My favorite day in France

Monet's Garden, original watercolor, 15 x 22, 

It started with a train ride from Gare St. Lazare train station in Paris, a site many of the great impressionist artists have captured. We rode to Vernon, a small town in the French countryside, to rent bicycles and buy french bread, and other lunch essentials. 

We rode through the town and over a lovely stone bridge to the other side off the Seine, where we stopped on a grassy knoll to picnic on the banks of the river. Rested and well-fed, we mounted our bicycles again and pedaled through the French countryside, past stone cottages, whitewashed fences, lovely gardens, and line after line of fresh laundry drying in the sun.

Finally we arrived in Giverny, and queued up to tour Monet's home and garden. The line was long and the day was warm, but there was an ice cream kiosk conveniently located right across the street. And soon we were inside. 

It was a dream come true to see the lovely home where Monet and his wife Camille lived out their days, and to tour the garden that inspired so much of his later work. This is his famous and beloved lily pond, framed by an array of brilliant-colored flowers and shaded by mighty willow trees. 

Then we rode back again through the countryside, past the laundry and the stone cottages, the bridge and the river, returned our bicycles and boarded a train back to Paris. Best day ever.

In this painting I tried to capture my joy at visiting this longed-for place, the serenity of the garden and pond, and a touch of the impressionism Monet himself used to describe his garden.

"Monet's Garden" original watercolor, 15 x 22. 
On display at the UVU Faculty Show, Oct. 5 - Dec. 9, 2017.
Woodbury Museum (University Place, Second Floor).
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