YULE LOG!

My attempt at a bûche de noël this Christmas. Since Antoine was not able to be with his family this year, I wanted to make sure he had some of the familiar French traditions.

I was excited that this came out the way it did! Flourless baking and lots of eggs for this recipes!

Joyeux Noël!

Tu Me Manques, Paris

Recently completed working on a fun project that called upon my Parisian relationship. I was working on a few backgrounds for an animation. How could I say no? Will clue you in more about the project when I am allowed.

Here's something to wet your whistle!

Le Studio Mobile

I've been puttering along on a an assortment of projects, whilst I've moved the studio to France for a month. Sounds fun, which it is... but also limiting. I finagled my way to be working on only black and white projects, since I've had difficulty finding the right aerosols and turps to work on my oils over here. So, hopefully, I can keep posting a few of the things that have crossed the ol' desk, but I think it is time to show some good ol' fashioned photos!

Around the Town

Well, my stay here in Paris is yet again coming to a close. I've actually gotten out this time to see a bit of the sites, and it was marvelous to see the holiday season come and go. New Years seems so long ago. Before I sign off, I wanted to share a few pictures of these past few weeks. The first assortment are from Printemps window displays. I think they were somewhat inspired by À la croisée des mondes : La Boussole d'or (otherwise known as the Golden Compass). Here are a few pictures of the diplays.


The above picture is one of the animatronic displays they have each year. This year they had white Nordic stuffed animals, dancing and partying to some twinkling music. They were pretty amazing. The past years have included robots and dish ware, too. Because I did not want to fight the mad crowds in front of the windows, nor stop late at night to be accosted by a smelly bum, I didn't take any video, but this fantastic person did! Thank you crazy person who elbowed their way to the front!

Augustin Pajou statue sketch

Bacchante au tambour de basque avec deux enfants, by Augustin Pajou.

Another Successful New Yeras... *hick*

Oh, just teasing! I did succeed in having another tame New Years, which makes me very happy. We arrived in London on December 31st by Eurostar which was a might comfortable ride. After wandering around a bit at the National Portrait Gallery, trucking down into Trafalgar Square, and almost flying out of the double decker bus (they drive like MADMEN), we ended up at Vauxhall. Passing the Royal Vauxhall Tavern that early evening, no one would have thought it a raging club, but by 11:45pm... "wow" is the only word to describe it. Bald men beware that night!! We made our way down to the banks of the Thames to see the fireworks in front of the London Eye, and appologetically the pictures are quite lame compared to the experience. It was a mighty fun time, even if I was ankle deep in river sludge. The next day, on the way back in to the city, the RVT was still thumping. Impressive for 3:00pm, and still enveloped with bald men. All and all it was a 26 hour visit, and I didn't get to see the more popular sites of London, but from what I saw it seems like a very fun place. The pubs are beautiful there, all with awesome names like the White Cross, Slug and Lettuce, or Pig and Prawn (or something like that). Perhaps one day I will be able to go again. Cheerio and pip pip!

Oh cheerio, it's but a wee jaunt to London!

Well, got to London and they threw this parade for me!! Oh, how silly. I am teasing. But it does look like I will be heading to London for New Years night after all. I'm pretty excited because I haven't been able to add another country to my list in sometime. England is totally foreign to me, and even though my family jokes that I am the great world traveler, I so am not. I mainly return to places I am comfy with. So after a few baguette and cheese platters, the train takes off around noon tomorrow. May I wish everyone a very safe, very merry New Years Day! And remember, there's no better feeling than to awake with out a smashing headache. I fully intend to make it the 4th consecutive sober's eve.

Cheers et bisous à tous!

More Pan-O-ramas

Gare du Nord, Paris France. 2006.

A Warm Day in October

Sologny and surrouding areas, France. Les lézards were so awesome darting in and out of the rock walls. I also saw my first big land snail. I was very excited, and they are now one of my all time favorite animals.

Oh My CloClo!

I particularily like the peepee snowball throwing dance.

For those of you wondering, who is this Claude guy and why does Kelly hate light bulbs, here's your answer!!

