While I was visiting my family in the States, I would occasionally think about Provence and my life in France in order to try and regard it with the blessing of remove. I was surprised by how much I longed for the region itself, for the land and its life. Certainly, it has taken root in my heart and not necessarily due to its more obvious charms, of which there are many. No, just as I used to visit certain paintings in the museums of Manhattan so often that I began to consider them as friends (including several Van Goghs whose landscapes would later become a part of my daily life in Arles), so too certain characteristics here have wooed my attention and become dear to me.
Chief amongst those is patina, the glow of time’s way. I missed it’s imperfections dearly while in Michigan and wondered if its presence gives one a certain permission not to be brighter, faster and stronger but just to be. There is such psychology in our surroundings. I am fairly certain that I have written this before but patina is forgiving. And I love it for that as well as the sheer beauty present within “I endure.”
I know that quite a few of you are impatient to see our new home but she is not yet ready for her close-up. There is a point during every move (and I have been through so many – eight in Manhattan alone, including one that I accomplished solely via subway) when things get much worse just before they get better and we are right in the thick of it. Remi is downstairs sanding the parquet floors and I will have to tackle the boxes in the dressing room as neither of us have anything clean to wear. Each morning I still wake up bone tired, my head in a fog. But oh, how it is worth it. In the quiet of the evenings, I light the candles and we both listen, trying to decipher what the house is telling us to do.
So for now, I hope that you will be contented with two posts featuring some of the details of our new village. I took these photos quite some time ago – long before we had found our house – and have been saving them for our arrival as something of a promise to myself.
And now we are here. Painting and creating traces that will one day become patina of its own.
Ypsi and A2 make my heart sing too Sister. Not only because I really, really like the places themselves but because there are people that I love so very much are there…
That is so well said – it is all relative, isn't it? I grew up in the midwest and was really fortunate in that my family only lived in "old" houses so I grew up with a true appreciation for them. But of course "old" was late 1800's while in my first house in Arles, one of the blocks of the foundation was Roman! 😉
Personality in spades, Keith!
Francine, you have been on my mind lately – how you blend these two so easily in your home and your designs. Plus, we found a great spot for the Jose Esteves lamp in our new house and that is bringing me a lot of happiness.
You are killing me! Yes, Michigan would make me long for Provence too (I know, I spent 20 years there). But just being away from Provence, makes us long for our next return. Maybe we can meet up in your new village this fall since we didn't make it to Arles. Good luck with your unpacking. It will all be worth it.
It took time to create the beautiful patina of the old surfaces that you feature in your photos. How can we not expect beauty to develop over time? Instead we live in this instant, I-want-it-all-now culture that places so little value on the process of becoming. Enjoy knowing that you are creating beauty.
The new green leaves bursting forth from centuries-old plaster is the story here I think.
And, yes, this could be the beginning of a new book.
Sending love to all 4 of you….
So eager to see your new place, so content to relax in the patina of your environment. Don't work too hard, thanks for stopping by TravelnWrite even though you have so much work in your own world. Take care and enjoy each moment!
so awesome what nature and time expose..imperfection pure. You do so well after hard work to enjoy a
candlelight evening although between dust and boxes. This little time gives you power and courage for the
next day. I also thought I could never finished all the mess but after a couple of weeks you will only smile and
forget the hard work which was/is definitely worth….but you know already what I'm talking about after 8 and more
removels.
unpacking boxes…sanding floors…arranging and rearranging the furniture till it's just right…there is a certain magic in moving in, amongst all the exhaustion (and it is truly that)…but also the joy of settling in somewhere new….the new "home"….and if you have candles burning already, then surely it is already home…