Mary@MaryBrush.com     restorechic@mac.com     www.marybrush.com

  Auguest 11, 2005      

August in France is a unique experience.  All the non-tourist and sustenance related trades and professions really are on vacation.   Construction sites close, so suppliers close,  so architects officially close their offices because all the projects are quiet and even clients are on holiday.

My last days with the office of Pierre Antoine Gatier prior to the August holidays included two very interesting meetings at the Chateau de Chantilly.  This chateau is privately managed and has recently been awarded to the Gatier office for restoration.  The chateau is on the outskirts of Paris.  The work will include interior and exterior as well as garden and canal restoration.  Of course upon seeing the 3 kilometers of canal, I immediately thought how it would be a perfect site for a rowing club... but they have other plans.

One of the many restoration challenges of this (and any) project is the decision process of how and to what extent a building is restored.  For example,  the restoration is underway for the gold leaf ornamentation in one of the grand rooms of the chateau.  Is the restored product to be new and bright, or aged with a patina, which retains the authenticity and which re-creates a former era now?  This is only one of the beautiful and very important decisions to be made.

Since the architects were now on holiday, I found myself in  ‘unplanned time.’  I spent several days absorbing more of what makes Paris wonderful  - its architecture, its neighborhoods, and of course a few moments to ponder in cafes. 

 I then continued this epic of architecture and  restoration.  My first stop was to Rouen for a visit to the cathedral. I am probably one of the few tourists to be happy to see a building in scaffolding - it is a sign of interesting work and architectural challenges.  My challenge included drawing this facade.

My second stop was to Mont Saint Michel. A more awe-inspiring building or collection of buildings perched on a rock) I have never seen.  Several sketches and lots of photos later, ... I still required time to see it at sunset, sunrise, another ponder from vantages along the meandering coastline, and another sunset.  Truly magnificent.

Eventually I did have to move on.  I traveled along much of the coast of Bretagne.  I admired the rocky coastline, the character of the buildings, and even the colors of the granite.  It varies from a deep blueish hue Mont St Michel_3.jpgto a ruddy pink color.

My travels then took me to Quimper.  This town is known for its role as heart of the Cournaille culture, a strong connection to its celtic ancestry, a unique patterning of lace and its faissance, or painted pottery (forms of terra cotta and therefore architecturally relevant.)  The town center retains an impressive collection of its medieval buildings - identified by the visible wood structure and minor cantilevered, or offset, floors.  The cathedral is a sight to behold and like Rouen, provided a good challenge to my daily sketching practice.

After several days in the Quimper region, I was in motion again, this time on a quest for the earliest history of my trip - the prehistoric megalith stones in the alignments of Carnac.  These stones are in precise rows, and are concentrated in the southeastern portion of Bretagne.  Fascinating not only in their mystery, but that they have not been altered over time.  Restoration challenges include the fact that due to their popularity, pedestrian tourists were causing erosion of the land in the footpaths that they created while admiring the stones.  Currently it is not possible to walk amongst the stones, but only to admire at a distance. 

The beauty of this country is astounding, and it is only further enhanced by the food and wine exploration.  I have happily subsisted on the plethora of fresh seafood that abounds in Bretagne.  I am now traveling southward to the Charente Maritime region, and then a quick trip back to Fontainebleau to start with my third architect.