Heather Midori Yamada
Artist and Teacher of Contemplative Arts
This fall, artist and teacher Heather Midori Yamada and chef Daniel Lamoureux will take a small group of students to beautiful southwestern France for an extraordinary contemplative art experience.
Beginning with short guided meditations the group will explore the natural-old world sites of the town of Eymet, walking, sketching and photographing. In pencil and watercolor, students will capture personal responses to these townscapes. In the studio at 4 rue de Loup they will continue to expand their vision to include spontaneous brushwork on Japanese washis and other paper supports. The six-day retreat will include 5 days of workshops in Eymet, as well as a full day escorted excursion to significant medieval sites in the neighbouring Périgord Noir Region.
More than a tourist experience, this workshop allows you to bring your own creative responses to the experience of place.
Dates: October 18-23, 2018
Location: 4 rue de Loup, Eymet , France
Registration: To register send a message to Heather
Restrictions: NOTE that there are no elevators in workshop and excursion buildings, and lots of walking will be done both in Eymet and on the excursion
COSTS
Workshop Fee
Before August 1, 2018
Special introductory workshop early-bird fee
$495CAD
After August 1, 2018
Regular fee
$595
Payment via e-transfer (hmidoriy@gmail.com), or by cheque made out to HM Yamada and sent to HM Yamada 1148 Goodwin Suite #101, Victoria BC V8S 5H2
Other Costs (payment can be made in Eymet)
Mid-day meals (x5) prepared by Chef Daniel Lamoureux at 4 rue de Loup
75€ EU
One day escorted excursion into Périgord Noir (includes transport by car, guide-driver, lunch and tour in a "gabarre" on the Dordogne River. More details below.)
110€ EU
Pick -up car from Bergerac train station (see details in Travel: Bordeaux-Bergerac-Eymet below)
20€ EU
* IMPORTANT: Participants are responsible for cost of travel to and accommodation in Eymet.
TRAVELLING TO EYMET
Canada to Bordeaux
If you're flying, KLM and/or Air France are good carriers. Usually they route you through Calgary instead of Vancouver, so it is: Victoria-Calgary-Amsterdam-Bordeaux. United may have something similar, I don't know, as we usually try to avoid flying through the States since security can be so long there.
I'm not sure if Air Transat is still running in October, but that's another possibility although they'll only get you to Paris.
If you want to go to Paris, you can get a train directly to Bordeaux from CDG airport, or if you spend a day or two first, you can train from Montparnasse Station in the centre of Paris.
Heather and Daneil are about to book their flights leaving from Montreal in advance of the retreat; as the staff will be there for a full two weeks including the six day creativity workshop. We would be pleased to share our info with you once we have booked! (Very soon!)
Bordeaux to Bergerac to Eymet
There are trains almost hourly between Bordeaux and Bergerac where you can be picked up by Charles for 20 euros per person, 15 if there are 2-3 people at the same time traveling to the town of Eymet.
WHERE TO STAY
There is one double room available during the retreat at 4 rue du Loup for $650CAD incl. taxes, first come first serve. Please indicate your interest when signing up for the workshop.
There are also three bed and breakfast places within easy walking distance to the studio, all of which we know something about and get good reviews. They are:
Villa Corisande (friends have stayed there, or friends of friends), 52 Eymet, Maison #20, Chateau de Pile. Prices vary, depending on budget.
Two others that are in town (don't know anyone who's stayed there) are Escapad'Eymet and Maison d'Angle. Please contact these directly.
WHAT TO BRING
Art Materials
Sketchbook
3-5 colored watercolour pencils
small travel watercolour set
round brush
hb pencil
eraser
ink pen
notebook
digital camera or mobile device
Clothing
layers of travel clothes
warm fleecy
good walking shoes
coin washing machine available in house
Other
Small Flashlight
Water bottle
BIOS
Heather Midori Yamada
Heather Midori Yamada is a visual artist and teacher who works with Japanese washi papers in paintings, collage and installations. She regularly exhibits her work across Canada in group and solo shows, and is represented in numerous personal, corporate and institutional collections. Heather has taught workshops and lead retreats in Québec's Eastern Townships, Montréal and Victoria, BC for many years. In Eymet, she will continue to encourage fluid and spontaneous responses to our inner and outer surrounds, using techniques of Japanese calligraphy and painting, simple brush work, watercolor and western and Asian style mixed media. She will also fulfill a dream of bringing her creative practices to new and striking places around the world. Find out more...