The son of an Italian mother and a French father, Claude François was born in Egypt, where his father, Aimé François, was working as a shipping traffic controller on the Suez Canal. In 1951 the job took the family to the city of Port Tawfik on the Red Sea. Claude François' mother was very musical and had her son take piano and violin lessons. On his own, the boy learned to play the drums. As a result of the 1956 Suez Crisis, the family returned to live in Monaco, where they struggled financially after Claude's father fell ill and could not work. A young Claude found a job as a bank clerk and at night earned extra money playing drums with an orchestra at the luxury hotels along the French Riviera. With a good but untested singing voice, he was offered a chance to sing at a hotel in the fashionable Mediterranean resort town of Juan-les-Pins. His show was well received and eventually he began to perform at the glamorous night-clubs along the Côte d'Azur. While working the clubs, he met Janet Woolcoot, an English dancer whom he married in 1960.

Ambitious, Claude François moved to Paris, where there were many more opportunities to pursue his career. At the time, American Rock and Roll was taking hold in France and he took a job as part of a singing group in order to make a living. With the goal of eventually making it as a solo act, he paid the cost to record a 45rpm. Trying to capitalize on the American dance craze "The Twist", Claude François recorded a song titled "Nabout Twist" that proved a resounding failure. Undaunted, in 1962 he recorded a cover version in French of an Everly Brothers song, "Made to Love" (aka Girls Girls Girls). Written by Phil Everly, it had been only a minor hit in America, but Claude François' rendition titled "Belles Belles Belles" rocked to the top of the French charts, selling close to two million copies and making him an overnight star.

A dedicated professional, Claude François worked hard to achieve success producing a string of massively popular hit songs and touring constantly. With the onslaught of Beatlemania, he covered their hits in French, adjusted the hair style a little and kept his success moving ahead. But his talent extended beyond copying the works others had made famous, and he wrote songs for himself and displayed a melodic voice doing romantic ballads.

In 1966, François created a complete new stage act using four female dancers as backup. Named "Les Clodettes," the sexy girls danced in the background while François did his own energetic work center stage. In a return to the Paris Olympia he added eight musicians and a full orchestra to his backup dancers, putting on a spectacular show that filled every seat in the large theater and left fans standing in the street for lack of tickets.

Divorced from his wife, in 1967 he began a relationship with France Gall, another famous French singer. Their affair was short lived and he soon met Isabelle Forêt, with whom he had two sons in two years. Flushed with enormous success and confidence, he established his own record company. In 1968, he and Jacques Revaux wrote a song in French called Comme d'habitude, which became a hit in francophone countries. Canadian singing star Paul Anka reworked it for the English-speaking public into the now legendary hit most famously sung by Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra as "My Way". Although Claude François continued his successful formula of adapting English and American rock and roll hits for the French market, by the 1970s the market had changed and the disco craze that swept North America took root in France. For the versatile François, this was not a problem. He simply re-invented himself as the king of French disco, recording "La plus belle des choses," a French version of a Bee Gees hit record.

He worked non-stop, touring across Europe, Africa and at major venues in Quebec in Canada. However, his workload caught up with him in 1971 when he collapsed on stage from exhaustion. After a brief period off, he returned to the recording studios, releasing several best-selling hits throughout the early 1970s. He expanded from owning his own record company to acquiring a celebrity magazine and a modeling agency. Although driven to achieve financial success, in 1974 he organized a concert to raise funds for a charity for handicapped children and the following year he participated in a Paris concert to raise funds for medical research. By the mid-1970s he was single again, dating several well-known European stars. He continued to perform while overseeing his numerous business interests. In 1975, while in London, he narrowly escaped death when an IRA bomb exploded and two years later a fan tried to shoot him. In 1977 and 1978, more than 15 years after his first hit record, he was still topping the musical charts with multi-million sales from hits such as "Alexandrie Alexandra" and performing to large audiences.

After working in Switzerland, on Saturday, March 11, 1978 he returned to his Paris apartment in order to appear the next day on "Rendez-vous du Dimanche" with TV host Michel Drucker. His demise was caused by his obsession with cleanliness and order. He was accidentally electrocuted when he tried to fix a broken light bulb while standing in a filled bathtub. At only 39 years of age, his early death brought a wave of public sympathy for a national French star.

A Little Lily Growing in the Sun

Attention à la Marche!!

Around noon everyday, I settle in to work and to watch my favorite game show. I do like Millionare, but Attention à la Marche is head to head. The reason? Les Potes (translates as "buddies")! They are these crazy CGI dancing blobs that are so rediculous, I can't stop laughing. Basically, it's a guessing game, kind of like Family Fued in the States, where they typically poll people and ask the four contestants what they think is the right percentage. Some of the questions are really easy, so a bit harder. Why I like it, is that they show the question written and then also say it and talk about it. Putting my visual learning skills to work. Oh ok, it's the blobby Potes! At the end, I quite haven't figured it out. The four contestant eventually lose deux potes, making them sit out for the rest of the game. The person who makes the closest guesses to the answers keeps their potes and head on to the final round, where they are asked a series of questions. The last question has four tv screens and they have to pick the correct number, where an amount of money they won lies behind the correct answer. The slow-motion shot of their reactions is just icing on the cake.

