We had a house-sitting opportunity in Roujan - what a wonderful way to experience an as-yet undiscovered part of France! Roujan is in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France, near the Mediterranean Sea. The weather was hot while we were there - can you sense the heat in this painting?
We were in Roujan long enough to feel like maybe, just maybe, we were residents there and not just visitors. The wonderful woman we house- and cat-sat for lived in the Medieval Quarter - the streets seemed about 5 feet wide, and they were winding and cool in the shade. Vineyards surrounded the town in flat fields and rolling hills. It was fabulous cycling territory!
[New art exhibit up now at Aurum Studios in downtown Athens, GA for the month of February. I am sharing the space with the fabulous textile artist Suzanne Gernandt of North Carolina. Reception: Thursday, Feb 6, 6-8 pm, 2014]
Illustration: Medieval Quarter Street View . Roujan . Languedoc-Roussillon . France - hand painted silk twill - by Rene Shoemaker - 2014
My favorite street in Paris is Rue Bièvre, on the Left Bank, in the Latin Quarter. The street is short and it winds, giving an air of mystery and intimacy. Walking from Boulevard Saint-Germain direction, you come out to the Seine River, with Notre Dame Cathedral sitting right in front of you, a huge presence in the river, looking over the town of Paris. A canal from the Bièvre River used to run along where the street is now, and the river was the source of water for many dye and weaving houses. President François Mitterand lived on Rue Bièvre - he had good taste, too.
In our building in Paris the top turn of the wooden stairway was so beautifully worn, so beautifully hand made, so varnished by so many feet over so many years, that I was struck by the glistening patina every time I walked the 4 floors to our apartment.
When we left Paris, we began driving southeast in the car we had outfitted with a mattress and cooking supplies. I was so happy to be on the road again after the month in the city - breathing fresh air, seeing space, blue skies and fields. Spent the night at Troyes, in the Aube Department. That night we had sheep bahhing us to sleep. We definitely were not in the city anymore!