John O'Grady Art - I Took the One Less Travelled by | A 'chemin' in Provence dappled with light

I Took the One Less Traveled by III ©John O’Grady
6″ x 12″ x 1.5″, Oil on deep edge panel, ready to hang.
$247 (approx €210, £190) with free shipping

Pathways crisscross the provençal countryside between villages.

These half-road, half-tracks ‘chemins’ made of compacted soil and stones, are a means for farmers to access their fields. Outside harvest time, they are empty and a joy to follow to discover the unexpected.

This late summer afternoon, I noticed on the side of the path the heat had dried and bleached the grasses yellow-white.

The tree-trunks looked striking in the shade.

Coming around the bend, the chemin rose up and, stretching out before me, I saw the most beautiful dappled-light pattern of complementary yellow-orange highlights set among the blue-purple shadows.

Immersed in the shimmering heat, I stepped on this intricate mosaic to the rustling sound of the cigales’ chorus.

I met no-one.

Locals wisely kept indoors but I was enjoying how the heat had infused nonchalance into the landscape.

How these old pathways have been trodden over the centuries, each person telling their own tale.

How these pathways will witness the steps of each future traveller.

Each on their own journey…

The title of this painting comes from a line in Robert Frost’s poem ‘The Road Not Taken’.

There is something special about paths and laneways, don’t you think?