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by Marc Dalessio

A Year in the Gers

Oil painting of plum trees in bloom near La Romieu.
Plum Trees in Bloom, La Romieu. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.

We’ve been living in the Gers region of France now for over a year and I thought I should post some of the work I’ve done. As I’ve written in the past (here and here), the landscapes here are wonderful for plein air painting, and the sort of subjects that I’ve looked for for years.

Plein air painting done below Lectoure.
Wheat Fields below Lectoure. 90 x 120 cm, oil on linen.
Oil painting of a ruined castle in the Gers.
Castle Ruin, Autumn. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Plein air painting of Chapelle Saint-Michel de Tremblade near Jegun.
Chapelle Saint-Michel in Winter. 20 x 30 cm, oil on linen.

It’s a very open landscape. Apparently there used to be many more vineyards but they were pulled out in the 20th-century to make more fields for sunflowers and wheat. I’ve always much preferred the later two as subject matter, but if we need vineyards there are still some nearby, and there a lot further north and west where there are more grapes grown for the Armagnac.

Fall Vineyard, Jegun. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

The Gers is also wonderfully free of olive trees, as I developed a terrible allergy to olive pollen in Tuscany which ruined the painting season for me from late April to June. The last couple of years in Florence I was reduced to painting still lifes in the Spring as it got so bad (no offense to still life painters). I also developed an allergy to cypress trees, and thankfully there are far less of them here as well.

With all that said, because of the drier summers we’re having in Southwestern France due to climate change, there is talk of farmers starting to plant more olive trees and I’ve seen a couple of new fields of them.

Oil painting of Chapelle Sainte-Marie near Lavardens.
Cypresses at Chapelle Sainte-Marie. 80 x 100 cm, oil on linen.
Plein air landscape painting of the view from Lavardens, Gers, France
The View from Lavardens. 90 x 120 cm, oil on linen.

Camille Corot’s painting from 1826 of the Augustinian Bridge at Narni in southern Umbria had a profound effect on me when I was starting out as a landscape painter and I especially loved the subtle blue reflection of the sky in the mustard colored water of the Nera river. For this reason I was very happy to discover that the three major rivers that run down from the Pyrenees and head north past us to the Garonne all regularly have the same ocher water from the clay in the soil.

Plein air painting of the Baise river in Gascony.
The Baïse at Pléhaut. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
The Osse at Vic-Fezensac. 35 x 25 cm, oil on panel.
Painting of the Gers river in Auch
Early Spring, Auch. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

We settled in the village of Jegun. It’s a charming, vibrant village with lovely inhabitants. It’s also pretty but not too pretty. After 20 years in the center of Florence I was interested in living somewhere where tourism took a back seat to the lives of the locals.

Oil painting of Rue Sainte-Marie, Jegun.
Rue Sainte-Marie, Jegun. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Grande Rue in Jegun.
Grande Rue, Jegun. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of an Irish Pub in France.
The Irish Pub, Jegun. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of sunflower fields in the Gers.
Sunflower Fields below Jegun. 80 x 92 cm, oil on linen.

Nearby we have a wealth of picturesque subject matter, including the very beautiful departmental capital of Auch which is only 20 minutes away, as well as agricultural scenes and the rolling hills of Gascony.

Oil painting of Lavardens.
Lavardens. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Plein air painting of Sainte-Marie cathedral in Auch
Sainte-Marie Cathedral, Auch. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of a combine harvester.
Combine Harvester. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Autumn crocuses oil painting.
Autumn Crocuses, Bonas. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Evening light oil painting
Evening Light near La Sauvetat. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

It’s been a wonderful first year and we look forward for many more to come.

plein air painting of a Mill on the Baïse.
Mill on the Baïse. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
by Marc Dalessio

Château de la Treyne Exhibition

Château de la Treyne. 90 x 110 cm, oil on linen.

My wife and I will be having an exhibition in Château de la Treyne on the Dordogne river, in the Lot region of France this coming July.

All of the small paintings were painted on site last summer, when we had an opening in the lockdowns here in Europe. The larger paintings were painted in the studio this winter, either finished from plein air starts, or enlarged from sketches done in the field.

Bend in the Dordogne. 100 x 140 cm, oil on linen.

