Basilique du Sacré-Cœur. —Dominick

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With summer over and the leaves beginning to turn, I’m going to be like this bird today and enjoy what’s left of the summer leaves.

drawing of a bird in Paris by Greg Betza.

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Something reminded me of France recently. Something always reminds me of France actually.

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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.

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This is one of over a hundred drawings I made in Paris.  I fell in love with Paris.  This drawing in particular was produced inside the Chartres Cathedral.  It caught my absolute attention.  The sculpture  just captures the  perfect picture of what life in the spirit could be.  The Cathedral itself was enormous, I think you could fit Notre Dame within its nave. You must make the trip if you have not, I must make the trip again because I have.

Eddie Peña

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In Dom’s edition yesterday, he said  “One of the many things that makes reportage illustration so amazing is the idea that I can sit anywhere in the world, pull out my pen and ink, and draw. ” I couldn’t agree with him more.   Funny thing is the drawing below was just that – done in pen and ink, (a crayon or two) on the spot, while sitting next to Dom in the gardens of the Château de Versailles a few thousand miles from home.

The secret is there’s really nothing as rewarding to a reportage artist than the experience of creating a drawing. It’s in that moment – whether it’s an image, a feeling, a thought, or a gesture – we know the opportunity to discover is priceless.

click for a larger image

So there we were, Dom and I in front of this gorgeous fountain, called  Le Bassin d’Apollon, (a.k.a. The Fountain of Apollo). Like I mentioned before, it stands in the gardens of the Château de Versailles, (home of the Court of Versailles, once the centre of political power in France).  The horses appeared so boisterous as they leaped out of the water’s edge it was irresistible. Not just to draw them, but to try to successfully capture how they felt.

Priceless I say. - Michele

urban trivia: The figure of Apollo at Versailles on the chariot of the sun is an allegorical allusion to Louis XIV who was popularly known as the Sun King because of his belief in the theory that the King was crowned by God and accountable to him alone. 

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mbedigian©2009

Over the weekend I caught up with a few friends I had met in Paris a few years back in the gorgeous, (I mean GORGEOUS) musée Rodin, a museum dedicated to the life and work of  master artist, August Rodin.

Their first time in America, I was excited to see them. We met in Bryant Park for a breakfast picnic. The weather was ideal to sit and people watch for a bit so I drew some, ate some, talked some and loved every minute of it. Here’s a drawing of a neighbor on the lawn enjoying a good summer read.

…till next week! – Michele

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a.k.a. the Avenue des Champs-Élysées

This weeks drawing was done on a warm, (really warm) July afternoon while standing on the most expensive strip of real estate in Europe. It’s known in France as La plus belle avenue du monde (“The most beautiful avenue in the world”), a fitting call since it’s just down the street from the stunning Jardin des Tuileries I love so much, (last weeks drawing). To the rest of the world it’s called the Avenue des Champs-Élysée.

The avenue runs for two kilometres (1.25 miles) through the 8th arrondissement in northwestern Paris and it’s name is French for Elysian Fields, the place of the blessed dead in Greek mythology. Up until 1616  it actually was fields and market gardens. It was then Marie de Medici decided to extend the garden axis of the Palais des Tuileries with an avenue of trees. Recognized today for it’s beauty, haute couture, shops and tremendous place in history, this alluring boulevard illustrates French culture on the grandest of scales, a must see.

urban trivia: They say rents on the Champs-Élysée run as high as USD1.5 million per 1,000 square feet (92.9 square metres) of space, pretty remarkable (even for New York standards) …’till next time  - Michele

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A few years ago I found myself on a train in France, on my way to Chartre. I knew nothing of where I was headed. I brought a little reading with me to get familiar and have something to connect with when I arrived. One of the passages I read mentioned fields of gold and the uneven spired cathedral sitting off in the sun, a beacon for all those in need. I did a few little drawings on the train, expecting that time would have erased all notions of the quaint village I was learning about. The fields were gone, at least right in front of the cathedral, but the temple stood high above the village and called out to everyone who could see.

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