So Attention à la Marche, thank you... or should I say mercy buckets!
There are more beer reviews coming up, too, so stay tuned!

More Sketching

This is a sketch that a friend had requested for a special little lady. now, it's a little mushy for my taste, but it's what was desired. Going off my theme of sad girls and water, this is a coquettish girl with frozen water... maybe it's similar? She should be sad and then it would make me happy. But don't listen to me.

After living here in Paris for a month, I'd like to say I am happily acclimated. The langauge is still tricky, but through watching gameshows and documentaries, I feel I am picking up on certain words faster than before. Speaking it... I am still worse than a 2 year old. It's mildly amusing! I've been working alot these last few weeks, which has forced me indoors. The weather being so nice today, I decided to give myself a bit of a break to go with Lily to discover my neighborhood. It's so nice. My favorite buildings are the older ones, with small windows and balconies, made with wood frame and stucco. So pretty. I want to start drawing them ALOT. The flowers are really coming out here now, with even the magnolia trees starting to bloom. Small daisies sprinkly the small grass greens as well.

Habits I really want to keep when it's time for me to head home:
-Walking
-Using canvas bags when shopping instead of plastic
-no more drinking 2 liters of Diet Coke a day
-take time off on the weekends

Things I will enjoy when back home:
-Grossly long showers, where I can take 2 steps left and right and not be assaulted by a shower curtain
-My mum
-My Mama (the cat)

Les Cimetières de Paris

Slowly but Surely

So, the spray I got, made by Talens didn't quite have the result I was hoping for. I bought two types. One Picture Varnish Glossy for Oil Colour and the other Acrylic/Oil Colour. It works the same as Crystal Clear over watercolor, but when trying to use either over the oil layer, disaster!! So, my search continues for a Crystal Clear source, but I will have to continue with the watercolor techinique. I've had some very helpful people give some guidance on supplies here in Paris, but the spray remains elllllllusive.

The BHV proved to be a great source for art supplies... and everything else that I would like to buy! My new favorite store, thanks for the recommendation Maral et Antoine! I almost dropped 100 euro in the children's book department. I only wanted a lightbulb and those tempting books almost broke my budget. There is something substantially different about the illustrative look in european childrens market. I can't nail exactly what it is, but I like it... ALOT. Enough that it makes me want to bust the hump more and show some stuff to these publishers. I have some summer plans for a better portfolio though, so perhaps we'll wait.

I did some sketching this weekend after visiting some of the city's cimetries... but the scanner is misbehaving. I hope to have it up and running tomorrow. Sheesh! It might be time for me to bite the bullet and get myself my own laptop. We'll see.

In the meantime, here's my new setup. Still hunched over, but enjoying the bustling street below.

Working Away!

Well, things are going along smoothly, for the most part. I took off two concecutive weekends, something I haven't done is potentially years. It feels a bit weird, but I am getting to like it! Mostly just getting used to the neighborhood and some creepy window displays. This number here was in the Antique Market at the Louvre. Some funny stuff in there, but I'd basically have to sell most of my family members to afford anything.

Also here is the first sketch for the third season of Shakespeare on the Sounds poster for Comedy of Errors. But, as I type the sketch is headed in a different direction. I hope to be painting this by weeks end, and finished early next week. YIKES

And just to keep you posted, I still freeze like a deer when people talk to me in french. I feel like a slow motor starting in the wintertime. Pauvre bête.

Salut from Boulogne!

Oh my gosh, it's been forever since I've written and I appologize. The weeks after the holidays were out of control busy, so I am now just getting a chance to write. I'm finally in France and finally settling in. Phew! Somethings I have to share with you if you ever plan to make a move to a foreign country:

1.) Companies don't like to ship aerosols. Imagine that. I've taken shaving cream on planes, but ooooooh no, you cannot take any art supplies. Crystal Clear is beyond essential in my painting process so I've had to find where it is sold in Europe. It basically ISN'T! So I found some watch polishing company in Switzerland who said they would ground ship it to my address, but that was over 2 weeks ago... and no crystal clear. I found an alternative though at Crea in the Saint Sulpice area, and it's called Picture Varnish Glossy. I'll keep you posted on it's results.

