Hi Everybody

We have just spent a lovely few weeks in France, both in Provence and the Lot et Garonne, and a lot of places in between!

Very hot weather and lovely times with friends and family , at the pool, on the beaches, in the mountains, and visiting some beautiful places as we travelled around.

Now back I can get down to creating a blog of the paintings I managed to fit in during our travels, and I hope you will enjoy looking at them. In such hot weather watercolour paintings becomes a bit tricky and speed is really necessary if the paint is not to dry out too quickly. Of course many photos have yet to make it to watercolours but over the next few months I should be able to produce some more!

The Lot and Garonne is a quiet part of France in the South West, not far from Bordeaux in the Aquitaine region. It has many lovely small towns and villages and wonderful rolling countryside covered in farms and homes. It is popular as a holiday home , or permanent home for many UK people who enjoy the relaxed life style of the region.

In the past we have visited this area quite few times and this time  we once again stayed with some good friends who live there all the time.

I have included a painting in this blog from previous visits to give you flavour of the towns and villages.

Of course our first stop was at our usual haunt on the Cote d’Azur where the temperatures were really high. I managed a few paintings whilst there and these are some of them.

Evening in Haut Provence. Watercolour 14 inches by 10.

A Yacht approaching St Tropez. Watercolour 14 inches by 10.

Yachts racing at St Tropez. Watercolour 14 inches by 10.

And so to the Lot et Garonne

Quite near where we were staying is the market town of Villeneuve sur Lot.

It has a good position at the river and this watercolour shows the view back towards the town.

Villeneuve sur Lot

Only a few kilometres from Villeneuve is the small village of Pujols en Haut. This is one of the prettiest villages in the region and maybe in all of France. A good place to browse,have coffee and admire the lovely Village. Pujols was sacked many centuries ago which apparently led to the creation of Villeneuve. 

International banners flying in Pujols en Haut. Watercolour 14 by 10 inches.

One of the features of the towns in Lot et Garonne is that many are Bastide Towns. They often have a surrounding wall and are laid out in a regular pattern. One such town, and one well worth visiting, is Monpazier, this painting was done on a previous visit but it gives a flavour of the Town Square in the centre of Monpazier.

The Square in Monpazier. Watercolour 12 by 9 inches.

After visiting Lot et Garonne we returned to Fayence in Provence for another great weekend with friends.

Fayence is a hill town and boasts many fine restaurants nearby. We really love “Temps de Cerise” and “La Table d’Yves” where the food served and the service are just great.

Enjoy your travels

Brian

Fayence. Watercolour 9 inches by 7.