Daniel Lamoureux
Daniel Lamoureux has been a chef and innkeeper for over 35 years and is now the owner with his partner Charles of a guest house in Lotbinière near Quebec City. He has won several awards for excellence in tourism and as a committed personality in his social environment. From 2007 to 2017, he hosted Heather Midori Yamada's creativity workshops at Auberge La Mara in Ham-Sud (Quebec). In Eymet, Daniel will be present to prepare our lunches using regionalproducts to give us a taste of the local cuisine.
Charles Aubin
Charles Aubin has worked as a clinical psychologist since the early 2000s and recently retired to help with the management of the guest house in Lotbinière. In the 1980ʼs and 90ʼs, he worked in the tourism industry as a travel counselor and a tour guide and travelled extensively in the Americas and Europe. In Eymet, Charles will lead a full-day excursion to discover the Périgord Noir and its capital, Sarlat-la-Canéda, as well as the Vézère and the Dordogne valleys.
ABOUT EYMET
Eymet is a charming historic French village in the Dropt valley, south of Périgord. In its striking heritage architecture you will find shops, entertainment and quality restaurants.
Founded in 1270 by Alphonse de Poitiers, Eymet is one of many previously fortified villages (Bastides) in the south-west of France built in the Middle Ages. It possesses a typical layout with a central square surrounded by arcaded dwellings, on narrow streets and alleys that intersect at right angles. The workshop location, 4 rue du Loup, is one of these Medieval homes.
Every Thursday morning throughout the year, there is a traditional market, an event dating back creation of the Bastide. Eymet also has a castle where murals, a dungeon and remnants of the old walls can still be seen.
Beyond the village is a tranquil landscape with vineyards, orchards and gardens. Rich in tradition Eymet is a place of manors and castles, Romanesque churches and chapels, Romanesque bridges, mills, fountains, dovecotes and old communal lavoires (wash-houses).
Very popular among the English, today 16% of the population is of British origin, a particularity that gives a cultural richness to this lively and open village.
Arcades et maison à colombages de la place Gambetta, Eymet | Photo: Père Igor | Source: Wikimedia
Arcades de la place Gambetta, Eymet | Photo: Père Igor | Source: Wikimedia
Le château de la Gravette, Eymet | Photo: Père Igor | Source: Wikimedia
Le pont du Bretou (côté amont) à Eymet | Photo: Père Igor | Source: Wikimedia
DAY EXCURSION TO PÉRIGORD NOIR
Guide
Charles Aubain (see bios above)
Restrictions
Minimum of 4 participants.
Cost
110€ EU per person, includes transport by car, guide-driver, lunch and tour in a gabarre boat on the Dordogne river.
Distance
Approximately 400 km travel in private car.
Itinerary
Departure from Eymet.
Visit of les Eyzies, nicknamed "World Capital of Prehistory", in reference to the vestiges of human occupation since the Paleolithic
Continuation to Sarlat-la-Canéda through the "Magic Triangle", region located between the Vézère and the Dordogne valleys.
Free time in Sarlat, capital of the Black Périgord and one of the most beautiful medieval ensembles of Europe, to visit at your own pace the covered market, the lauze-stone roofs, the vaulted passages, the cathedral and the Renaissance mansions.
Lunch in Sarlat, then departure for La Roque-Gageac, ranked one of the most beautiful villages in France, for a one-hour tour of "gabarre" (flat-bottomed fluvial boat) on the Dordogne river, where you can admire the old villages clinging to the limestone cliffs.
Stop in Domme, an old medieval bastide perched on a vertiginous cliff which allows to enjoy an exceptional view over the Dordogne valley.
Return to Eymet.
Sarlat-la-Canéda, Dordogne, FRANCE | Photo: Jebulon | Source: Wikimedia
