GardenSpirits NY….

Greetings from New York where I arrived Yesterday after a Glorious 2 weeks in Paris….. In the Luxembourg Gardens, the “Sun-starved” Parisians basked in beautiful sunshine Saturday, escaping the Clouds….amidst the stone royal residents of the garden…. i will bask in the afterglow of Paris and blog away in an post-Paris review of my travels there…. journaling, painting, walking, photographing the days away there…..and painting the memories……

Le Jardin du Luxembourg in the Sun…breaking from clouds ……. Geraniums bursting from Statuesque Vases amidst the Permanent Residents walking in the Garden.

The Mesmerizing Beauty of the Scale and Geometry of these Beautiful Vases of Geraniums

Watercolor Memories of Paris…..  GardenSpiritsNY loves the Geranium Pots of Le Jardin du Luxembourg!

Greetings from the Place des Vosges………Paris is for walking and on little sleep….. you could say i was “Sleep-walking!!” I left Brigitte’s (my brother’s sister-in-law) apartment (12th arrondissement) to go to Parler Paris’s monthly meeting of American ex-pats living in Paris to see who actually lives the dream of living in Paris…. At least 35 people met for a talk and drinks at the Pierre le Marais…..Adrienne Leeds’s http://adrianleeds.com/parler-paris/apresmidi …….Fabulous….Walking from Rue de Bretagne, down Rue des Archives in the Marais, gentrified with retail, restaurants and art galleries, I reached the square garden park called the Place des Vosges….. storied in history……but seeing that WordPress on this iPad won’t allow me to upload photos from the cameraroll I am left to let you imagine! or use email as my alternative window to this blog for the time being….. to be continued…. and can say that my first day in Paris was full and ending with a 9:30 pm photo of the Paris “night” in June, that is still as light as New York at 6:00 pm… a neverending “City of Light” in June….. amazing…..

The Florists at Eli’s Flower Shop led by Manager Nicole spin textures of color and complexity with their floral juxtapositions. I am so surprised by the unusal compostions in their arrangements….Analogous color in Visual Feasts abound! Appetizers for your tasting….Here is some of their magic…

Flowers before food are beautiful appetizers….The entrance to the Flower Shop

A Flower Shop with a touch of a country store…..

Open Every Day!

Herb Garden Pots sit outside….

The shop is small on square footage but huge on Beauty….

I fell in love wit this small spray of curcuna, baby allium, hypernicum and lilac….and watercolor flowed!

Turn it around and lo and behold… a Hyacinth!!! Every view lovely….

Flower Bouquet with the Curcuna dominating…..

Turn… Turn…. Turn…..

The Hyacinth returns!

The Dance of Color in the Violets & Magentas rivals “Dancing with the Stars!!”

Unconsciously, I painted a heart of a composition…..!

Here’s a Green Herbal Interlude, a pause between the feasts of color…..
Everyone needs to plant a garden in the city! Literally, Eli’s has a pot for you….

A CHANGE OF PACE to a Palette of Contrast: Coral Roses and a Watercolory-Blue and Green Hydrangea and Hypernicum, baby allium  ….

Turning it to see all the advantages… Delicate midtones….

Just a small change gives a beautiful new composition…..

Lush blues and oranges…. Art school tells us it’s simultaneous contrast….

I love the surprise when the back is as beautiful as the front…and at Eli’s we will be sure of that!    GardenSpirits Flourish at Eli’s.   Come and See…..!

Recently, I was helping out on Mother’s Day at the Sag Harbor Florist, NY,  Anastasia Casale’s beautiful and popular shop this past May. It was sheer pandemonium as everyone flocked starting at 8 am to gather their FLOWERS in tribute and love to their moms, grandmas and every lady deserving this beautiful ritual gift celebrating the devoted acts of mothering. The arrangements were magnificent.  Everyone’s flower choices really expressed their own or their mother’s taste and personality. What variety! Their were practically no flowers left by end of day! I have been painting there for several years and Anastasia Casale’s and her staff make one arrangement more beautiful than the next…. Bravo Anastasia! Here’s a peek!

The Early Morning Bounty on Mother’s Day at the Sag Harbor Florist

The Skylights in Anastasia’s shop create a quiet early morning beauty.

Arrangements start a long day of Mother’s Day orders….

A Lucky Mom received this beauty!

Arrangements in multiples have always been great to paint!

Luscious Flowers are ready for a close-up!

Turning around the arrangements for the many views to paint!

Beginning a Painting on the front lawn of the Sag Harbor Florist

Almost finished….

Taking a moment to reflect on the arrangement and the painting…

A Sketch!

Voila! Many color decisions and a joy to paint this beautiful arrangement by Anastasia Casale…… Sometimes our “Babies” are flower arrangements and paintings! We celebrate “creative mothering” of all kinds! Thank you Anastasia!

Monet's "Waterlilies" from the Musée Marmottan Monet, 78" x 70", A little Paris in New York

What a “Divine” treat to see the almost 30 Late Monets floating on the walls of the Larry Gagosian Gallery on 22nd Street in Chelsea.  It’s one reason not to travel to Paris this summer! Monet’s Waterlilies really resonate with me because I am actually leaving tomorrow to go to the Women’s Studio Workshop in Rosendale, New York to do a series of mixed media prints with the theme of waterlilies….. which I’ve explored in watercolor this year….. Though Monet is the Master of this theme…. we artists can always reinvent and find a new way of seeing this world of aquatic theater…. This theme kept Monet company for the later 25 years of his life. It’s no wonder! Waterlily Ponds are a never-ending place of meditation and contemplation, hypnotic mirrors disguised within  “pools of reflection.”