{"id":11435,"date":"2021-05-28T15:51:26","date_gmt":"2021-05-28T22:51:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lesliedinaberg.com\/wordpress\/?p=11435"},"modified":"2021-05-28T15:51:26","modified_gmt":"2021-05-28T22:51:26","slug":"confined-to-quarters-not-to-canvas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lesliedinaberg.com\/wordpress\/?p=11435","title":{"rendered":"Confined to Quarters, Not to Canvas"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Confined to Quarters, Not to Canvas, photos by Erick Madrid. Originally published in the Santa Barbara Independent on May 20, 2021.<\/p><\/div>\n

When the pandemic stuck Maryvonne\u00a0LaParli\u00e8re<\/a> in her new Solvang home\u00a0last spring, the white walls and unfinished\u00a0surfaces didn\u2019t stand a chance\u00a0against the artist\u2019s love of color. The\u00a0French-born, \u00c9cole des Beaux-Arts<\/a>\u2013educated artist has specialized\u00a0in decorative art for decades but focused primarily\u00a0on commissions\u2014like the three vibrant murals that grace\u00a0the walls of Goleta Valley Cottage Hospital<\/a>\u2014and work for\u00a0sale in galleries.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen COVID arrived, it was not even like fight or flight,\u00a0because we didn\u2019t know what to fight exactly and we couldn\u2019t\u00a0fly anywhere,\u201d said LaParli\u00e8re, who closed her gallery in\u00a0Amherst, Virginia, with the shutdown. \u201cI had to figure out\u00a0what to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked around the house and spotted two nightstands\u00a0in the bedroom that \u201cwere good quality but kind of blah.\u201d\u00a0So she painted them to match the botanical design on her
\nbedspread. Then it was on to faux painting a frieze of tiles in\u00a0trompe l\u2019oeil style, inspired by antique Spanish\/Portuguese\u00a0ceramic tiles.<\/p>\n

Staying with Mediterranean-inspired vernacular, she\u00a0hand-painted her patio and did an entire outdoor barbecue\u00a0area. \u201cI decided to do the wall near my iron gate and a little
\nbarbecue sink, which I did painted in blue and white in the\u00a0azulejos Portuguese style,\u201d says the artist, whose work can be\u00a0found in the collections of celebrities such as Priscilla Presley,\u00a0Larry Hagman, Fannie Flagg, Julia Roberts, and Susan\u00a0Sarandon, as well as the Orient Express Hotels chain, University\u00a0of Virginia, and Alliance Fran\u00e7aise of Washington, D.C.\u00a0In 2010, after a solo exhibition at the French Embassy, she\u00a0was even decorated by the French Ambassador as a Knight\u00a0in the Order of the Palms in recognition of her talent and for\u00a0bringing French culture to so many in America.<\/p>\n

Painting her way through the pandemic kept LaParli\u00e8re\u2019s\u00a0spirits high, as did living in such a beautiful place.\u00a0She transformed the steps leading up to her house into a\u00a0colorful entryway, painting images of the nearby mission\u00a0and gathering inspiration from all the local flora\u00a0and fauna; \u201cboring furniture\u201d pieces like\u00a0chests, trunks, and tables were transformed
\ninto colorful works of art;\u00a0and borders around her windows\u00a0became showcases for more
\nhand-painted tilework.<\/p>\n

Now that things are starting\u00a0to open up, she is eager to work\u00a0with new clients, as well as in\u00a0her own home\u2014if she can find\u00a0an empty surface. Said LaParli\u00e8re,\u00a0\u201cI will never stop.\u201d<\/p>\n

See laparliere.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> Originally published in the Santa Barbara Independent<\/a> on May 20, 2021. To see the story as it originally appeared, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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