Near the Basse Collette

Landscape Painting near the Basse Collette

Size: 15″ x 24″, 38cm x 60cm
Media: Oil paint on bristol board
Date: December 5, 1972
Where: Provence, France
Signature: benson ’72
Currently: In the family collection

Her diary has reference to a “oil sketch” near the Basse Collette as being one of three similar sized landscape panels that she was working on almost simultaneously. One of the others was the distant view of the Notre Dame des Cyprès Chapel. The third panel was the view from the balcony at Ndola, the place where she was temporarily staying at the time, for which I don’t have a picture. She was calling them “panels” due to their narrow aspect and portrait orientation.

Diary Entries

November 6, 1972Did 1.5hrs oil sketch near Basse Collette
November 12, 1972Worked on leaf colours & range of paints for same
November 14, 1972Worked on panel 3hrs.
November 15, 1972Colour seems different. Collected leaves and painted them
December 5, 1972Finished all alterations to all 3 panels.


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