Provence
PROVENCE TRAVELOGUE
Daniel’s Previous Travelogue, Provence, 2016
#5: FINAL FIFTH WEEK IN FRANCE: July 1-July 8, 2024
Crossing the Finish Line. After thirty-nine nights in France, of which only two, in Paris, were not in Ménerbes, I have returned to New York. While there I had more than sixty-five shoots with sixteen community members! Sixteen individual projects, all part of the same, larger project, were developed. A year ago spring, 2023, the idea to create a dance film with the community was born. How incredible it was to have this many exchanges. Transmissions, as the word is in French. To have this many people interested and willing to try something new. It is this spirit which the film seeks to capture, along with the beauty and history of the village.
Ménerbes is always ready for her close up! I have taken over 9450 photos and hours upon hours of video, days?, seizing each moment for the priceless one it is. This striking yellow house, La Domaine de la Fortin, became a site of one of the shoots, captured from the Maison. Occasionally, a blanket of morning fog in the distance.
July 1, morning. After shooting early on the street, and running into the director of La Maison de la Truffe et du Vin, I photographed at the house before its public re-opening, staying to help set up for the opening day! Making every task, the placement and movement of chairs and tables, a dance.
This is the beautiful house, with galleries on the second floor and the restaurant in the garden.
A great omen to find so many snails coupling in the garden, promising fertility for the re-opening of an important business, supporting local farmers, vendors, and vineyards from the village and region.
The view of the Luberon from the garden isn’t bad either!
Martine, the Director, and my dear friend Paulina. We met eight years ago when first in Ménerbes!
Framing and re-framing the village was part of the pleasure of each day.
These flowers, found all over, are Monnaie du Pape, the pope’s money!
So many vantage points to take in the majestic Maison Dora Maar!
Everything can be framed, as the flower does so perfectly for this bee.
And as this pine does to this portion of the village.
What to make of the trillions of white snails found everywhere? They climb to the top of everything.
Or on a tree. Found this explanation online: “This species of snail Cernuella is very common in Provence and have adapted to the summer heat by undergoing aestivation, a dormant state which prevents them from drying out in the hot weather.”
View from below. My legs became stronger from constantly walking up and down the steep roads!
The periphery of the village’s cemetery.
The early morning light pours into the front of the Maison, illuminating the library and one of Dora Maar’s paintings, which hangs over the mantle.
It is pure joy each morning to leave the Maison, ready to capture the day.
A view of the valley. The French penchant to tame the land and bring it into order comes into focus.
And a view of one of the three ways to enter the village by car or truck.
A final coffee with Phillipe Anthoine, a collaborator, and Gwen Strauss, the Maison’s director.
Most happy that July meant the Church, Église Saint-Luc, would open its doors, providing an understanding of the space inside the structure I was magnetized to each evening, filming in front of its massive wood doors.
Here the opposite view, framing not the Church, but the Luberon. The church was rebuilt in the 16th century, after the Wars of Religion, likely on the site of a priory (monastery) near the old cemetery.
July 4, 6:24am. The view from the bedroom window. Is there a better way to greet the day?
By 6:58am, snapped this image, leaving the Maison for the last day of filming.
While I don’t look happy, I was! Especially to wear a scarf made for the occasion, on July 4th! This vintage Christian Dior, found in an East Village thrift store decade ago for a few dollars, was made in 1976 for the bicentennial! How great to get to wear this French creation in France!
The sky was just this incredibly blue. No color correction added!
Thanks to my friend Susanne, L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue was introduced and its charming waterways.
Active water wheels dot the landscape. If you’d like to see a small video of one, send me a note!
Chateau Giraud was built in 1855 for Frederic Giraud, a cellist, by a Parisian architect who “took the opportunity to give an air of Ile de France to Provence.”
A vibrant sculptural group exhibition, Faire Corps, all about the body!, at the Fondation Villa Atris.