It’s a stunningly beautiful area, and this is the second summer we have spent painting there. We are normally based near Domme, as we work with the V&A Gallery in Sarlat-la-Canéda, but for this trip we worked much more to the east, to try to paint areas closer to the Chateau.

The castle itself is a spectacular property and we received a very warm welcome from the wonderful owners.

Afternoon Light, Château de la Treyne. 80 x 100 cm, oil on linen.

One thing I really love about the Dordogne is how clean the water is. The areas where we were painting were full of water crowfoot, with bees pollinating the flowers that sit just out of the water. And it’s great to see such a large river so teeming with fish and frogs.

Passing Cloud, Château de la Treyne. 100 x 80 cm, oil on linen.
Walnut Grove. 90 x 120 cm, oil on linen.

Above are all the larger pieces fresh from the studio. Below are all of the smaller, plein air work from the summer. The first group are the ones I used as reference for the studio paintings.

The Dordogne from above Pinsac. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Afternoon Light, Château de la Treyne. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Passing Cloud. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
Walnut Grove. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Banana Tree, Martel. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
Canoe Rental, Pinsac. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Reilhaguet. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Château de Belcastel. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Milling Stone, Moulin de Cougnaguet. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel
Reflections, Pinsac. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Castelnaud-la-Chapelle Castle. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Gardens at Château de la Treyne #1. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
Gardens at Château de la Treyne #2. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
Gardens at Château de la Treyne #3. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Cutting Garden. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Morning Light, Martel. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
by Marc Dalessio

Regards sur le Gers

Plein air oil painting of Plieux, France.
Fallow Field, Plieux. Oil on panel, 20 x 30 cm

I have an exhibition on at the moment with Plieux Arts in the Gers region of France. The paintings were done last year, and I wrote a blog post at the time about the beauty of the area, including images of the work.

This year, we had to be here for the exhibition opening in July, and then again for a plein air course in early September. Therefore we decided to stay the month in France rather than drive back and forth from Portugal. We rented an apartment in the village of La Sauvetat, at the southern end of the area where we love painting (around Lectoure). These are some of the images from this year’s crop of plein air landscapes of the Gers.

Plein air oil painting of a passing cloud in Gers, France.
Passing Cloud, La Sauvetat. Oil on panel, 25 x 35 cm
Plein air oil painting of Lectoure, France.
Lectoure #1. Oil on panel, 25 x 35 cm
Plein air oil painting of Lectoure, France.
Lectoure #2. Oil on panel, 20 x 30 cm
Plein air oil painting of oleander.
Oleander bushes. Oil on panel, 20 x 30 cm
Plein air oil painting of a brocante market in France.
Brocante, La Sauvetat. Oil on panel, 30 x 20 cm

It’s worrying traveling in these times of Covid. Our town in Portugal still hasn’t had any cases, so for us it was concerning to leave the safety of our controlled environment to drive halfway across Europe. So far, so good though. And the French seem to be taking it pretty seriously.

Plein air oil painting of an artist painting in the shade of haybales.
Tina Painting in the Shade. Oil on panel, 20 x 30 cm
Plein air oil painting of Lavardens, Gers.
Lavardens. Oil on panel, 20 x 30 cm
Plein air oil painting of Queen Anne's lace.
Queen Anne’s Lace. Oil on panel, 30 x 20 cm
Plein air landscape painting of rolling hills in Gers.
Rolling Hills, Gers. Oil on panel, 20 x 30 cm
Plein air painting of chickpea fields.
Chickpea Field, Gers. Oil on panel, 20 x 30 cm
Plein air painting of a farmhouse in Gers, France.
Farmhouse, Gers. Oil on panel, 25 x 35 cm

I only had time for one larger plein air piece. The following one was painted over the course of three days:

Plein air landscape painting in oils of a sunflower field in Gers.
The Side of a Sunflower Field. 85 x 110 cm (34 x 44 inches)

As I mentioned last time, the Gers is a really stunning area for landscape painting and I would highly recommend it for anyone looking for a picturesque region for plein air work.

by Marc Dalessio

Plein Air Paintings from France (2019)

In a recent post I wrote about landscape painting in the Gers region of France. Here are the paintings from the rest of our summer trip. We bounced around quite a bit of the country as we had to be here and there for workshops and to work towards future exhibitions.

