Be Inspired// Blog

Last Week at the Residency

Dispatches from Château d’Orquevaux

As we round out the last week of being here, I reflect on what the time has been like. It is hard to put into words all that this place is and means to me. I do not know how to properly express what I learned and how much rest it was for my soul. So, I will leave you, dear reader, with some beautiful images of this fairytale château.

Master Drawing Mondays: Week 17

In honor of my time at Château d’Orquevaux, I present a portrait of Denis Diderot by Louis-Michel Van Loo.

Denis Diderot’s daughter, Marie-Angelique married Abel Nicolas Francois Caroillon du Vandeul and they lived in the Château here in Orquevaux, which is now an international artist and writer’s residency. #MasterDrawingMondays

The Source as a Metaphor for Spiritual Growth

I remember being a young person, caught up in the spiritual fever of charismatic Christianity. There was a nervous anticipation in each sacred gathering of being caught up by the Spirit. We waved our hands, spoke in tongues and prayed fervent prayers. Water that runs over rocks splashes and makes a lot of noise.

Master Drawing Mondays: Week 16

This line drawing of Pre-Raphaelite muse, Fanny Cornforth, by Dante Gabriel Rosetti is a splendid example of Rosetti’s style, plus good practice for precision cross-hatching. #Masterdrawingmondays

A Rainy Day Helps Creativity Bloom

As I walked down the hill from that château to the studios in the stables, I snapped this picture of L’église Saint-André in the distance. The rain today highlights the patina of the church and the verdancy of the spring grass. The château is quiet today, artists all behind their studio doors working hard on painting, writing, film editing, and sculpting.

Master Drawing Mondays: Week 15

This lovely study of St. Andrew was made in 1609 by an Italian artist named Guido Reni. It was made as a predatory study for Saint Andrew brought to the temple and Saints Peter and Paul in the chapel of St. Andrew in San Gregorio al Celio in Rome. #MasterDrawingMondays

Letters from France

I am writing to you today from Chateau d’Orquevaux in rural northeast France. The chateau sits atop a hill overlooking a pond filled by crystal clear water from a canal that runs along the edge of the little village of Orquevaux. There are perhaps only 80 people in the village, plus the 20 or so artists that come every month to the chateau to work.

It is ridiculously beautiful.

Master Drawing Mondays: Week 14

This drawing, A Triton Blowing a Conch Shell, by Jean-Baptiste Nattier was presumably done as a study for a painting. Nattier used black chalk heightened with white chalk on gray-brown laid paper. It is the size of a typical sheet of paper, 11″ x 8 7/8″. The toned paper from Canson would be perfect for this. #MasterDrawingMondays

Master Drawing Mondays: Week 13

The challenge of Master Drawing Mondays is to set aside time to copy a drawing. You can either choose from one of the Dover books, or I will provide a weekly prompt from a museum collection. If you are on social media, use the hashtag #MasterDrawingMonday and tag me on Instagram @SarahHI. Let’s see how many out-of-practice artists we can encourage to take up a regular practice of copying the old masters!

“I came to learn about the sculpture; I learned about creativity and confidence.”

Attendant at a talk given at the Rotary Club of Frederick

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Convallis convallis tellus id interdum velit laoreet id donec ultrices. Aliquam vestibulum morbi blandit cursus risus at ultrices.

Vulputate ut pharetra

Lorem ipsum dolor sit