Including this terrific piece by French artist Laurent Perbos titled 501 kg. “Our world glorifies the idea of surpassing limits, and exceeding physical and mental capacities in everyday life. Using humor and undercutting expectation, Perbos has created a sculpture featuring a 501-kilogram dumbbell. The work alludes to the personal deadlift world record set by Icelandic athlete Hafpór Júlíus Björnsson on May 2, 2020. An impossible challenge is offered to the public: to lift this dumbbell. The absurdity of the experiment calls into question the true meaning of performance as the sculpture becomes a site of physical and intellectual play.”
An opening at the Mira galerie featured this presentation with a most deliciously oily and salty focaccia. The cherries, cheeses, and olive tapinades in abundance everywhere.
Raymond, Nancie and Evelyn at the opening. Nancie participated in the project!
Selfie with the Sunset
Capturing the incessant flow of the swifts, who spend their life in flight. Click the photo to enlarge!
The constant pleasure of lavender!
A highlight: walking behind the Luberon and seeing each cliff (falaise) individually.
A dazzling butterfly along the walk. Click here for an eight-second video of it opening its wings before flying out of the frame.
More snails doing what they do in Provence!
Another compelling view, already framed, captured at various times on various days.
A dramatic sky tells the story of a wetter month than typical. Good for the gardens and vegetation.
Master baker Gerard Auzet, friend since 2016, and I enjoyed various conversations. His sons are the 6th generation of bakers continuing the tradition. Confessions of a French Baker anyone? That’s him!
Sunday, July 7. Woke up and the village was gone. Here it started to come back as the fog lifted.
View of the quarry, la carrière, emerging from the fog.
These caves dot the hillsides of the village.
The fog yielded to a brilliant blue sky, with one of the most remarkable residences near the Church and Town Hall.
July 7, 10pm. The last night in Provence, in Gordes attending a garden party master class concert with eight cellists. The concert was the culmination of three days of coaching by renown artists Anne Gastinel and Raphaël Perraud. Eclairs, tarts, wines and champagne followed near midnight.
Back in Paris for the final night of the trip, a perfect bookend to the one night in Paris before the Provencal adventure began. Thrilled to marvel at the immensity of the Church of Saint-Sulpice.
“Built in the 17th century, with foundations from the 12th century, the Eglise Saint-Sulpice is one of the biggest churches in Paris.” The fountain just in front of the church.
This hôtel particulier, like so many, stands out for its grandeur, beauty, and history.
Happy to be in Paris before the Games begin.
Paris can really hang one up with its beauty.
A statement in the Charles de Gaulle airport captures the feeling toward Ménerbes.
This is the page I had inscribed in 2016. Eternal Gratitude. I feel exactly the same now.
Before tossing my sneakers into the trash, a moment to give thanks. Worse for wear–my big toe eventually cut through–the shoes held up and held me up, providing the requisite lift for dancing on stone surfaces. And I didn’t imagine boarding the plane with these!
Could not have been less of a tourist, even though I looked like one with bags and camera strapped around my neck all the time! But unlike those visiting Ménerbes everyday, a tripod was in my arms, with a backpack of costumes too. Ophélie lives here and remarked that she is meeting new people and seeing new things because of the project. The perspective of the outsider. The village is small. At any moment, it is not possible to be outdoors in the village without seeing people one knows. And I have met many wonderful people through this project. Including some that remembered the performances from eight years ago. The magnetism works both ways. I could not be more attracted to the energy and vitality of this place and its people. Gave what I had and received more in return. Everyone was so generous. I can’t wait to begin editing and sharing the work over the coming year.
#4: FOURTH WEEK IN FRANCE: June 23-June 30, 2024
At this point in the residency I could neither be more immersed in the landscape, nor in living more fully as an artist. Along with the other two artists with whom I share the Maison, I have tuned out the world and tuned into the world of creativity. Stopping, looking, listening, asking, absorbing. To be a dancer is to live life as fully as possible, integrating mind, body, heart, imagination, control, risk, freedom, and pleasure. This is the voice of a happy choreographer and dancer after so many days producing without pause.
