On the RoadTalent Show

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PhotographyThe Final Evening

CONTENTSDrawing & Painting

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ArchitectureDesign & Build

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ON THE ROAD W/ LES TAPIES

L es Tapies students enjoyed trips to a number of exciting destinations during the second half of the programme. Each of the trips

complemented the artistic objectives of the programme while exposing students to some of the most significant cultural characteristics of the region.

Keen to make the very most of the time available to them, the Directors packed an impressive number of sites into the excursion

days’ itineraries, requiring an early start to all of the days.

The days incorporated pedagogical elements directly related to the participants’ studies - notably the opportunity to draw and paint in plein air - but they also offered students the opportunity to learn more about France, the Ardèche and its surrounding départements, and, of course, each other. Though the schedule for each day was invariably demanding, students were also offered a much-needed chance to rest.

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ABBEY OF MAZAN

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T he Abbey of Mazan, a 12th century abbey built and formerly inhabited by Cistercian monks, was the first destination of the day on July 7th.

Located on the French Massif at an elevation of 1,360 metres, the abbey sits at more than twice the height of Les Tapies. Though the temperature during our visit approached 35° C, this region is exposed to some of the harshest winters in France, with the land freezing in October and only thawing in March. These conditions would have made the feat of building this impressive abbey a particularly challenging one.

Upon arrival, students were treated to a nearly-two hour guided tour by a French expert on the abbey, translated into English by a Les Tapies teaching assistant. They were then let loose to survey the abbey on their own terms, taking photographs, drawing, and painting the abbey’s impressive architecture and surroundings.

After a few hours at the abbey, lunch was served, and students piled back into the vans for the drive to the next destination: the Chauvet Cave Reconstruction.

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A t the next site, students were introduced to some of the oldest art in the world: the prehistoric drawings in the Chauvet Caves,

a network of caverns thought to have first been inhabited by humans over 30,000 years ago.

Though the facility students visited was a re-construction - the true caves are closed to visitors to protect their contents from degradation - the degree of precision to which the replica was constructed was impressive. Guided tours took participants through the caves.

Once students had completed their tours, the group moved onto the Chauvet Caves museum, where various exhibits were dedicated to the lives and living conditions of the first humans to have visited the Chauvet Caves.

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CHAUVET CAVES MUSEUM

TALAH, SAUDI ARABIAAIX-EN-PROVENCE

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A ix-en-Provence capped off the programme’s set of excursion days. The morning began with a visit to the former studio of Impressionist

artist Paul Cézanne.After a 7am departure from Les Tapies, the

programme’s vans arrived in Aix just before 10. Staff at Cézanne’s studio were still preparing when the programme arrived, so students and staff waited in the shade of the trees in Cézanne’s garden, with many seizing the opportunity to work on pieces in their sketchbooks.

After a tour of the studio, the programme moved onto a meeting point on the Cour Mirabeau, a central road in Aix, before being released for free time until 2. At that point, the programme visited the Musée Granet, where works by Pablo Picasso and Paul Cézanne were on display.

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TALENT SHOW

A s the reality of final presentations and the necessity of their gruelling preparations began to set in, students were offered the

opportunity to blow off some steam by partici-pating in a talent show.

Unsurprisingly, Les Tapies students’ talents are not limited to the visual arts; if that hadn’t been clear before, the talent show left no one in any doubt, with songs, dances, and even a guest performance by Programme Director Fernando Gonzalez.

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CAMILA & JOHN, UK & USA

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DANIEL, PORTUGAL

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LAURA, PUERTO RICO

NICOLE, CALIFORNIA, USA

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D uring the second half of the programme, Drawing & Painting students continued to explore a range of media, completing

works in graphite, charcoal, conte pastels, ink, watercolor, gouache, acrylics, and oils. In the Printmaking Studio, they pursued lino-cut, woodcut, monotype, and drypoint intaglio prints. Throughout this time, regular sessions of life drawing were held and students participated in both group and individual critiques. During the final week, everyone began preparations for our Final Exhibition, mounting finished work and composing oral presentations to be given in front

Final Exhibition, mounting finished work and composing oral presentations to be given in front of clusters of each artist’s “Les Tapies oeuvre”. These presentations included a “summing up” of personal goals and intentions and a self-evaluation of overall performance and progress, emphasizing discoveries made along the way and insights about the processes we all pursued. These presentations are always revelatory, as they provide a moment of reflection and retrospection—a time to realize just how much has been learned and experienced in the space of three short weeks.

