From 2006, a crayon drawing made in Paris. I believe I was sitting on a bench in the Tuileries Garden during the afternoon. Nice memories.

Greg Betza ©2013

I think that was the last time I just forgot about it all, and yet it was all right there. The hardest part is losing yourself when you are surrounded by so much.—Dominick

Remembering my last trip to France.

The Hall of Mirrors was under construction at the time, but that didn’t prevent it from being magnificent.

-Despina

With all the news surrounding Lance Armstrong and the Tour De France these past 2 weeks I was reminded of my last trip to Paris in 2006. Here is a drawing from Montmartre.

Greg Betza ©2013

the cobblestone streets                     open the senses                   and it appears

an edible rapture of delight

peers through the window dressed in the finest of lace

an innocent invitation?

or touched by temptation?

select wisely young one .. une charlotte, des profiteroles, des beignets

there it is! .. the flawless Pain au Chocolat

can it actually be my favorite?

UNDENIABLY

perfection in design.

I watched the Lance Armstrong / Oprah interview last night and it reminded me of a drawing I made at the Tour de France in 2006…and what I did with it once we learned that Floyd Landis had been stripped of his title.  -Despina Georgiadis

A painting/drawing made in Paris.

©2012 Greg Betza

I’ve always loved working with watercolor. Here is a reportage painting made while sitting in the gardens at the Palace of Versailles in France.

It’s an amazing place.

©2012 Greg Betza

DID YOU KNOW?….nicknamed “La dame de fer” (the iron lady) when built for the 1889 Exposition Universelle (World Fair), the Tour Eiffel faced massive opposition from Paris’ artistic and literary elite. The ‘metal asparagus’, as some Parisians snidely called it, was almost torn down in 1909 but was spared because it proved an ideal platform for the transmitting antennas needed for the new science of radiotelegraphy.

Above is a drawing (and a thumbnail) I did during my last visit to the magical city of lights. – michele

This is the drawing I made thinking about the Luxemburg Gardens. My mother always talks about this place when the topic of Paris comes up because she spent the day there by herself while I was in school. So in a way, I drew HER favorite memory this time. ~Despina

As I continued my walk past the winery through Montmartre (in my memory) I found and drew some steps. I remember walking uphill, the Fall leaves and how I wondered where those steps led to. ~Despina

Sacre Coeur, Paris France.

Eddie Peña

Picture making 101…lines, marks, texture, emotion and wonder. Could there have been a more beautiful environment available for the Impressionists than the gardens of France?

Drawing by Michele, medium: watercolor, pen and ink, water-soluble crayon

Location: The Tuileries is Paris’ oldest and most lavish garden. Its royal roots stretch to the 16th century, when Marie de Medicis commissioned a palace behind the Louvre. Henry IV and Louis XIV would pursue construction and the palace housed the last monarchs of France, until it was burned down in 1871. The elaborate royal gardens remained.

There is nothing like drawing on location.  I can still remember how hot it was that day. How beautiful, sunny and excited I was just to be there.

Eddie Peña

Forgive me in posting a little late today, (been crazed with deadlines and diapers). Just love this drawing though and thought it worth a share. 

 Drawing in graphite, pen and ink in the Picasso Museum, Paris,France – by Michele

Deliciously inviting pastry drawing by Michele … have a sweet, sweet day!

Paris has always held a very warm spot in my heart. There are days when I truly miss living there, walking the cobblestoned streets along the Seine, passing windows dressed in the finest of pastries, and even the chaotic/melodic sounds of bustling passerby’s always on the move to their next appointment….Ha!…kinda sounds a little like home . (I guess I’ve got a warm spot for both :)

Good day, watercolor by Michele 

Mary, the mother of Jesus.

Drawing in a church.  This drawing was done in Paris. Each drawing I make is like building my own personal time machine. I look at this drawing and I remember the smell, what I was wearing, how I felt and what I was thinking.

Eddie Peña

In honor of the fact that I am on my honeymoon right now, I thought I’d post this drawing I made of two lovers kissing behind Notre Dame in Paris.

Vive l’amour!

posted by Veronica Lawlor

thinking back…

. with its tree lined streets

. dressed in grace

. antiquity sings 

…. and so it is, my Paris

medium: oil pastel and ink by Michele