Perfect Picture Book Friday-- Silent Days, Silent Dreams

I have been holding on to this PPBF book selection for a while. I didn't realize it was because I wanted to pair it with a movie recommendation, but life has a way of bringing things together.

Title: Silent Days, Silent Dreams
Author and Illustrator: Allen Say
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books, An Imprint of Scholastic Inc., 2017

Opening page: James Castle was born on September 25, 1899, on a farm in Garden Valley, Idaho. I think I knew him as well as anyone could know him -- which wasn't very much -- but I want to tell you how I remember him. He was my uncle.

Why I love this book:

This book reads like a picture book biography, but it is fiction. It is the story of an artist who was "deaf, mute, autistic, and probably dyslexic, yet he managed to teach himself to draw." Allen Say took all that he could learn about James' life and created a story that is told by James' nephew. 

There is a beautiful Author's note about how the story came to be at the back of the book.

The illustrations are beautiful. They tell the story, show James' art work, and are enhanced by the short blurbs of text between and next to images.

This is a book that takes time and relooking to get the full impact.

I love this book because it is beautiful. You can feel the authors love and appreciation of another artist. You can see that the Illustrator immersed himself in James' life and art, and gave him a second life in the pages of this book.

Activities and Resources:
My sister and I watched the movie The Peanut Butter Falcon.  My sister is developmentally disabled. Because she processes the world around her more slowly than others, she enjoys movies, but tends to lose interest. Not with this movie. The morning after we watched Zack as The Peanut Butter Falcon, she said that she really liked the movie. I asked what she liked about it and she went on to talk about many parts of the movie.

It dawned on me how important it is for all people to see themselves in books and movies. I knew it from personal experience,  but watching my sister watch a young man with disabilities acting in a story about living his dreams really brought it home. My sister could see herself and her abilities through the eyes of a movie character.  It also reminded me of how capable and strong my sister and everyone who has disabilities really is.

We recommend this movie: check out the interview below.

Here's the movie trailer:

• Learn more about Allen Say
• Make art using found paper and utensils.
• Make puppets with cardboard and material.

Perfect Picture Book Friday -- Frida Kahlo

Happy Friday to you! Kids are heading into summer vacation mode with time to play, read, and make art on their own terms. If you haven't read this wonderful biography of Frida Kahlo, this summer would be wonderful time to meet the artist and her many beloved animals.

Title: Frida Kahlo and her Animalitos
Written by: Monica Brown
Illustrated by: John Parra
Publisher: North South Books, 2017
Pura Belpre Honor Book

Themes: art, biography, imagination, pets

About the book: This picture book biography of the artist Frida Kahlo is the story of her life as seen through her relationship with her many beloved pets.

Why I love this book: I too love animals. Frida's pets were grand and varied. I wonder what it would be like to have monkey's as pets?

Animals and art were therapy for Frida. This would be a wonderful introduction for children who have health problems or may be struggling emotionally. It tells a child she/he is not alone and gives them ways to move through the difficult times.

Art is so important. As they say, "Earth without art is Eh." This book is a double dose of art. First the story of an artist and secondly, the artwork created by John Parra.  I had the opportunity to listen and watch as he showed us how he creates his illustrations. Each illustration is many many layers of paint with cutting and masking of sections, building up to the final piece. You can learn more about his process here.

We need more art. Kids need to make art and be exposed to art. This book does that in spades!

A couple articles on the importance of making art which Arree Chung posted on his Facebook page and I share with you here:

https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/2019/arts-teaching-become-important-maths-tech-based-future-education-expert

https://www.edutopia.org/video/powerful-effects-drawing-learning

Activities:

• Color a picture of Frida Kahlo
• Draw a self-portrait. What are your your favorite features? Who would be in the portrait with you?
• Experiment with different art styles.
• Visit an art museum, gallery, and/or local artists group to see what types of art other people are making. In my town, our art league shows their artwork at two local libraries throughout the year and offers a day of art for kids at a summer event.
• Learn more about Frida Kahlo
• Find out about the Pura Belpre Award
• Learn more about the Illustrator, John Parra
• Learn more about the author, Monica Brown
• Take some time to understand the meaning of the Spanish words in the book. You may even want to begin learning the language. Many public libraries offer access to online language learning programs. If you are taking a trip with lots of travel time, you could all learn together. Be sure to join the Summer Reading Program too. You and your kids will be more prepared than ever to head back to a new school year in the fall.