8:45p, June 23, Sunday. This is the view walking home after shooting last Monday night by the Church, where I have been shooting nightly. The building with the flag is Le Mairie, The Town Hall, just around the corner from the Maison.
8a, June 24. The sky this incredible pure blue. Took a series of the lights with their shadows.
Later on Monday. The face of a happy choreographer and dancer!
9:30p. Sunset. Finished shooting just minutes before the sun dropped behind the treeline.
Snapped by Ophélie, one of the project’s participants. You’ll be seeing a lot of her in the film!
View of the staircase connecting the main and upper floors of the Maison. How I get to the studio!
These flowers cropping out from the top of the summit by the church are irresistible!
June 27, 6:15a. The thrill of seeing these sunrises each morning. There have been days when the sun has been obscured, but not many!
This is Peach, the dog of Paulina, as a morning shoot got underway. And she is such a peach! Paulina, whose legs are in the frame, and I collaborated on the project this past week on two very hot days!
This photo of the pool in which we shot some footage. Love these different textures.
And love the details of the clock on this prominent building in the village center.
A moment of celebration with Mireille, Ophélie, and Patrick after finishing a shoot!
On the move! I don’t know how many steps are clocked each day! The whole day is up and down the hills of the village, up and down the stairs in the Maison!
What a great perspective to gain from another participant’s roof terrace of the Citadel.
The end is coming soon. I’m reaching for every moment as much as I can.
As Pride kicks off in NYC today, I just want to shout: Lavender Fields Forever!
More next week, synthesizing the residency and project, before returning to the States!
#3: THIRD WEEK IN FRANCE: June 16th-June 22nd, 2024
A most inspiring and productive week advancing the projects. Working daily on the community film, which now has a dozen participants!, meeting with each person one at a time. Separately, photographing and filming new solo choreography.
This is Vincent, 6th generation baker in the Auzet family! In such a small village, and living right next door to the café, there is always someone one knows to say hello, each morning, each night.
Sunrise, June 17, 6:01am. Every morning I wake up to see this spectacle. Several times this week was out filming in this golden light. What privilege to have access to both sunrise and sunset, steps away from each other, perched as the Maison is on the summit.
And light pours into the house. 6:12am, the same morning, peering into the library, where we had the salon on the evening of the 20th.
This is Manu, biking from Portugal through Spain and France, and then off to England until October. Everything needed is on the bike. The night before he slept in a field of lavender! This free-spirited adventure takes him from village to town to city over six months, documenting it all through photographs.
Tuesday the 18th, 7:07am in the garden. An oasis to find oneself in at the beginning of each day.
On our way to go grocery shopping we stopped in a field of lavender with the Luberon behind.
Delightful to watch these artichokes grow each week. The color, like the lavender, typifies the vibrance of Provence.
The windows framing the pine trees from inside the Maison. At the end of the day, all the work, choreographic, photographic, videographic, is about framing.
The weather has been erratic the past few days with all kinds of great cloud formations, some thunder, some rain.
Friday, June 21, 8:30pm. Approaching the end of the day with the long shadows.
Saturday, June 22, 10:30am. After a coffee at Les Valseuses (The Waltzers) in Apt with Susanne Turner, one of the collaborators on the community project.
Great to see these artichoke flowers for sale at the market!
And the tomates anciennes
!
Saturday, June 22, 6:15pm. Dramatic skies came out of nowhere.
This early morning self-portrait from one of the projects-in-progress. At the Salon on Thursday I talked about how the work consists of seizing, of extracting the maximum from each moment. I always run towards the sun, stop what I’m doing and explore it, trapped by its lure. This is metaphorically the way to live, to capture it now, because the sun will disappear just as easily tomorrow.
#2: SECOND WEEK IN FRANCE June 9th-June 15th, 2024
Some images and stories from the past week. I am up daily before the sun and working in its path not long after, chasing the light each day until the late arrival of evening, as artists have been compelled to do here for centuries. Longer! Living here there is a different sense of history. Working, typing these words, from the bedroom of Dora Maar. The chapel a few minutes walk, built in 1720. The structures I’m living in from the Middle Ages. Surrounded by traces of prehistoric civilizations.