After the Gers, we traveled over to Bordeaux for a few days, then down to the coast between Sète and Agde for a week on the beach.

Plein air painting of a street in Bordeaux, France
Rue de Pessac, Bordeaux. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Plein air painting of Allées de Tourny in Bordeaux
Allées de Tourny, Bordeaux. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Place des Quinconces
Place des Quinconces, Bordeaux. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Place Amédée-Larrieu in Bordeaux.
Place Amédée-Larrieu, Bordeaux. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Plein air painting of Agde in Southwestern France.
Agde. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Sete in Southwestern France.
Sète. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of the Canal du Midi.
The Canal du Midi. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of a chapel in France.
Chapel near the Thau. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of boats in Sète.
Les Copains, Sète. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of the canals in Sete.
Afternoon light, Sète. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Mèze, France.
Mèze, on the shore of the Thau. 20 x0 30 cm, oil on panel.

After the Gers, we traveled over to Bordeaux for a few days, then down to the coast between Sète and Agde for a week on the beach. Next we had to head up north for a workshop near Laon, so we stopped for a few days in the Loire Valley.

Oil painting of the cathedral in Tours.
The Cathedral, Tours. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Amboise, France.
Passing Storm, Amboise. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of the Château de Chenonceau
Château de Chenonceau. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Blois, France.
Blois. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

In Laon we had a workshop, so I didn’t get much of my own work done. We were on a beautiful property though, so I tried to paint as often as I could.

Oil painting of a pond in Northern France.
The Side of a Pond, Fourdrain. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of cows in northern France.
Cows in the Sun, Fourdrain. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of buildings through trees.
The Farm Buildings, Fourdrain. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of a pond in France.
Lily Pond. 35 x 25 cm, oil on panel.

After Laon we had a couple of days to kill so we headed over to Normandy to paint in Honfleur. I’m always trying to find places where my favorite artists worked, and Boudin, Seago, Jongkind and Monet (among others) all painted in and around the small port there.

Oil painting of the port at Honfleur, France.
Honfleur. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Honfleur, France.
Morning, Honfleur. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Painting of boats in Honfleur.
Boats, Midday, Honfleur. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Plein air oil painting of Honfleur.
Evening Light, Honfleur. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

From Normandy we drove back down to the Dordogne, to paint local scenes for the V&A gallery in Sarlat-la-Canéda.

Oil painting of the Dordogne river from Domme.
The Dordogne from Domme. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Sarlat, France.
Sarlat-la-Canéda. 30 x 20 cm, oil on panel.
Oil study of the Dordogne river.
Water Study, the Dordogne. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of Beynac.
Beynac from the Dordogne. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.
Oil painting of a child on a swing.
Child on a Swing. 25 x 22 cm, oil on panel.

These are most of the paintings but the full summer’s oeuvre was posted at the time to my Instagram account.

Overall it was a great trip. The painting locations across France are varied and stunning, the food was amazing, and the people were wonderful and welcoming. We’ll be back again in the summer of 2020 as we have an exhibition and a couple of workshops.

by Marc Dalessio

Bordeaux Plein Air Paintings

Here are a few of my plein air paintings from last week in Bordeaux, France.

Plein air painting of a park in Bordeaux, France.

Statues and Circus Trucks. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.

Plein air painting of Bordeaux.

Tram and Scaffold, Bordeaux. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

It’s a very beautiful city. My paintings don’t really do the place justice (and it wasn’t the best time of year for colors). They say it’s like a little Paris and it does have that feel to it, while still seeming small and manageable. It would probably be a great place to live as the climate is mild for Europe, and the food and wine are so amazing.

Plein air painting of a sailboat at Cap Ferret, France.

Sailboat, Cap Ferret. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

Plein air painting of evening in Bordeaux, France.

Evening Strollers, Bordeaux. 20 x 30 cm, oil on panel.

And below is a small sketch of Porta San Frediano in Florence from our trip back. I lived in San Frediano for ten years and always wanted to paint the neighborhood more.

Oil painting of the Porta San Frediano in Florence, Italy.

Porta San Frediano. 25 x 35 cm, oil on panel.

Apologies for not painting out the clip holes in the skies. It’s been a busy few weeks.