Wildlife Sculpture, Fine Art, Nature, William Bartram inspired, bird sculpture,

Happy Summer! While I’m going to post a lot of great news with my artwork in an upcoming blog about my recent public sculptures and installations, here are some highlights from my trip to France with my fiancé, Jenny.

The French adventure starts with a tour of The Louvre, which we almost missed because of delays getting out of the airport and across Paris. Once there, we met our Parisian guide, Florence, who was very knowledgeable. It has always been a dream of mine to see the masterpieces in The Louvre; and the former palace did not disappoint. Although the museum was very crowded, we took a back entrance and did not have to wait long. Our guide helped us avoid the busy areas; yet take us across the Sully Wing and all throughout the Denon Wing. Consequently, we saw all the great artworks by Leonardo, Michelangelo, Canova, De Croix, etc.. , After the 3 hour tour, I explored more sculptures, particularly Greek and Roman antiquities. The masterpieces carved in stone, such as, Venus de Milo, Winged Victory, and Michelangelo’s “Bound Slaves”, really impressed me (see below). Also, I was very impressed with the skilled woodcarving and emotion brought forth by “Saint Mary Magdalene”, carved in 169 (below).

The next day, we started with a walking tour of Paris. Fortunately, it was also a very small group and moved quickly. I was surprised to see wild parrots in Paris, which our guide, a graduate student from London, didn’t even notice. Instead, he showed us the Monmartre Arts District, including where Picasso lived and worked along with many other famous artists, like Van Gogh. It was a nice tour through the steep, winding, cobbled streets with a great view of the city. Finally, we ended at the Arc de Triomphe.

After the tour, we walked more famous streets all the way to The Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, and back to our Airbnb. The great thing about walking all day is that you notice so much! Also, you can eat a lot of delicious French cuisine. We had so many great meals!

While I was birdwatching around parks leading to The Louvre, we met a nice, older Parisian man. He gave us some good advice and insight as to how The City of Lights is changing. Then, we had a nice evening picnic of French cheeses and bread viewing more amazing sculptures among beautiful trees, flowers, gardens, and lots of Parisians relaxing, drinking, and winding down their day.

We spent our final full day in Paris exploring The Museum de Orsay. It is rated one of the top 5 museums, focusing on art from the 19th Century. There were many masterful sculptures and paintings of Impressionism, Post-Impressionism and Neoclassicism. Some of my favorite artists are Monet, Degas, Rodin, Carpeaux, among others. In fact, I grew up always in awe of Rodin’s “Gates of Hell” and “The Thinker”. Many other sculptures caught my eye as I sketched one to study its lines in the museum. A room filled with many of Van Gogh’s famous paintings was particularly impressive. Finally, I saw two of the most important artworks which are said to start Modern Art of the 20th Century - Rodin’s sculpture, “Walking Man” and Manet’s painting, “Lucheon On The Grass”.

The next morning we took the high speed TGV train to Southern France, which was a nice break from walking and more relaxing. It was charming to see the French countryside, where most of its great quality food is grown. Jenny and I arrived in Toulouse, where we would stay for almost another week. Known as the “Pink City” because of the iron oxide in its brick mortared buildings, Toulouse is a visual paradise.

We enjoyed walking its historic streets and bridges while viewing and taking photos of the old architecture. While Jenny loved shopping there, I enjoyed birding along the Gerone River. In fact, I saw a total of 24 species in France with pigeons, mallards, sparrows, and barn swallows being the most popular. The following 4 birds were lifers for me: a flying Eurasian Kestrel by the Louvre, a perched Grey Heron in a damned pond, a Common Kingfisher fishing the Gerone, (see available sculpture below) and Bergeronnette Grise (White Wagtails) catching insects also along the river.

Additionally, I created some sketches of scenic views and historic structures. One night, we stayed in a 15th Century castle with barn swallows, which were fun to watch (see my latest emerging

sculpture below). Consequently, I drew the castle’s outside while trying not to disturb the nesting birds. Also, I sketched “La Daurade pour traversed La Gerone”, which is the 12th Century bridge to cross the Gerone River. Finally, I drew a busy city scene by the Capitol square with a castle and a cathedral in the background.

While there were plenty of beautiful parks and sculptures throughout the historic city center of Toulouse, the artistic highlight for me was the huge Impressionist paintings by Henri Martin, located in the impressive Capitol building. Classically trained in Paris and Italy, Henri slowly adapted his realistic style to master the looser French invention of Impressionism.

In all, it was a great trip with beautiful weather! Coming back to Atlanta with highs in the upper 90s is going to take a while to adapt though. Nevertheless, I am very inspired and so thankful for this opportunity of a lifetime. Thanks for reading and following my artwork and adventures. You can see more at this quick video on my YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/VJ9oL_bu36o .