Category: wedding

Three artistic entertainments during the same wedding: live portrait, live painting , and wedding book !

I have been a live wedding painter in France since 2016 now, and this is the first and only time that a client has ordered me to make three artistic entertainments during the same wedding! Ambitious challenge !

I have firstly been contacted by Aurelie ROUSSIE, the wedding planner from Love & Provence, for a wedding taking place in Orgon in Provence (South of France). She was looking for a live painter, and I was supposed to paint live one or two scenes. When the future weds have seen my previous wedding live paintings, and my watercolor wedding books, they have willed to get both of them !

Then, the “welcome dinner” party has come during which I was supposed to paint live portraits of guests…

Live portraits of guests

Original entertainment for wedding guests

It is Friday, the day before the wedding. The bride and groom have organized a Welcome dinner for their loved ones who come from far away. Indeed, Chloe and Christopher are both English natives and they live in Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates. But they absolutely wanted to get married in Provence, one of the beautiful place in France…

The welcome cocktail receives guests who arrive gradually.

And I settle down to start drawing couples.

Each one leaves with their own small live-painted watercolor portrait. A nice keepsake of this wedding in Provence for the guests !

Live painting of the secular ceremony

The different steps of a live painting during a wedding ceremony

On Saturday, it is the Big Day !

I set up my easel in early afternoon to begin to draw the landscape on my sheet.

Then, each guest sits on their place and secular ceremony can begin. It is the most intensive moment for me : I have to draw as many guests as I can during the short time the ceremony is lasting !

This is still the moment when the guests are not moving a lot ! This is my drawing since the ceremony has finished :

As guests are toasting to the happiness of newlyweds and going to dinner place, I start adding colors.

Chloe and Christopher come to see the evolution of my painting

I avail till the last lights of the day to paint the landscape. Then with my easel, I join the party in the reception hall.

My painting is changing during all evening. The guests come to take a look at it oftenly. They always find funny to see themselves represented in the painting !

And now this is the final result, after some finishes in my painting studio :

The wedding book : a watercolor album of wedding highlights

An original album to remember the wedding day

As I have live painted during wedding day, I have made this wedding book from pictures made by Oliver Fly , the official wedding photographer.

All day and night long were in this wonderful Provençal mas : the Mas of the Rose in Orgon.

It is such a real perfect reception place for English lovers who wanted to get married in heart of Provence : the old stones of the house, the lavender fields, olive trees…

The future weds have been preparing each on their own, Chloe with her mom, Christopher with his dad.

The ceremony begins, Chloe’s father leads her daughter to his future son-in-law

Under the watchful eye of Brian, the bride and groom’s dog

And it is time to toast to the hapyness of newlyweds !

Then comes the time for speeches, and especially Christopher’s one which is very touching when he declares his burning love to his wife just in front of an audience with wet eyes !

Finally the wedding cakes are brought

The first dance…

And the early bride !

And that’s how Chloe and Christopher have got married in Provence and will keep really exceptional memories of their wedding, thanks to my paintings!

And what about you?

Have you found an original wedding entertainment?

Would you also like to keep a special memory of this unique day?

Contact me and let’s talk about your desires for your wedding !

A wedding-book : an original wedding gift idea

The wedding paint-book of an original wedding in Spain

Today I would like to tell you the story of Aurore and François. Both of them are French and they have decided to get married in Spain. Everything has started when I met Elisabeth, the bride’s mother, during an Art exhibition in the South of France. She is also a fine Art painter, and obviously we were talking about Art during this event. When I have told her about my work as wedding painter, her eyes have lit up ! Her daughter was going to get married in the next few months… And she was losing the hope to find an original gift idea for the couple. So I have explained her my new concept of wedding-books with original watercolor paintings, and she was delighted about this idea !

Before the wedding

Reflexion about paintings which will be in the wedding-book

First, Elisabeth had to think about the moments she wanted to be in the wedding-book. The moments I would paint ! The bride’s preparing, the wedding venue, the ceremony, of course, the bridesmaids, cocktail time, the dinner (the witnesses speeches?), the wedding cake, the first dance… And surely other unexpected moments !
Then, the bride’s mother had to give me the pictures of all the guests who would be painted. It would be much easier for me to recognize the people I would have to draw !

Why did they get married in Spain?

The bride’s family comes from Spain: the grandfather still lives in Spain. The bride parents have a vacation house in Denia (in eastern Spain, near Valencia). Aurore loves this home, and this place. She has spent lots of summer holidays there. And for her wedding, she wanted above all to get married under the orange trees !

The day before the wedding… The bachelorette party

Witnesses, friends and bride’s family had planned a big party the day before the wedding. It was a costume party, and the theme was : « Come with your celtic costume Â». And the bride herself, has worn a celtic wedding dress.

A friend costumed as a druid, spreads evil spirits with a Galician ritual. You will see, there have been many rituals during this wedding !

The wedding day

Each page of the wedding-book shows a symbolic moment of the day

In France we say : Mariage pluvieux, mariage heureux ! Â» ( literally « Rainy wedding, happy wedding !). Aurore and François will have a very happy wedding ! The rain has invited itself to the wedding…

All the guests were sheltered under a marquee, to attend the ceremony outside.

And it was the beginning of many rituals :

• the candles ritual (or light ritual) ; the bride and groom have both carried a candle for each of them. They have gathered they respective candles to light a third candle, symbolizing their destiny’s union. Three other candles were symbolizing the Time : Past, Present and Future.

• The orange tree plantation ; as I have explained above, the bride absolutely wanted to get married under orange trees. During the ceremony, Aurore, Fransois and Hugo (the son) have planted an orange tree symbolizing their love that would grow day after day.

• The handfasting cords (literally « Tying the knot Â»): a tradition from Celtic origin. This ancient tradition of handfasting represents a deep spiritual union between a man and a woman. There were 13 ribbons of 13 different colors. Each color of cord had a meaning (blue : understanding, patience, health / red : courage, sexuality, passion / white : peace, sincerity / yellow : harmony, communication…). Thirteen relatives of Aurore and François came each in turn, to tie one ribbon around their hands.

Then came the long-awaited moment : the wedding rings exchange! And the witnesses signatures.

That’s it ! They were married ! The party could start !

Another ritual during the dinner : an oriental ritual from Algeria. A section of cut hair, a knotted belt (symbol of union between the newlyweds), and Aurore had to drink milk and to eat dates, sign of fertility and good relation in the couple.

And the last ritual for the wedding cake : the bride and groom had to cut the cake with… a sword !!

Testimonial

« I wanted to amaze the newlyweds, by offering them a unique and original gift … and I met Kiara during an exhibition! A truly talented artist! She has proposed me to paint all the important moments of the wedding in watercolor and to group them in an album that I would offer to the newlyweds after the wedding … I had finally found THE original and artistic present that I was looking for! The result was magnificent, touching and unique! Kiara creates watercolors from what she sees or from photos with her very personal own style and signature. She establishes an harmony between her painting and Reality. She creates a real piece of Art, for which you are one of the models. Believe me, offering an original paintingnin which we can relive those moments of happiness through the artist’s eyes is something unique! Â»

Elisabeth, the bride’s mother

Looking for an original wedding gift? Liking my wedding-book concept? Contact me for more informations!