- John Smalley, Artist, Instructor

DRAWING & PAINTING

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GABBI, SPAIN

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ANASTASIA, MOSCOW, RUSSIA

T he students in the Architecture Major designed a residence for the site of Les Tapies to expand the facilities for the program. The initial

research included the history of the development of traditional hillside villages, as well as a thorough site analysis to choose a location for their building. Interestingly enough, the students each chose different sites. Important consid-erations as specified in the design brief were vehicular and pedestrian access, impact on the existing buildings in the hamlet, and sensitivity to the overall style and character of Les Tapies.

They have worked with elements of the landscape, architecture, still-life, the portrait head, and the anatomy of the human figure. They have also experimented with abstraction and have explored color through both wet and dry media.

In less than two weeks, students designed the residences and prepared ink drawings of a site plan, floor plans, elevations, a section, a water color perspective following an excellent workshop by John Smalley, and a model to fit on the existing 1:100 site model.

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The project was particularly difficult because of the challenging sloping terrain of Les Tapies. Each student presented their design to the selected jury of teachers, guests, and students built on the knowledge gained from their previous project working in teams for the design of the Outdoor Chalencon kitchen. Given the limited design experience of the students, the jury was impressed by the projects and the excellent quality of the drawings and presentations.

In follow up interviews with Architecture teacher and Director Fernando Gonzalez, it was clear that students were challenged by the course, and several were convinced by their experience that architecture was a career they wanted to pursue. In fact one student felt the program was a life transforming experience. Many late hours, a willingness to respond positively to constructive criticism, and a dedication to the design process were key factors in the students’ success. “I could not be more proud of them and am confident of their success in the future should they decide to pursue architecture as a profession” said Mr Gonzalez.

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YIRAN

DANIEL

TALAH

E ach summer the Design & Build elective offers students the opportunity to design and construct projects that will add important

amenities to the hamlet. Such projects in the past have included restoration of a bread oven, construction of the infinity nest, refurbishment of an existing building to create a student center, and various landscape designs and stone terraces. This summer the projects were construction of a 12 meter long retaining wall and bench for the student center terrace, as well as a Les Tapies arched cairn that encloses an unsightly electricity supply box. The 8 students worked well as a team and toiled in extremely warm weather to provide important amenities for the hamlet.

The students learned about working with building materials and techniques such as reinforced concrete, dry stonewall construction, and most importantly how to use materials efficiently to design functional, beautiful structures that provide important amenities for the hamlet. From learning how to use tools to mixing concrete and using stone to construct aesthetically pleasing structures, students were

involved in an experiential learning process which reflects a key component of the Les Tapies philosophy: that students learn best by doing. The projects, which required 24 bags of cement, each weighing 35 kilos, and nearly a ton of stones, were particularly impressive due to the limited schedule of only 18 hours of class time. Often students worked well beyond the allotted class time to complete the projects. “A major reason for starting the program was to share the passion and expertise I have learned over the 42 years of restoring Les Tapies and I am thrilled that students have enjoyed the experience,” said mentor Fernando Gonzalez.

The sangria and cheese event at the end of the program recognized the hard work by the students and celebrated their impressive achievements, which will benefit future students in the Les Tapies Art & Architecture program. Learning new skills and completing such challenging projects on such a tight schedule was extremely satisfying and rewarding. The enthusiasm and commitment by the students to complete the projects to such a high standard was particularly impressive.

DESIGN& BUILD

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D uring the second half of the photography workshop, students applied their technical knowledge of the workings of the 35mm

camera and black and white darkroom techniques to explore the artistic aspects of their imagination. Some of the students expanded their creativity by utilizing the medium format camera, providing an exponential increase in negative and print quality. It also challenged them to adapt to a square format rather than a rectangular frame. Concepts of balance, composition, the photo essay and street photography were applied in the field, where we sought to get out daily into the beautiful Ardèche countryside and villages. Group critiques were insightful for all students,

as were one-on-one progress reviews.A highlight of the 2nd half was a day trip to

the world’s greatest fine art photography fair in Arles, about a 3-hour drive away. The finest of contemporary photography – in all its genres – was on display, and was a real eye-opener for the students to see world class imagery up close, and provide food for thought in their own work.

The last week was devoted to the final exhibition of their best images for presentation to the entire Les Tapies community. The final exhibition represented the culmination of their efforts during the three weeks of immersion in photography.

- Barry Iverson, Photographer, Instructor

PHOTOWORKSHOP

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O n the last day of the programme, students took part in one final Les Tapies tradition: a visit to a local gallery followed by a banquet at a

nearby château.For this very special evening, students and

staff donned their finest clothes and prepared for a night of fine art, delicious food, and excellent company. It would be the last time these extraor-dinary young artists were all together as a group. The next morning, they would depart for their home nations.

THE FINAL EVENING

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