The Picasso Museum - Antibes, France

This is the incredibly beautiful Picasso Museum in Antibes, France. Two years ago I was fortunate to attend the 're-opening' of the Museum after its being closed two years for renovations. It's spectacular ! What a lucky boy Picasso was to have lived there in 1946 -- with the beautiful and very young Francoise Gilot.

Currently there is a Juame Plensa exhibition there due to the construction of the Nomade Sculpture at Bastion St. Juame. It's an interesting exhibit but a little on the 'dark' side ... and on such a beautiful day - with such a beautiful blue sky - I was drawn more to the windows of the building which boasted the unparalleled view of Antibes from above.

Oh to have such a slender silhouette !! ( did I mention the delicious French food and wine? )

Looking over clay rooftops to Port Vauban and Fort Carre

Beautiful view overlooking the rooftops of Antibes

Breathtaking ... the Cathedral and la Mer photographed from the Picasso Museum - the majestic French Alps in the distance ... parfait I say !

Ok ... so this was my day. I walked to Parc Exflora and waited for the bus. Just the day before I had walked from Vallaris ALL the way to Antibes and back !! For the most part, the walk is along the Mediterranean so it's a beautiful flat promenade ... but then there's the somewhat hilly part climbing from Juan les Pins to Antibes. Not a problem ... but very long. So this day I decided to wait and take the bus. One euro.

After a short walk from Place de Gaulle, and cutting through the Marché Provençal, I reached the museum. Merci Monsieur Dahan for the invitiation ... The museum is bright stone against the intense blue of the sky and sea ... breathtaking.

There were two paintings that I longed to see. One, 'Joie de Vivre' - Picasso and two, 'Le Concert' - Nicholas de Stael. Yes, I've seen them both before two years ago ... but with a fresh appreciation of Nicholas de Stael, I was very much looking forward to studying his work again. Shoot !! No 'Le Concert' due to the Plensa exhibition. It returns in November. This work - unfinished they say - was his last piece before losing all hope and jumping to his death. HOW can someone lose all hope when they live in Antibes - the most beautiful place in the world ? Very often I think of Nicholas de Stael and often look up to see the house where he lived on the corner by the Plage de la Gravette ...

So ... afterward I visited the artists of Marche Provencale after saying my 'final' farewells the day before - as Eva would say 'What are you still doing here ?!!!'

I was excited about Isabelle pulling up to the Marche Provencale to journey to Eze for the evening ....