Be sure to check out Susanna Hill's Blog where you can look for reviews by book, title, and by themes. And you can check out her weekly #PPBF post along with links to many more wonderful posts here. 

Perfect Picture Book Friday -- Sam & Eva

Today begins the SCBWI Marvelous Midwest Writers and illustrators conference. I am so excited to have Debbie as a guest and presenter at the conference. If you haven't seen her books (the two she wrote and illustrated and all the ones she has illustrated, be sure to check them out. There's a link to her website at the end of this post.

Title: Sam & Eva
Author and illustrator: Debbie Ridpath Ohi
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2017

Opening Lines: Sam had just begun to draw when Eva arrived. "I like your pony," Eva said. "It's a velociraptor," said Sam.

Themes: Drawing, imagination, friendship, collaboration

About the book:
Sam wants to draw alone, but Eva wants to join him. The drawings takes on a life of their own as Sam and Eva's imaginary worlds collide. When Eva decides it isn't fun anymore and leaves, Sam realizes that something is missing from the experience.

Why I love this book:
I love books that show kids making art and using their imaginations.

This book about friendship and collaboration starts off on the wrong foot. Not an uncommon occurrence for kids (I won't mention adults). It's interesting to think about what shifts during the interaction to turn the relationship to something good and special? In this book, there are no adults. The answer to the problem in this story is not dramatic. It's just letting things happen and allowing a relationship to take its course. I think this is an important lesson for kids to learn. We don't always need someone to tell us how to fix and build relationships.

I love that the Sam and Eva are drawn in black and white and all the color is in the drawings they create.

Some Activities:

Make a Dry Erase/Magnetic  Board Wall : This is just one video of how to make a the wall. But Wouldn't it be fun to be able to draw on the walls and not get in trouble?

Debbie's Cool Website filled with activities, downloadables, and cool stuff about her and her work.

Team Building Exercises

As always, to find more cool picture books check out Susanna Hill's Blog where you can look for reviews by book, title, and by themes.

Perfect Picture Book Friday -- Lost Words

April is Earth Month and National Poetry Month. Two things that go together as well as peanut butter and chocolate, tacos on Tuesday, rain and rainbows, worms and soil, flowers and sunshine . . . you get my drift. 

Today's Perfect Picture Book doesn't fit squarely in the picture book category of books. It's 128 pages and the acrostic poems require time and thought to allow their words and meaning to sink in and take hold of your heart and mind.  Yet, it is filled with beautiful illustrations and is a non-fiction poetry picture book.

For me, it conjures up the Wild Flowers of America book that sat on our book shelf as I was growing up (see image at the end of this post). I would browse the pages on rainy days, make drawings of the flowers with my crayons and paper, and even occasionally use it as the reference tool it was designed to be. So while neither are traditional picture books, they are books that take you into nature and without being pushed or prodded, your own imagination is sparked.

Title: Lost Words: A Spell Book

Author: Robert MacFarlane
Illustrator: Jackie Morris

Publishing Information:  2017 in the UK by Penguin Books Ltd. and 2018 in Canada and US by House of Anasasi Press Inc.

Ages: 0 - 100

Description from Amazon: In 2007, when a new edition of the Oxford Junior Dictionary ― widely used in schools around the world ― was published, a sharp-eyed reader soon noticed that around forty common words concerning nature had been dropped. Apparently they were no longer being used enough by children to merit their place in the dictionary. The list of these “lost words” included acorn, adder, bluebell, dandelion, fern, heron, kingfisher, newt, otter, and willow. Among the words taking their place were attachment, blog, broadband, bullet-point, cut-and-paste, and voice-mail. The news of these substitutions ― the outdoor and natural being displaced by the indoor and virtual ― became seen by many as a powerful sign of the growing gulf between childhood and the natural world.
Ten years later, Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris set out to make a “spell book” that will conjure back twenty of these lost words, and the beings they name, from acorn to wren. By the magic of word and paint, they sought to summon these words again into the voices, stories, and dreams of children and adults alike, and to celebrate the wonder and importance of everyday nature. The Lost Words is that book ― a work that has already cast its extraordinary spell on hundreds of thousands of people and begun a grass-roots movement to re-wild childhood across Britain, Europe, and North America.

