PAINTING IN NORMANDY

YOUR HOSTS - Brian and Krishna

and some guest comments...

Arts in the Garden

GUEST COMMENTS FROM OUR FIRST YEAR OF OPERATION.

We have met a number of interesting artists during our first year - and made many new friends. Here are some of their comments. You can see their comments in full (including some suggestions, which have been adopted in our plans for 2009) by clicking on the links. A major improvement in our facilities will be provided by a new studio, currently under construction, and due for completion by Easter of 2009.

‘Food and hospitality need to be experienced to be believed. Krishna’s meals could not be equalled...Brian has a wide range of experience and techniques and has endless patience. He certaintly gave us new ways to look at drawing and painting..’ Geoffrey Marsh, artist (click here to see original)

‘The food is quite exceptional and of star quality. ..I feel I have been pampered and really spoilt….this is a holiday in a class of its own where everything has been thought of…wonderful- ! The tuition was just as much as I wanted. The garden and sculptures were excellent...Christine Bell, artist. (click here to see original)

‘Gorgeous food, wonderful hospitality. This isn't just a Bed and Breakfast…I felt cared for and looked after in a way no B&B I’ve ever known before would do. It felt more like staying in a hotel belonging to friends than an impersonal guest house.’ – Gwyn Garfield-Bennett, Writer and Presenter, BBC TV, Jersey. (click here to see original)

'The accommodation and food were lovely. Enjoyed your company enormously. Felt we had made two new real friends....(The tuition was) very enlightening...' Patricia Clark, artist. (click here to see original)

'Hospitality was excellent and food was superb. If you did nothing else, you could sit in the garden all afternoon and enjoy it...(The tuition was) very good, expecially the computer work.' David Clark, artist. (click here to see original)

Brian Ashbee (M.A.) studied Fine Art and Film at Newport College of Art and English and Fine Art at Gonville & Caius College Cambridge.

Brian has worked in a wide range of visual arts media for nearly 40 years, ranging from the most traditional to the most cutting edge. His paintings have been shown at several London galleries, including the Royal Academy of Arts, as well as featuring in magazines (covers and feature articles) and his moving image work has appeared on BBC2, Southern TV and Anglia TV as well as the Tate Modern on the South Bank, London.

Krishna Ashbee runs the Bed and Breakfast/Table d'Hote Arts in the Garden, where PAINTING IN NORMANDY is located. Since our opening this Spring, many guests have been rapturous about the dining experience at Arts in the Garden, praising especially Krishna's imaginative and creative menus, with their exquisite presentation and fascinating combinations of flavours. Encouraged by this success, she is now making available her special Indian meals evening meals to local people (both French and English) on Saturday evenings as well as at a Sunday lunchtime Curry Club. (See below the article 'On Mange Indien à Morigny' published in Ouest France.) There are also plans to open a restaurant at Arts in the Garden in 2010.

Please note that, in spite of the headline below, Krishna offers a full range of international cuisine, and not just Indian food!

On Mange Indien à Morigny......................................................... novembre 27 2008.

Prévoyants, Brian et Krishna Ashbee précisent où, par GPS, on peut les dénicher au milieu de leur jardin anglais concocté avec amour depuis vingt ans qu?ils ont découvert Morigny. W 1.06760 N 48.87675. Ça mène chez eux. Au milieu de leurs érables du village Tochu. Peintre depuis des années, ayant travaillé à l?Écple de Cinéma et de Télévision près de Londres puis à l?Université de Cambridge dans le département d?architecture, Brian a créé, en mai dernier, Arts in the garden. Avec un certain succès. Au point de refuser du monde lors des vacances de la Toussaint. Un succès porté par Internet. Des Américains, « qui viennent trois jours à Paris et trois à Morigny ! », des Suédois,

des Anglais, des Allemands, des Grecs ou des Australiens. Qui dessinent et peignent. Et mangent aussi. C?est là qu?intervient Krishna, Indienne bon teint. D?où l?idée « d?essayer le marché d?un restaurant indien en pleine campagne ». Tout nouveau. À découvrir. En retenant sa table par avance. La cuisine indienne requiert du temps.

Pratique. À 4 km de Montbray et proche de Saint-Sever (14). Tél. 02 33 90 12 82 ou 06 03 67 67 42 Site : www.artsinthegarden.net E-mail : brian@artsinthegarden.net

For more information about the gardens and accommodation at Arts in the Garden, click here