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A Tribute To French Mills Of The Past In Watercolor

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A Tribute To French Mills Of The Past In Watercolor

April 4th, 2014 - Bellevue, WA

Valerie Garner offers her new watercolor art painting called 'The Old French Mill'. She uses many layers of washes and glazes, along with a wet on wet and wet on dry techniques to reach this astonishing result, deciding to focus on the beautiful French mill topic.

Historic French mills remain a charming attribute of the past. They are powered by big water wheels. There are many old mills in France that remain until these days, so these intriguing and extremely useful buildings from the past are the topic of the most recent Valerie Garner’s watercolor painting. The picture is painted in soft and bright colors with cheerful flowers. The final work has been created using many glaze and wash layers and it is sealed with a special UV protectant.

There are some interesting facts about these old French water mills built in France more than 700 years ago. They are built in English style in the period when this land has been occupied by English army. Their purpose has been to grind enough wheat flour for the English military garrisoned in France to keep their commercial interests, so they are a symbol of oppression for some people, while others consider them a symbol of the past, where no technologies were invented yet and the life has been a lot simpler than today. They have been built on the river’s bank in the rural areas to use the water power to encircle the water mill. For that purpose, people have created nearby waterfalls used for the runoff to the mill pools.

After the end of the foreign invasion in France, the old water mills remain and local people started to use them to process the wheat and to make bread. Although many of these brick buildings are cracked with time and others are in complete ruins, these historic French mills are still an object of interest for many people, including artists, who would like to recreate their previous beauty and significance in people’s life.

Using simple tools and intricate techniques, Ms. Garner, has decided to dedicate her time and talent, to provide people with a reminder of the past life, where there have been no Internet, cell phones, computers, cars or other modern-day facilities, but the life has been free of stress and tension, when people have had enough time for themselves and for their loved ones. This positive suggestion springs out of 'The Old French Mill' painting; helping people to remember what are the most important things in their life.

People, who are interested in this and other paintings, created by Valerie Garner, can visit her website http://valerie-garner.artistwebsites.com/galleries.html.

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