Opening Lines: Once upon a time, words began to vanish from the language of children. They disappeared so quietly at first almost no one noticed -- fading away like water on the stone.

Why I love this book: I first read about this book in a post from the Children in Nature Network. Sadly, that post slipped my mind until a friend shared an article about the book with me a couple months ago. I immediately ordered it. Each time I open the pages, I turn them with awe and reverence. The title on the cover is gold embossed and the cover illustrations are a small sample of the beauty that is held within the pages.

Each lost word is given three double page spreads. The opening spread for the word is a letter jumble with the letters of the word in a unique color. The second spread includes an acrostic poem on the left and a watercolor illustration of the word on the right. The final spread is a scene depicting the word in its surrounding world.

A book worthy of book cases everywhere. Each word can become an adventure to the outdoors.

The poems are deep and full of mystery and love.

It is a book you can look at and read over and over again.

Activities and Resources:

Activities and and Explorer's Guide from the John Muir Trust

Writing Acrostic Poems

More about Acrostic Poems and using the word at the beginning, middle and end of each line.

Make a flower chain crown

Nature Journaling for Kids

Wet on wet Watercolor Painting

Bird Identification

The book from our family book shelf.

My Acrostic poem from this mornings visit of nine turkeys:

Tom turkey struts his stuff
Under the bird feeders.
Rugged feathers raised, puffed, and shimmering in the morning light.
Kingly posture ignored by the ladies.
Every turkey more interested in breakfast,
Yet Tom persists hopefully.

Finally, if you want to find more cool picture books check out Susanna Hill's Blog where you can look for reviews by book, title, and by themes.

Birds, Birds, Birds, Nature, and Books

We have a robin's nest on our deck. It is such fun to sit and watch mom and dad feed the babies. And the babies. Wobbly little heads with huge open mouths. Can you see the little bit of fuzz on the babies head?

Robin Redbreast

 I always feel special when a bird decides to nest in my yard. I believe it is because I make it a safe and happy place to raise young. I enjoy watching the birds at the feeders and this spring, we have had many migrating visitors that I have never noticed before. The more I know about birds, the easier it is to spot new ones and begin to figure out what type of bird they are.

Available at Anderson Bookshop

A really cool book I just learned about is called, Look up! Bird Watching in Your Own Backyard by Annette LeBlanc Cate. In a mere 51 pages, she provides so much information on ways to bird watch and understand birds. She breaks things down by shape, color, habits, sound, and more. Most people don't get excited about robins as they are around quite a bit, but I love to watch them.  The way they cock their head before they peck in the grass bringing up food amazes me. Annette even wrote a little song about the robins. It reminds us, that there is more to bird watching than just seeing the bird and knowing what kind it is. You learn about their behaviors and lifestyles too. This is a great book to get you started bird watching and nature journaling.

Available at Anderson Bookshop

A new release this year is How the Finch Got His Colors by Annemarie Riley Guertin. The illustrations are by Helena Perez Garcia. So lovely and full of joy. This folktale is the story of how the animals got their colors. A long time ago they were all the colors of dirt, clay, and stone. You'll have to read this tale to find out what happens and where the beautiful colors come from especially for the Gouldian Finch.

Scarlet Tanager at Colored Sands Forest Preserve in Rockton, IL

Available at 57th Street Books

Follow the seasons and animals in the lovely book,  Drawn From Nature by Helen Ahpornsiri. Each page is filled with pressed flower illustrations. Details and interesting information on birds, mammals, plants, and insects abound. This is a book that you will want to look at over and over again.

The bunnies in my backyard

You can check these books out from your local public library or purchase them for your own collection. I have included links to two great independent bookstores. While it's easy to order online, the experience of time spent in independent bookstores and libraries, surrounds you in books, curiosity, and dreams.

April Photo/Poetry Challenge

Life is full of challenges. Why not take charge of your own?

Spring is here and I am ready to challenge myself to get out and take photographs everyday. I called it a photo challenge, but it is also National Poetry Month, so I will try to write a new haiku or other type of poem each day as well.

You are welcome to join me on this journey and spend time working on your creativity too. Feel free to share your images with me.

There are no special requirements. You can use a "fancy" camera or smart phone, you can edit or not. Post to a social media sight or just save them for yourself. It's your journey, make it what you want.

Happy Birthday, Albert Einstein Let's Have Pi

"Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution. It is, strictly speaking, a real factor in scientific research."

