Hello Friends,

August is already upon us - where did July go?

Happily for me, it was well spent and full of the joys of being with family in the UK and reconnecting with old friends - including 2 art school pals. It means I’ve fallen behind and skipped a letter, but hopefully you didn’t miss it! I’d love to hear how your Summer is going - I’ve come down with a virus and have lost my voice, so I’m eager for some written communication!

Last month my sister, Sarah and I coincided our family visits from opposite ends of the globe and met at my Dad + stepmother’s new place in South London. It’s a lovely heritage Art deco block of flats near Richmond Park, shaped in a crescent, with beautiful landscaped grounds for walking. It was a massive move for them, but they’re safe and cozy and hopefully will not have to move again.

Back at home I’ve had some success with my paintings over the past few months and will be taking part in more juried exhibitions through the late Summer/Fall. I’ve included notes on those below, with links to my blog posts in STUDIO NOTES.

Take a look!

Sibling connection

Sarah and I are close in age and although we live far from each other - her home is in Western Australia and mine is on the Pacific Coast of Canada - we have a lifetime of shared memories and numerous interests in common. We’re fortunate to still have two sets of parents in our lives and every year, we try to overlap alternating visits to see them and take some time for ourselves. It’s become a tradition to rent a car for a few days and set off in search of close but distant friends and a change of scenery. This road trip, we drove North to Mansfield in Nottinghamshire to meet a childhood friend who is more like a sibling. We took picnics and her little dog, Barkley and did some lovely walks near Sherwood Forest - Robin Hood’s territory. Then we hopped over to Southwold, a beautiful seaside town on the Suffolk coast and back to London, making planned and spontaneous stops along the way. Driving is a great way of catching up with life!

A week in Besançon

My second side trip from Dad’s, was to Besançon in France. I fell in love with this beautiful little town on the River Doubs in the Province of Franche-Comté. A friend from my early illustration years in London moved there recently from Paris with his wife. They were the absolute best hosts and the weather was perfect for sight seeing. At last it was time to throw off my scruffy studio garb and put on Summer sandals and a dress! We drank café au lait, wandered the cobbled streets and climbed up 100 metres to get epic views from Louis XIV’s citadel. Day trips included a visit to nearby Ornans, where the painter Gustave Courbet was born. Plat du jour lunches comprised of local Comté cheese, sardines, baguette and minted lemonade. We walked to dinner through the Parque Micaud, under Roman columns and majestic Platan trees and back again, after dark, beside the winding river. Besançon claims Victor Hugo (Les Misérables + Hunchback of Notre Dame) as its native son, so there were a number of statues, plaques and a museum in his honour. It was fun noticing a variety of clocks dotted around the town - a legacy reinforced by Swiss clockmakers who spilled into France during the French resistance. I could go on at length about all that we crammed into a single week, but will leave it with the dream to return some time for a 3 month artist in residence. Not however, until my dear little Chopin is no longer with me!

Fall Teaching

Back at home and into August means ‘Back to School’ preparations! Earlier this year, I chaperoned the class of ‘25 Grads from the IDEA School (Capilano University) on their field trip to New York. The same cohort will be starting their 4th and final year in September. They’re a great group, so I’m looking forward to mentoring them through their Capstone project and helping them polish their graduation portfolios.

I’ve also been asked by the Vancouver North Shore Artists’ Guild to give a demo and workshop in November this year, so that also needs preparation. The demo (of a bird painting - yet to be decided) will be recorded and published on their Youtube page. You will be first to have access of course!

That’s all for now! I hope you’re having a lovely Summer and making the most of these long evenings.

A Bientôt!

Zoë