Art Bead Scene April Challenge

We are certainly a windswept bunch this month with our Waterhouse painting of the north wind blowing to get us inspired. Grays and blues with a hint of yellow and pink and green was on most of our palettes this month. It certainly looked like that to me outside where I am! Enjoy this blog tour as we honor Boreas, the North Wind (and wish thatZephyros, the Greek god of the calm spring breezes, would come quickly in its place!).

I had this blue scarf and when I saw the picture, I knew I had to use it.  There are two birds in the pic so I added birds with a white background, reminiscent of clouds. The dangle part has lavender, green and silver colors on it with brown.  I really enjoyed doing this.

March ABS Necklace

My Necklace based on the colors from the Street Scene picture for the ABS monthly contest.

Street Scene in Montmartre: Le Moulin a Poivre by Vincent Van Gogh

Oil on canvas

34.5 x 64.5 cm.

Paris: February-March, 1887

About the Art

Montmartre was still semi-rural when lived Vincent there with his brother Theo. There was farmland and allotment gardens; three of the celebrated windmills were still standing. The latter were a favorite destination for day-trippers from the city. The largest mill in the painting, Le Blute-Fin, had a pavement café affording a magnificent view over Paris; at the top of the mill, there was a viewing platform. Round the mills there were also various catering establishments and dance halls.
Here Van Gogh stresses the rustic charm of the area, showing people working in their allotments. Nonetheless, modern development looms: to the left of the smaller mill, a large apartment building rises above the fields. 

About the Artist

The two years Van Gogh spent in Paris were arguably the most pivotal of his career as an artist. Van Gogh went to Paris as a means of saving money (by living with his brother, Theo) and also to explore the radically new approach to art which had been ushered in by the Impressionists. Vincent encountered many of the giants of Impressionism during his time in Paris: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Emile Bernard, Camille Pissarro, Georges Seurat and, of course, Paul Gauguin. While Vincent didn't fully accept many of the theories put forth by the Impressionists (on many occasions he would passionately argue with his contemporaries late into the night in the cafes of Montmartre), he nevertheless adapted some of their techniques in a manner that would further define his own unique style. In Paris, Van Gogh's palette came alive.