This is one of my favorite quotes by Einstein. Today is his birthday and therefore, in my opinion, a good day to celebrate. It also happens to be Pi Day and, well, that gives us a great excuse to eat Pie and learn about math. For the last several years, I have used this day to gain a better understanding of both Einstein and Pi. I have learned that while Einstein did not discover Pi or name Pi, he did use pi (π) in his work. Pi is used in understanding the circadian rhythms of our sleep, planning

flight patterns, making our GPS' work, and much much more.

I decided this year to celebrate Einstein's birthday and Pi with some art and imagination. I wanted to play and also work on a project that my sister, who is developmentally disabled, could work on as well. I went upstairs to my art closet to get some large paper. Then I got caught up in ideas and possible things that we could use. After a while, Jane was upstairs wondering what I was doing. I was really on a bit of a mental walk down memory lane as I had come across some of my old artwork. Pieces buried and hidden in a closet. A stark reminder that I have hidden my talent and desire to be an nature artist for a long time. She woke me out of my reverie. I then attempted to explain to her a little bit about Pi and plans for the day.

I grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil and I drew a circle. I explained that the number 3.14 was the number for pi and that it is always the ratio between the diameter of a circle and its circumference. Since it is hard to measure around a circle, if you measure across the center/widest part of the circle and multiply it times pi, you will get the size of the circumference every time no matter the size of the circle. Jane nodded and agreed with what I said. So far so good.

We then proceeded to gather supplies for our art projects that would be an Ode to Pi and Imagination. I found several items that were round and could be traced to make circles. I pulled out my father's compass set.

Grabbed a few old magazines and a stack of old photographs that have languished in a drawer long enough. We took our supplies down to the dining room table and started to create. 

We drew and painted, traced, cut and glued. Along the way, I wrote a few haiku's. Not sure why, but I enjoy fitting my thoughts into the simple 575 syllable structure of these Japanese poems. (In case you are wondering the number combination 575 appears in the 411th position after the decimal point of Pi).

We took a break for lunch and had . . .

Circumference of pizza = 26.7035 inches
Circumference of pepperoni = 3.9269 inches
Area of pizza = 56.7449 square inches (ℼrsquared)

After several hours of cutting and playing, we had completed our Ode's to Pi and Imagination. 

By Jane

And this is mine.

I had another thought along the way. As I looked at all my old almost forgotten photographs, I saw that I have always been connected to nature, but I didn't really understand it. I accepted that I liked it and rarely went any further than that until 2014. That was the year that I became a Master Naturalist. Peggy Doty taught me, most importantly I think, to be curious and see the connection between all things. The readings and other class teachers provided a basis to gain a deeper scientific understanding of all the beautiful things I see in the world. My love of nature has become a lovely blend of science and art, forever connected and always expanding.

"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when one contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality, It is enough if one tries to comprehend only a little of this mystery every day. " -- Albert Einstein. 

If you want more on Pi:

Nasa offers up a Pi Challenge

There is a Pi Day website so be sure to check it all out and celebrate Pi with all the cool kids.

Kerry James Marshall Exhibit

I needed a day away; a distraction from my own life. My friend Stacy told me about the Kerry James Marshall Mastry exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago.  I realized this would take me out of my own personal thoughts and open my mind to something new. I have never been to the MCA before and Kerry James Marshall was a new artist to me. If you click on the link to the museum above, you will get more information about Marshall and this exhibit. 

I took the train into the City and then on the recommendation of the train Carmen I took the water taxi from Ogilvie Station down to Michigan Avenue. For $8 during the week and $10 on the weekend, you can have unlimited rides on the up and down the river. 

If you haven't spent much time on the Chicago River recently, you will be amazed at the changes. There are now many outdoor "rooms" with restaurants, bars and lots of places to sit and watch the people go by.

Walking to the museum, the rain had stopped, but the puddles were still reflecting the world as it went by.

The museum is pretty nondescript from the outside and as usual, most of the people hanging out were focused on their phones rather than the world around them. The entry fee is a suggested donation of $12. (It is free to the public on Tuesday's.) I happily paid the suggested donation as I love to support the arts in any way that I can.

Inside, even the stairways are artistic. 

