A memoir that immerses the reader in life in the heartland of France
Water Paper Stone: Letters from a Mill in France was reviewed in the San Francisco Examiner. Inga Aksamit says, “Water Paper Stone” joins “A Year in Provence” and “Under the Tuscan Sun” in bringing us vivid illustrations of rural life in Europe and mouth-watering descriptions of rustic slow-food.” To read the whole article: http://tinyurl.com/n6j2t47
We are moments away from opening the installation of the walk-through book at the San Francisco Center for the Book. In advance of that, I’d like to express my sincere appreciation and gratitude to the many talented artists who have contributed their work to this grandiose undertaking. I’m humbled to be entrusted with their work and privileged to have the opportunity to bring it together into this installation for all to see. Please come experience their work at Water Paper Stone: A Walk-Through Book at the San Francisco Center for the Book from Sept. 5 through Nov. 30, 2014. You can click on most of the names below to learn more about each artist.
We went back to France to pick up the “pages” for a giant walk-through book that I’ve been installing at the San Francisco Center for the Book. I made 15-foot high covers for the book, my husband, Mike, contributed the spine, as he held our artist-in-residence program together. But it’s the artists, both American and French with whom we worked for over 17 years at La Pilande Basse, who were the heart of our experience there. We had a grand lunch, of course, before revealing the work of eight of them at Jean-Michel’s house in Millau. Explore all the artists who contributed to Water Paper Stone: A Walk-Through Book here.
When we back to France last month, we were just in time to go to the one-year anniversary mass for Marthe. She died in May 2013 after suffering a series of illnesses that had left her weak and diminished. Her children, all seven of them, plus spouses, the grandchildren, and great grandchildren were packed into the small church in Coupiac, all forty-four of them.
It’s been a tough year for Germain, his own health suffering. Years of hard physical labor have left his heart and body usé or “all used up,” he says. They’re repaired a heart valve, and he’s got his whole family stopping by almost daily, as well as a visiting nurse every morning who checks his medications and blood pressure. But he misses Martou, and his large hands pinch his eyes below his glasses each time he mentions her.
SAN FRANCISCO, APRIL 16, 2014—Seduced by the romantic notion of living a carefree life abroad, many people dream of moving to the South of France to eat, drink, and explore the countryside. Most people don’t then decide to move to France, revitalize a forgotten mill, host an artist-in-residence program, and start a new career. But that is exactly what Judy O’Shea, a San Francisco installation artist, did with her husband, Mike. Now, O’Shea has collected her vivid journal entries and letters to her beloved sister, Linda, into Water Paper Stone, a memoir that immerses the reader in life in the heartland of France. Water Paper Stone: Letters from a Mill in France is now available for purchase on Amazon.com in softcover for $17.95 and as an e-book with more than 100 photos for $13.95.
