An Original Wedding Entertainment: A Live Painter for the Ceremony
I realize I’ve never written anything about this magnificent wedding at Les Pins Penchés in Toulon, and therefore never shared a photo of my live painting! In the midst of the COVID crisis, in the fall of 2020, the bride’s mother, Mrs. D., contacted me to offer her daughter a painting of her wedding as a gift for August 2021 in Toulon (yes, I often get contacted a year in advance!). She was hesitant about the service (she also really liked the concept of a collaborative painting). The price was also a point of contention, but I quickly adapted to her budget, and we finally agreed on a live painting of the ceremony, with the magnificent backdrop of Les Pins Penchés in Toulon.
The exceptional reception venue: Les Pins Penchés in Toulon
The bride and groom, G & S, chose an exceptional reception venue: Les Pins Penchés in Toulon. They also planned to celebrate their union with an outdoor ceremony, with the sea as a backdrop. Here is the splendid landscape that I will depict in their live wedding painting:
The Jewish Wedding Ceremony
G&S wanted to include several Jewish religious rituals in their wedding ceremony. As you can see in the photos below, there’s a chuppah above the stage where the bride and groom will be. Traditionally, it symbolizes the divine presence in the marriage covenant.
Since I was positioned a bit far away (and also very focused on my drawing!), I couldn’t see all the rituals, but I managed to take a picture of the groom breaking the glass. This is one of the best-known rituals and has several meanings. Historically, it’s meant to commemorate the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem (even in a very happy moment, it’s important to remember this event). For some Eastern European Jews, broken glass is believed to ward off demons. The broken glass also symbolizes fragility and renewal.
Painting during the wedding ceremony
I always arrive well before the wedding begins to start painting. During the ceremony, I’m in full swing! All the guests are in place and posing without even realizing it! 😀 Once the guests move to the cocktail and dinner venues, I follow them. They can continue to see the painting’s progress throughout the evening.
The completed wedding painting
The number of people depicted in the painting determines whether I can finish it that same evening. For a ceremony of this importance, where I’m painting an overview, I don’t have time to finish it on the wedding night. So I completed it in my studio!
And here’s the painting:
And you, what moment from your wedding would you like to have painted?!