2.) French customs makes me laugh again. So, landing in Charles de Gaule with Lily... I had all my papers ready to show customs. You know, the papers I spent over $200 getting and over 2 months planning for. So I ask the agent about who I show them to... his face was amazing. It was a cross between, "Please go away" and "Who the hell cares about a little dog". So needless to say I laughed and walked on through. I still was paranoid and went to the baggage agent. She said the SAME thing. I am now super paranoid that Lily will not be allowed back into the states. I've called the USDA and they were equally as rude, saying they had no idea and they only dealt with exports. *sigh*. I've also contact the US Emabassy here, but no word back from them either. Next up to contact... the French Embassy. If they come and break down my door at 3am and steal my dog... learn from my mistake and just shut your mouth. I've told Lily that if they detain her, I'll start a fund and hire the best lawyers.

3.) Prepare for the smallest bathrooms and showers when you are here. I love that this place is VERY space conscious and actually has minimal waste regarding trash, but you have to draw the line when your shower is a maximum of 14" in diameter. But you know what? It's not so bad after day one.

Other than that, I am finally settling in and have a bunch of projects I am working on. The third poster for Shakespeare on the Sound is next and I will be sure to post pictures of it's progress. Sorry for the lapse in writing, I pormise to keep up and keep sampling some brews! I had one that had a pelican on it, but I forget it's name. Darn it... I'll just have to enjoy another one to remember!

If Only I Was a Claudette

I just had to share this. I'm part horrified, part JAZZED that I am spending time in a country who's produced wonders such as Claude François. Is it just me, or are they crumpin'? Le telephooooone pleure!

Glug Glug Brugs!

Ok, so you really pronounce it broozh but I needed a clever rhyme. I sampled this tasty brew this past September in Paris. And you guessed it, another Witbier. I am in love with them. Or I am in love with those magical beer chemist Belgians... As I was starting my research for this review, I kept typing B-R-U-G-E-S, and only information about the city was presenting itself. Turns out, I wasn't so far off, with it's close ties to that very city. This witbier, small in bottle stature, was monstrous with flavor and ease, which is why I am spotlighting it today!

Brugs is a white beer from Western Flanders, based on a traditional Brabant brew. The name comes the Flemish "Brugs Tarwebier", which means "White beer of Bruges". Brugs was first brewed by Jan Hugheins in 1455 in Bruges, Belgium's answer to Venice. The city consists of 40 bridges over the canals, very reminiscent of that certain Italian city. Every bottle of Brugs bears the "golden tree", harking back to the trophy traditionally awarded to the knights that won the tournaments held in the city back in the Middle Ages. How rad, huh? I found this snippet about the tournaments:

In July 1468, Margaret of York, sister to King Edward IV of England, was married to Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. This great dynastic marriage was marked by processions, pageants and banquets, so magnificent that contemporaries marveled at the wealth and splendour of the Burgundian court. The highlight of the celebrations was undoubtedly the tournament - the Pas d armes de l Arbre d Or (tournament of the Golden Tree) - held in the Market Place at Bruges in the shadow of the famous tower of the Market Hall.
Anthony, Count de la Roche - 'Grand Bastard of Burgundy' - undertook to defend the golden tree against a succession of challengers for eight days, jousting against each one for half an hour, with the winner being the knight to break the most lances in the prescribed time.

Someone tell me please, why is this spectical isn't performed at weddings anymore? It would sure beat seeing old aunts pop hips out to "YMCA". Apparently, in Bruges they've made a pageant around the historical event, one that I might HAVE to go to in 2007. It looks amazing.

The beer is pale yellow, slightly cloudy beer with a refreshing tartness. It's made from wheat and hops and is seasoned with bitter orange and coriander. It's is unfiltered, as with all beers on lees (yeast), which allows it to keep the natural cloudiness given by that very yeast. Often served with a slice of lemon as all my deliscious witbiers, Brugs has very low bitterness and a dense, creamy head. But the main reason why I decided to feature the beer is because on their packaging, they give you coupons to buy MORE Brugs! Now, call me a boozebag, but I think that's just amazing and courteous. One might even say.... chivalrous!

Santé or Op uw gezondheid!

Encore, encore!

A few more pictures from my trip. I plan on using alot of the buildings in an upcoming dummy.