Before you reach Marshall's exhibit on the top floor, (take the stairs if you are able or stop at each floor if you need to take the elevator) there is another exhibit by Andrew Yang called Matter Matters. The photograph above is a capture of part of a larger piece. It spoke to me that it was meant to be here in this museum at the same time as Marshall's exhibit (Well played MCA). In a video at the beginning of the Mastry exhibit, Kerry James Marshall talks about how he needed to find his way in the art world that historically was a predominantly white field. He talks about how Art education is systematized and teaches a prescribed way of doing things. He discussies his "Paint by Numbers works and shows that the painter in the painting is "Taking liberties with the outlined and defined image, even of ones self."  Part of his goal is to normalize seeing black content figures in the museums and on display. He makes much more sense in his video than I am. Click the link below to watch it. This exhibit is a retrospective, it is not just about one thing it shows how his ideas and ideals have changed over his artistic life. 

https://mcachicago.org/Stories/Video/Kerry-James-Marshall-Mastry

School of Beauty, School of Culture, 2012

Detail from the Barber Shop painting Growing Up in Watts, LA

This is one room of the exhibit. You can see that the work is large, vibrant and full of life. What stood out to me as I walked through the exhibit was that most of the visitors were white. I was excited to learn from my friend that through a grant, there was a group a young African American students who were brought to see the exhibit on a field trip. This pleased me immensely as I believe it is a big part of the purpose of Marshall's work to show children of color that they too can be successful artists if they choose that path and that black people do appear in artwork. This exhibit shows that you can be anything that you want to be if you have the desire to become it and you make the effort and energy to make it happen.

When I took a job at the Chicago Public Library several years ago, my first branch was the Roosevelt Branch which was surrounded by University of Illinois Chicago campus and a low-income high-rise. As the Children's Librarian, I worked with the kids who came in to get out of the summer heat or just to have a place to go. Most of those kids were black and came on their own. Many of them were just in their first years of school. The summer reading theme was about art from the Art Institute. We offered programs for kids to create their own artwork and explore the world of art. What really sticks out to me wasn't the art or the activities, but the young girls asking me if they could touch my hair. It was red and so different from theirs. Today that is such a no no, but when it happened, all I could think was that they need to understand the world around them and if they are going to make any connection with me they need to see the ways that we are different and the same. I wish now, that I would have been to be able to take them to see Marshall's exhibit and then to talk with them about what they saw and how they felt about the experience. We could have talked about the ways that we are the same and different, we could have broken out of the systematized way that we are supposed to understand the world and taken liberties with the way we define ourselves.

The exhibit is only in Chicago through this weekend and then it will be moving to New York so if you have a couple of hours in Chicago this week, I recommend you stop in to see this great exhibit and if at all possible share it with someone who might not otherwise be able to go.

Here is another great article about his work.

https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-how-kerry-james-marshall-became-a-superhero-for-chicago-s-housing-projects

Looking down from the top of the staircase at MCA.

Roussillon -- a Village of Color

I read about Roussillon in Susan Vreeland's Lisette's List. It is a historic fiction novel set before, during, and after World War II. It is a story of a young woman who after leaving her Paris City life learns about living a rural life, learns about art and artists, and discovers that love comes in many forms. 

I was fascinated about the ochre mines and the pigments made from the colors described in the book. I knew this was one place I wanted to visit on my journey in France.

After my hot air balloon ride, I took the route to Roussillon rather than heading straight home. Winding roads led to a busy little village in the Vaucluse hills. Everything was reddish, golden and ochre. The village spiraled in a Fibonacci swirl up to its peak looking out over the incredible beauty of the region. I found a place to park, it was still early in the day, but the sun was hot, and there were tourists everywhere.

I walked down from the parking lot and the first store was filed with colors. It was a store selling the pigments of Provence.  I was in heaven. I wanted them ALL! I wandered the little store enjoying all the colors for a while. The employee was bored and seemed to prefer smoking her cigarettes to talking with customers,  but that did not deter me. I was in a little slice of heaven and she could not shake that lovely dreamy place from me. 

 

Such a vibrant little village filled with shops, narrow streets, people, and restaurants. After wandering, taking many photographs, stopping for a delicious lunch, I made my way back to the pigment store once again soaking in all of the beautiful colors. I wanted everything and the only thing that slowed me down was knowing that I would have to pack all that I purchased in my bags to come home. I settled for a lovely sampling. 

One of these days, I will open them and try them out to create an ode to this very special place.

