with 'floraging’ and made up the most beautiful bunches of these wildflowers to add to our collection of still life subjects.

(Photo: Vanessa Osborne Art, 2024)

Exploring Aigurande

Despite the rain and cold we bravely went out to explore nearby towns (and some of us, the coffee shop!). Not far from La Forêt is Aigurande, another commune with a larger population. It is more of a small township and is the closest go to place for basic shopping and supplies. In the middle of town, a market is held every Friday. There are stalls of vegetables, fruits, meat, cheese, plants, flowers and fabrics. I was immediately drawn to a little plant stall with gorgeous potted roses and dahlias! The colours and sizes of the blooms were amazing. Sadly, I could not bring them home with me.

(Photos: Vanessa Osborne, 2024)

Rebekah and I were keen to explore the narrow streets of the town, again, amazed at the charming stone buildings and the history - some of them dating back to the sixteenth century. Whether it be stonework or ironwork, there was always a rambling rose to be spotted, staking its claim on an obliging wall or fence. Had we been there just a week or two later, we would have seen the full amazing show of spring blooms.

(Photos: Vanessa Osborne, 2024)

This town is home to at least two brocante – one of which we had to wait until a respectable hour to open (like 10am). It was bursting at the seams with shelves of treasures, and we didn’t have nearly enough time to explore it properly. One would need at least two hours. The second store was operated by an American ex-pat – a lady who had made France her home. (**Note** for next French adventure – remember to bring empty suitcase for random treasures). Very different to thrift stores back home which are often full of 'plastic fantastic’ and random items trending from the mid-century and retro classics. Here you will find family heirlooms dating back many decades, ranging from embroidered linen, old-world tableware, classic patterned glass, forgotten treasures from grandma's china cabinet, and much more.

A day of thrifting really leaves one feeling rather peckish! We quickly learned that our beautiful hostess and artiste extraordinaire would be spoiling us rotten with the most amazing desserts. After all, we needed this sustenance to fuel our creativity!

(Photos: Vanessa Osborne, 2024)

An afternoon of creativity

Feeling rather inspired by what we had experienced, we returned to La Forêt to paint some beautiful blood oranges and were left wondering why didn’t we buy some of those gorgeous French linen tea towels we had seen earlier that day! Painting was all about productivity in this setting. Setting up a still life using props that were readily at hand. Metal bowls, linen cloths and freshly sourced fruit, set the scene for our afternoon’s task, and then happily painting away the hours.

(Photos: Vanessa Osborne, 2024)

After an eventful and busy day, we were treated to another deliciously satisfying meal lovingly prepared by chefy and start preparing ourselves for the next adventures. Until next time!