Sunday, June 9, 8am. Room With A View. Sunday morning looking outside the studio window. Word on the street was that Le Mistral would arrive. The same day, ten hours later, 6pm, a storm came with rain and hail and thunder. Le Mistral would be arriving. The mistral is a super strong cold wind that is particular to the region. The winds were strong indeed. It started on Monday and lasted for three days! However, once it began the skies were incredibly blue. That’s how it works.
This Wikipedia entry is insightful: “The mistral helps explain the unusually sunny climate (2700 to 2900 hours of sunshine a year) and clarity of the air of Provence. When other parts of France have clouds and storms, Provence is rarely affected for long, since the mistral quickly clears the sky. In less than two hours, the sky can change from completely covered to completely clear. The mistral also blows away the dust, and makes the air particularly clear, so that during the mistral it is possible to see mountains 93 miles and farther away. This clarity of the air and light is one of the features that attracted many French impressionist and post-impressionist artists to the South of France. (Jean Vialar, Les vents régionaux et locaux, 1948, republished by Météo-France in 2003)”
This helps explain why I cannot stop capturing the views from morning until evening each day. Monday, June 10, 7am. Photo shoot on the street. The mistral did not prevent work from getting accomplished outside, even though Phil’s hat blew straight off his head while we were preparing to film. It stayed aloft but we managed to grab it before it could have easily blown away. With Phil (Philippe!) shooting near the Church.
The blue of the sky is incredible. There’s the camera set up for the morning photo shoot.
Tuesday, June 11, 7:30 am. I’m going to let Rosie Millard tell this story, a journalist I met on Monday, the day before, in between the two shoots. These are excerpted from The Arts Stack, a reader-supported publication! The entry is dated June 13 on the site. Had no idea she would be doing this, let alone using a photo she snapped after in her kitchen! Visit the site. It’s a terrific read!
Back to the supermarket. Regard these round zucchinis! Don’t think I’ve seen those at Wal-Mart.
9:30pm. The sunsets during these days of the Mistral were unbelievably rich in color.
Wednedsday, June 12. In the garden, preparing for a shoot with another participant in the project.
The magnificent blue. Here is the same view as the sunset photo from the night beforet. A view of the side of the Maison toward the Town Hall, with the bell that rings each hour with the time and each half hour on the hour all day and evening. The garden entrance, that is the gate, is also pictured here. The garden is playing a central role in the residency. Literally. It has been the meeting place, steps from the front door.
Invited to a wonderful dinner party at l’Hôtel de Tingry in advance of artist Joseph Havel’s exhibition Fantômes opening two days later. The vernissage was Friday night, June 14. The light was so compelling I couldn’t stop taking photos out the window while eating! The same window an hour later!
June 13. This butterfly, resembling a Monarch, but not is the Petit Nacré. The flower is Buddleia (Buddleja), or butterfly bush, a favorite for butterflies but apparently not nourishing for them! Also called summer lilac!
Reflection in Le Mob, the gallery/shop in the Maison. The Mobylette, sometimes shortened to Mob, is a model of moped by French manufacturer Motobécane. Although in fact Dora Maar’s moped was Peugot! Her bike is inside.
Saw these artichoke-related flowers last year in Crete.
This was a happy moment, when given permission to gain access to the village’s cemetery. Thanks to Mireille who first phoned the Mayor’s office. I followed up and after signing it out in the register, was given this wonderful key.
With the directrice of the Dora Maar Cultural Center, author Gwen Strauss, before the opening!
A lovely dinner party with this view on Friday night. The views are not hard to find. One’s never far from a gorgeous one!
Saturday, June 15. Walking down to see the Chapelle Notre Dame des Grâces, rebuilt in 1720 by the Ménerbiens, “in a gesture of thanks for having been spared the plague, the chapel is constructed on the remains of an ancient religious edifice. There is an arched doorway with two windows on either side and an oculus in the pediment which is topped with a small bell tower.”