Art and Photography

While I believe that photography can and certainly is an art. It has also been become so easy to take pictures that the creativity and thought that I feel goes into the art, is often lost. Maybe there is an art to the selfie and the posed picture of people in front of every location that you visit, but part of what gets lost in that for me is the actual visit; the time spent seeing, feeling and understanding the place.

When you paint or draw a location, you have to stop, sit or stand, and really look at the place. You look at the lines, the color, the form. You look for cracks, shadows, and angles. You also become a part of that moment. You are a part of the scene. You are putting more of yourself into the place and opening the door to others looking over your shoulder to see if you are any good or maybe just to see what has intrigued you enough to stop in that location.

I had planned to draw and paint more on this trip, but it was very hard to stop, find a place to settle in for a while, and then expose myself to the world.

In truth writing this blog and even sharing my photos on Flickr are exposure that leave me open to criticism, apathy and maybe even compliments. Maybe that is part of what art is; being willing to put yourself out there to be viewed by others no matter what they think, say, or don't say about your work. I think that art is so personal; something that you feel that you absolutely need to do to satisfy your soul.

Van Gogh needed to paint so much, that in the ten years that he was a painter, he made 900 paintings. During his life, only one of them sold.

The impressionist artists wanted to do something different from the traditional painting of the time and their work, for the most part, was not accepted into the art salons until they created their own exhibit. They lived in poverty and used most of the money that they had to buy more canvases and paints, just so they could make one more painting.

Musee D'Orangerie

Monet's Studio

The modern artists did it again, wanting to create something new and different. They wanted to show their perspective of the world.

Art within Art within Art

Fleeting Moment of Art outside the Pompidou

I sat on the street one day and drew. As I started the sketch, a little girl came up to stand next to me and watch. Her parents said she just liked watching people draw. She would look at the drawing then to the location that I was working on capturing and back again. She never said a word. She didn't want to leave, but her parents pulled her away and thanked me for allowing her to watch. Later, a group of men coming toward me, posed so I could capture them in the drawing. I made quick swirling motions with my with my hand as if I was trying to capture them in the drawing. They stopped to looked and were complimentary. They said it needed color, but it was good. They are correct that it needs color. I stopped to draw this scene for two reasons; the color of the flowers and buildings and a desire to practice drawing perspective.

Sketch of a Street in Old Arles Looking toward the Amphitheatre

I survived putting myself out there. Those wandering past were not critical but complimentary. Selling your work is not a prerequisite, though it is likely a form of validation that you are an artist. Doing the work, putting yourself on the the canvas, through the lens, on the paper, or in the blog are what make you an artist.

Giverny -- Claude Monet

I was very fortunate to grow up seeing at in Chicago with school trips. It was there I was introduced to many artists and also where I fell in love with the impressionist painters. Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh became my favorites.  Why these two when there were so many, I'm not sure. I feel a connection,  I love the colors, and their paintings resonate with me. Many years ago,  as a teenager, I saw Monet's paintings of the Water Lilies of Giverny at the Art Institute. I remember walking into a dark room and the paintings stood under light long and huge reflecting a place of dreams and color.

The day after visiting Giverny and Monet's garden's I went first thing in the morning to the Musee de L"Orangerie where the Water Lily paintings hang in two large light oval shaped rooms.

The Water Lilies of Giverny

The paintings took my breath away again as they did many years ago.

I don't know that I always wanted to go to see Monet's home over all these years. I guess in a way, it never seemed possible until I started doing research for this trip. When I realized I could see the place, I purchased a ticket.

I took the early train to Giverny so I would arrive as the gardens opened for the day. The train leaves out of the Saint Lazare station one of the places that Monet painted when he was in Paris.

Saint Lazare Station today. No longer the smoke and steam from the trains.

Gare Saint Lazare as painted by Monet

Even arriving early at Giverny, on such a beautiful day, it was crowded, though I noticed that the lines to get in after lunch were much longer.

It was beautiful.

Water Lilies of Giverny

For more photos from Giverny Check out my Flickr Album of France or with this photo Time and Giverny start here.

In his home, the rooms were filled with light and art. It was a place meant for work (painting and gardening, sleep, pleasure, and visitors. If there was no window, there were paintings hanging on the walls. 

Monet's Studio

Monet's bedroom

View from Monet's bedroom window. Now that's a great way to wake up each day.