The French flea markets are a great source for props… by props I mean those objets that we consider photo worthy. I am always on the look out for interesting props… pieces that I can use for styling a room and creating vignettes. Generally I search for things of a worn nature, that show a patina and reflect an antique feel. ‘One man’s throwaway is another man’s treasure’… that has always been my mantra when shopping in flea markets and it describes the French brocante perfectly. I think the French must have a laugh when they see me bargaining over what they would consider junk… It’s lucky for me that the French don’t throw anything away… everything recycles around the markets again and again… I admire their tenacity to drag car loads of old wares from market to market… setting up their stands… selling all day… and when sales are down… packing it all up and carting it home. I prefer my role… admiring, taking snaps and occasionally buying… so much easier.
In the photograph above you can see my latest madness… the birdcage… Don’t ask me why I had to have it… I just did… I think it was the faded white paintwork and the turrets on each of the four corners. When I brought the cage home I plonked it in front of our coffee tables….and thought I would find a more permanent home later…. then I decided if I added bunches of garden roses… it would look pretty where it was… an ensemble of whites… Objects have a way of finding their rightful spot… and often the less we think about placement, the better it works out. When I look at this scene I see all my flea market finds… the iron star, the glass cloches… even the roses are in old jam jars that I found at the market.
My other find was this book about the gardens in the Loire. I bought it really for the cover… the textured brown paper, the gold print and the bordered sepia image. Will I ever wade through and read it?… I like to think so but realistically, that much French … it probably won’t happen… I will try and understand snippets… and if I get that far, it will be a bonus… The photograph does not do Aux Jardins de la Loire justice… it’s the kind of book… you want to touch… to feel the magic of real paper… the luxury of thick, hand cut pages… That is true beauty.
If you are in Provence don’t miss the Saturday morning market in Villeneuve-les-Avignons… There is no proper address I can give you … Once you reach Avignon, cross the Rhône river and follow the signs to Villeneuve-les-Avignon… the market is in the car park… Can you tell… I can’t wait to go back… xv