The figs are coming!
A view of the Maison from the chapel. The world is outside the House taking photos constantly. Tours happen frequently and anyone can stop to have one of the garden and house (1st two floors, not top two floors, where the artists are living) I joined a tour this week so I could learn more about the House and its history.
The projects advanced greatly this week. Multiple films developing. Excited and thankful for the interest of people from around the area to participate! This photo from this past week. What caption might you give? À bientôt!
#1: FIRST WEEK IN FRANCE – May 31, 2024-June 8, 2024
In 2016, Daniel, selected to be an artist in residence at the Maison Dora Maar, spent a month living and working in Ménerbes. In 2019, he returned to screen The Performer at the Maison, a film produced during the residency. Now in 2024 he has been awarded another month-long residency. “Sometimes lightning strikes twice,” he writes. The Travelogue Begins.
I kept a Travelogue from this first summer in Provence, in 2016. It’s amazing to read “On May 31 I flew from New York to Paris.” The same exact date this year when making the trip! JFK to De Gaulle! This is the Maison, the house I am fortunate to share with two artists from June 1-July 4. I shot the exterior a few hours after arriving on the 1st, as I similarly captured the valley and myself. Before getting to the village, there was a brief, fun stop in Paris.
A DAY AND NIGHT IN PARIS
May 31, 2024, Friday. Arrived in Paris just after noon. The flight itself easy and quick though not without effort, a seventy-pound checked bag plus two heavy carry-ons including the Company’s two cameras, tripod, and laptop. While I took the subway to JFK, I needed a taxi to Paris. Escalators (escaliers méchanique, mechanical stairs) or elevators (l’ascenceur) are not found easily in the Métro, unsurprisingly given its age. But beautiful elevators were at Madeleine, the station at which I transferred to Gare de Lyon in the morning.
During the hour-plus long taxi I spoke with Karime. As he was driving he showed me paintings made by his daughter, 19. It was a wonderful meandering welcoming tour of Paris: there’s Montmartre and Sacre-Coeur à la gauche, there’s L’Opera à la droite, driving directly through the Louvre, Rive Gauche, the 6th arrondissment, to where Franck lives, on Rue du Saint Placide near Le Bon Marché.
It was fun to snap moments from the taxi window. A cloudy day with bursts of brilliant sunshine, raining on and off, as it has been in Paris, as it has been in New York.
Artist Eva Jospin’s “La Traversée, an installation of cardboard, glue, and wood, part of The Beau Passage a new corridor open from 7am until midnight (ouvert de 7h à minuit), full of restaurants and art.
This double portrait captures the rainy afternoon in Paris with my dear friend Franck. We met eight Junes ago in Ménerbes.
Centaure (1985). This tall bronze was made by a sculptor named César entre 1983 et 1985 with the assistance of Régis Bocquel.
The beauty of Paris is everywhere.
The first meal in Paris was not Parisian but Italian. Even earlier in the day, everything in the quartier was already reserved! Mon chapeau a Le Cherche Midi. That’s my hat!
June 1, Saturday. The TGV heading south, from Paris’ Gare de Lyon, to Avignon is comfortable and lives up to its name, très grande vitesse! From there, Victor was waiting to drive the 40km to the village. We spoke the whole way. The French returning, already beginning to flow. He dropped me off at the House at 2:20pm. The first photos I took upon arriving.
The whole month of June is spread open before me like these endless vistas, with both many goals to accomplish and much liberty with which to define their contours.
The garden in memory of American artist Joe Downing, just in front of the Maison.
3:45pm, Chez Auzet. I see Vincent, who runs the bakery with his brother, as a 6th generation in the trade. I buy a slice of pissaladière, special to this region, something one doesn’t even find in Paris. I eat overlooking the Luberon, literally steps from the back of the House.
