JACQUELINE BRICARD’S “REGARD NAÏF EUROPÉEN” EXHIBITION EXTENDED THROUGH DECEMBER

Posted on October 24, 2017October 24, 2017 by Susan Manfull

There were just a few paintings still to hang when I left Lourmarin in late September. Before departing—and two days before the opening--I popped by to see Jacqueline Bricard, proprietor of the naïf art gallery bearing her name and curator of the “Regard Naïf Européen” exhibition. She was in the midst of the usual frenzy entailed in the preparations for a large exhibition. This exhibition includes the works of twenty-eight painters and three sculptors, representing 13 European count...

BETTER CALL WALTER

Posted on September 10, 2017September 10, 2017 by Susan Manfull

Last year, about this time, my daughter and I were on our way from Lourmarin to Château d'Esclans in La Motte, about 150 kilometers away in the département of the Var. There, we were to meet with Tom Schreckinger, Communications Director for the Château, and Patrick Léon, chief oenologist for the château, for a tasting and conversation at the harvest lunch. It was the middle of the vendange in that part of Provence and, per the custom at that estate, they were serving a leisurely, multi-cour...

WHO’S THE FACE BEHIND “LOURMARIN, LOURMARIN”?

Posted on October 1, 2016October 4, 2016 by Susan Manfull

If you follow what’s happening in Lourmarin, the charming village at the southern base of the Luberon where the Manfull family has been hanging their hats for many years, you’ve no doubt seen something about “Lourmarin, Lourmarin.” Have you wondered what “Lourmarin, Lourmarin” is? Earlier this year, it started popping up on FaceBook and Instagram and I, for one, wondered what it was. It is the new name for the Association des Commerçants et Artisans, explained Richard Dufay, current preside...

GÉRARD ISIRDI: THE PAINTER IN THE CORNER OF CAFÉ GABY’S TERRACE

Posted on November 19, 2015January 24, 2016 by Susan Manfull

Inconspicuously tucked in a corner in the back of Café Gaby’s busy terrace, one might think that local artist Gérard Isirdi would go unnoticed. On the contrary, by the time Lourmarin’s most famous artist has set up his makeshift easel atop a café table, attached his large canvas with a series of large stainless steel clips, and arranged his paints, a hushed excitement has swept through Lourmarin’s three crowded cafés on Place l’Ormeau, palpable to any passerby.Tourists recognize Isirdi or q...

MEET MARCO, LE PROPRIÉTAIRE DE CAFÉ GABY

Posted on October 15, 2015November 27, 2015 by Susan Manfull

If you have been to Lourmarin, you know Café Gaby. Located in the center of the village on Place de l'Ormeau, where main street Rue Henri de Savornin meets Rue du Temple, Café Gaby is the hub of this charming Luberon village. Men meet at the bar when the sun first rises, parents gather for coffee after dropping their children at school, vacationers come for lunch, young folks come for wifi to text, locals take their pastis as the day comes to a close, and regulars rendezvous for dinner. Deals a...

NEWS FROM AUBERGE LA FENIÈRE: REINE SAMMUT PASSES THE REINS TO DAUGHTER NADIA

Posted on September 13, 2015November 27, 2015 by Susan Manfull

After 40 years at the helm of one of Provence’s most renowned restaurants, La Fenière, Chef Reine Sammut and sommelier husband Guy are handing over the reins of the cuisine to Nadia Sammut in October. Nadia, who is the third generation of Sammuts at La Fenière, credits her grandmother and her parents for her culinary knowledge and passion for food but brings her own personal experience and education to the table, too: growing up with celiac disease and learning to cook creatively sans gluten (an...

SERENDIPITOUS CONVERSATIONS WHILE TRAVELING: YOU NEVER KNOW WHERE THEY MAY LEAD

Posted on October 13, 2014November 27, 2015 by Susan Manfull

It’s not a short walk from Charles de Gaulle’s Terminal 2E, where Air France parks its planes from Boston, to Terminal 2F where one connects with another Air France flight departing to Marseille. The jumble of people waiting to board AF flight 7664 from Paris to Marseille on June 12th is more civilized than it used to be—at least, there is some semblance of a line compared to the free-for-all that characterized the boarding process years ago (before CDG was renovated and boarding areas were eve...

TWO NEW PUBLIC TOILETTES IN LOURMARIN: UN GRAND SOULAGEMENT

Posted on August 11, 2014November 27, 2015 by Susan Manfull

It’s August and, as tourist season moves into full throttle in little Lourmarin—crowds bulging at the seams by mid-morning in the Friday market and bonnes tables harder and harder to snag—it’s good to know there is relief in one area. Lourmarin has some new public bathrooms and, all snickering aside, this is un grand soulagement! (That is, a big relief!) Two free public toilets with automatic cleaning—one with handicap accessibility—opened in May. They are conveniently located near the main pa...

LA FÊTE DE LA MUSIQUE IN LOURMARIN

Posted on June 22, 2014November 27, 2015 by Susan Manfull

The great part of staying in a maison village--home in the village--is that you are in the thick of things. The downside is that you are in the thick of things. Such is the case for good friend Pamela and me tonight, the first day of summer, June 21. In France--and in over 100 other countries around the world--the summer solstice is celebrated with a Fête de la Musique. We can hear the music from our living room in Lourmarin, as if the band were practicing in the neighboring home. It's pretty...

LOOKING FOR LAVENDER IN THE LUBERON

Posted on June 2, 2014December 30, 2015 by Susan Manfull

The Luberon’s lavender season usually begins around the end of June and extends into August when harvesting begins. I’ll be in Provence this year to see those gorgeous swaths of solid purple gracing the hillsides of my favorite region of France. I am excited! Lavender field outside of Sault. Photo by W.T. Manfull Many images come to mind when one mentions “Provence.” Rosé, bouillabaisse, truffles, sunflowers, colorful fabrics, hilltop villages, and the Côte d’Azur,...