Blue Afternoon Painting

I was born in 1945 in Trouville-Sur-Mer, a charming little town on the Normandy coast, once the refuge of the Impressionists in the late 1800’s. My family moved to Paris when I was a young child and in my early 20’s, after a sojourn of one year in England, I settled in the Montparnasse quarter, favored then by artists and writers. As a student at the Ecoles des Beaux-Arts, I exhibited at the American Center on the left bank where I met Man Ray, the well-known artist and photographer. Swept into the spirit of the students’ revolution in 1968 in Paris, I decided to move to California to experience the cultural revolution of the 60’s in San Francisco. Three years later, in 1971, I met the artist who would change my life, Max Shertz. I moved with Max and his family in a beautiful Victorian house with the view of the San Francisco Bay, on Union and Fillmore, in San Francisco. The next 17 years, I would study with Max, being his apprentice, muse, and finally his wife in 1990. My studying with Max led me to be his companion in art, painting with him in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and in France. During our life time together, I supported my teacher/husband/artist, doing so by working at a regular job, meeting my family obligations, doing my art, and assisting Max with his various projects. My supporting Max Shertz was not a blind choice. The genius of Max Shertz, which demonstrated itself, particularly starting in the 90’s with his abstract works of the unconscious, was worth what I considered “paying my dues.” I was sacrificing nothing. I had the very best teacher and the very best audience for my art. When it came to his art, Max was a tower of strength, discipline and control, associated with his passion and spirit which were grandiose. As a teacher, Max had high expectations but was also extremely supportive and inspirational. Through the 38 years I spent with Max, I discovered that Art was a universal language, a vehicle of communication on a visual level, and Max was a magnificent communicator, not only visually with his art, but with words, captivating his audience with his mastery of the English language. his humor and wit incredibly rich and warm. And as Arianna Huffington [The Huffington Post and author of many books], then Arianna Stassinopoulos, said, when she met Max in 1984, “Max is a contemporary combination of Hermes and Zeus.