At 4pm I knock on Mireille’s door, below. She doesn’t answer. We haven’t seen one another yet. Through these many years we have stayed close. I cannot stop taking photos. Red poppies and roses (pink, white, yellow) are everywhere. The day is miraculous as is every moment here.
I move into the studio and begin to unpack and settle in. The wide lens captures the four sets of glorious windows! I am spending much of each day developing material here.
In the evening, a wonderful jazz concert featuring the fantastic, celebrated Aurore Voilqué Trio, from Paris, playing music in the jazz manouche genre, à la Django Reinhardt. Dinner after with the musicians, presenters, director of the Maison and current artists, was lovely, winding down at 11pm after many tartes, more pissaladière, these balls of pate I hadn’t seen before, the requisite cheese plate, and more tarte for dessert with framboises.
Sunday, June 2. The first day waking up at the residency. This kind of view greets one, here from the terrace to the garden.
A special reunion with Mireille at her place for a terrific lunch and afternoon together.
This bird came to visit us while we ate.
After leaving I began some preliminary shooting in the street. Those photos to come!
Monday, June 3. Up early, 5am, and soon after in the garden. Spent the day exploring locations and shooting, in the garden and at the Hotel de Tingry, an elegant 17th century residence that is part of the Dora Maar Center.
Grocery shopping at the Super U.
Walking to Mireille’s, for dinner. We work on the language for the emails I will send to potential participants of the project. She helps me find the most appropriate way to communicate this in French.
Did not leave until close to 10pm. She gives comté, a huge brioche, like a cake, a package of bread, fruits…My French Mother!
Tuesday, June 4. To La Poste and met Florence who had emailed news about the project to everyone on the post office’s mailing list! This is why I’ve been hearing from people living in other villages too, from Apt, Lacoste, Gordes and others.
Stopped at Mireille’s and visited her grotto and garden below.
But not for long. Eager to be working. The sun calls. If using it is must be grabbed in the right place at the right time.
More shoots. In the evening we were invited to the home of two former fellows for a sensational, welcoming dinner. Can’t believe it’s still light at 10 o’clock!
Wednesday, June 5. Waking up at 5:30am and plunged right into a few hours of research in the garden, followed by breakfast. Have spent the day shooting and organizing the project with the community. Meetings will begin happening later in the week!
More grocery shopping. This time also to the Bio Coop, organic co-op, in Coustellet. The produce is exquisite everywhere.
Thursday, June 6. Breakfast outside in the sun again. A great meeting with Philippe, a painter, who will be involved in the project. Stefanos and I had met him five years ago at Dora Maar.
It is always near the end of the day when the golden sun is best when I rage against the light. This is what happens when the studio is the outside natural world. It doesn’t get any better than working like this!
Friday, June 7. After an early day and again a breakfast in the garden, I spent the day meeting with three more potential participants. Two of them will be involved in the project! Following this a lovely dinner party with this view of Ménerbes! The social calendar was full this first week with generous hospitality!
Saturday, June 8. Met with Leana, 9 years old. A first impression was her saying hello and then pushing off on a scooter down the street. This said, we’ll meet again this coming Wednesday for a preliminary shoot.
After working in the garden during the afternoon I went to the Soirée d’Été in the center of town. A reunion with Anne, we met five years ago, and Franck at the village festivity. I ate four merguez, lamb sausage, fries, and local brewed beer while a band
played and people danced.
It was a most productive week with no fewer than ten shoots catalogued by Saturday afternoon and various meetings defining the community project, including a call in to the Mayor’s Office to learn if it would be possible to film from the cemetery, located at the summit of the village.
In 2016 I had written: “The Maison holds monthly salons, the next June 25, when we will present our work. Will I dance, show a film, or both?” Our Salon will be June 20 this month and I again am uncertain whether I will perform along with showing some films. Time will tell again. As for this image, shot then, I am demanding no less on myself this time around, exploring known spaces and finding new ones, working to overcome gravity, and even the need for too much sleep. I am here but for a moment, as we all are, and am seizing the days.
À la prochaine fois…to the next time.
