June 2010 / Shell Sherree

Venerdi in Venice: We are Lions, Hear Us Meep

25.6.10

ink & watercolour ACEO weensy, 3.5" x 2.5" [9 x 6.5cm]
Acquire this original Meep Miniature here.

Cats big and small love to laze, stretch, slumber in the sun ~ and to indulge in the occasional Faux-Doze for the benefit of potential prey. These stately lions watching over the Canal Grande in Venice are no exception, except that they tend to stay still for the sake of a regal photo or sketching opportunity, and all they're likely to catch is the odd irreverent pigeon thought. Thanks so very much to Pierre's Venice Daily Photo for generously allowing me its exquisite inspiration, and especially to Alain Hamon for this particular one. Grazie mille!!!

[Post Update 29th June: Dear Alain has kindly posted my little illo together with his photo at his own blog, and it's lovely seeing them side by side. Thank you so very much!]

It's a gorgeous fine winter's day here, the kind I'd be happy with all season long ~ mild in temps, a sun that's fully present but mellow rather than roaring, and a few benign little tufts of lazy vanilla fairy floss. I might even follow the lions' lead and climb out onto the roof to survey the landscape. And on that potentially perilous note...

Happy Venerdi in Venice to you!

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Francophile Friday: Marseille-Days

18.6.10

ink & watercolour illustration, 7" x 8.75" [18 x 22.5cm]

Order print here.

One of my dear friends sent me her copy of Julia Child's My Life in France {written with Alex Prud'Homme, her hubby's great-nephew}. I happened to be reading about Julia and Paul Child's time in Marseille when I received the kind offer from "Papirazzi", via an equally kind friend of his named Hayley {who also happens to be an artist and sells her vintage finds in France here}, to use his photos for inspiration. Thank you, Papirazzi and Hayley! Lo and behold, the first photo to catch my eye was this happy façade in Marseille. In the book, Julia writes that Marseille "struck me as a rich broth of vigorous, emotional, uninhibited Life - a veritable "bouillabaisse of a city," as Paul put it." These exuberant colours look very much at home there. And on that note...

Happy Francophile Friday to you!

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Francophile Friday: Together Apartment

11.6.10

ink & watercolour illustration, 8.75" x 7" [22.5 x 18cm]

It's officially the 11th day of winter here. {Australia is apparently one of the few places that changes seasons on the 1st of the calendar month each quarter, rather than with the more natural ebb and flow of cycles of the moon, the changing of leprechauns' underwear and the packing or unpacking of squirrels' nuts.} As I sit here inside with my lilac wool beret and enough layers to make a mille-feuille flake with envy, I can feel myself slowly thawing in these rays of sun in the apartment in Paris that I've rented us for the weekend. I'm off to pick up some holistic food for our furry friends, so please let yourself in and make yourself comfie while I'm gone. {But please ~ don't let the dog out.} And on that note...

Happy Francophile Friday to you!

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Venerdi in Venice: It's All About Me-ep

4.6.10

ink & watercolour ACEO weensy, 2.5" x 3.5" [6.5 x 9cm]

Let's go for a tiny stroll. A very tiny stroll, across a very tiny bridge in Venice where we can gaze at our reflections in the canal and wonder at our collective beauty. I don't see anyone else around, so we can stay as long as we like. One can't rush narcissism, after all. Yes, that's a fluffy tu-tu, so it's not just about me-me, and to spot the kitty in this one, you may need one of these. And on that note...

Happy Venerdi in Venice to you!

PS: Just heard that the charming old Shingle Inn, long-since dismantled and stored, has finally been given a new home, and will be re-built in the foyer of our City Hall, currently under renovations. Great article here with a photo of the original. I am delighted. Delighted.

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