Day Trips from Paris: Visiting Norman Artists

My favorite Monet and Daubigny paintings are snow scenes. Spending a weekend in Normandy in April can be full of surprises, particularly SNOW.

Artist: Etienne Lodeho

If this is your first trip to France, you’ll want to be sure to visit Monet’s house and garden in Giverny, Normandy, but don’t forget that Normandy remains a constant source of inspiration for contemporary artists. Here is your chance to meet artists who may or may not be one day as famous as Monet, but are here - in the flesh - to talk to you about their work and their rapport with this exceedingly seductive landscape.

After having frequented Normandy for years, I can tell you the daily light show can be so spectacular (especially in the spring and fall when light rays seem to bend at acrobatic angles) that I often find myself thinking - well, it was too easy for the Impressionists - all they had to do was paint exactly what they saw - those freckles of light on the forest floor - Ahh! if it were that simple!

If you’re interested in visiting local Norman artists in the Eure department, a good place to begin your exploration is St. Georges du Vievre. (You’ll need to rent a car for this trip because most of these villages are only accessible by car or bus). This month (April, 2008) the local tourist office is featuring a number of local artists’ work. After viewing the work, you have the option of visiting the artists at their respective studios.

If you decide to visit some of the ateliers, you also will be delighted to discover typical thatched roof homes in the very heart of rural Normandy. Gerard Daric and Nicole Camillieri have the good fortune to work in these idyllic surroundings. Gerard will be quick to point out how much the Norman landscape has changed since he’s lived here - the typical apple orchard is quickly becoming a pastoral scene which one may eventually find only in paintings.

Come to Normandy. Savor the landscape and the artists that can show you its soul.

For more information about the St. Georges du Vievre art show and ‘artists’ open house’:
Office de tourisme du canton de
Saint-Georges-du-Vievre
1 route de Monfort
27450 Saint Georges du Vievre
Tel 02 32 56 34 29
Fax 02 32 57 52 90

Abandoned House
Artist: Nicole Camillieri