Rockin' Around...
The Christmas treeNovember 25, 2025
Le Violon, 2025. Graphite pencils and acrylic gouache on paperThe house was filled with people dressed up to the nines for the Christmas celebrations. There were guests in the kitchen, in the lounge, in the basement (the teenagers mostly). These people had eaten all the food and were now diligently making sure that by the end of the evening there wouldn’t be a drop of alcohol left in the house.
Dolo didn’t drink much. She didn’t need it to have fun. Case in point, her cheeks were currently hurting from laughing so much. The stories had been especially good that day—this might be a family of drunkards, but at least they were the happy kind.
In the corner of the lounge, full of tinsel and shiny baubles, the Christmas tree twinkled. Dolo sat in the rocking chair next to it. A nice treat for her legs, heavy from poor circulation. Seconds later, someone was putting a violin in her hands.
“Allez Dolo, joue nous donc quequ’chose.” (“Come on Dolo, play us something”).
There was no point arguing, and besides she was more than happy to oblige. Dolo put the violin to her chin, closed her eyes, and started to play.
This is the fourth, and last for now, artwork in my series about my grandmother.
Do you remember two newsletters back, when I mentioned being somewhat inspired by an installation from Do Ho Suh for the colour palette? ‘Course you do. But here’s a reminder just in case:
Once again, I questioned my choices while working on some details. You’d think the plaid pattern on the rocking chair and lampshade would be the worst, but you’d be mistaken! It was the pattern on the curtains. The various tones combined with gradients in the folds were especially hard. Creating a ‘grisaille’ is hard enough, but doing it by mixing grey with a colour instead of white is even harder. Well, it was harder for me anyway. Especially since the gouache colour mixed on the palette changes once it dries!
I enjoyed working on the Christmas tree. Tinsel is extremely bad for the planet, and I wouldn’t want it in my tree nowadays anyway, but I sure love the retro look of it. When going through my mum’s photo albums I found a few cool trees. Like this one from 1959, with all the gifts under it:
I just noticed the nativity scene to the left of the image, with a rocky patterned fabric background. Had the picture been ever so slightly clearer, I would definitely have used it as a reference photo for a drawing.
You know what, I didn’t plan this post to be so Christmas-related, but I’m rolling with it. Let’s enjoy this photo that does the Instagram rounds every year during the yuletide season, and yet I’m not tired of seeing it:
Christmas Swim, 1954, by Slim Aarons
The colours are so great! It’s so fun with the baubles everywhere in the pool! I’m not usually a big fan of palm trees and hot weather at Christmas—I’m from Québec after all—but this image feels very Christmassy in spite of it all. There’s some magic to it.
And on that note, it’s a wrap on Inspired for 2025. You’ll find me in your inbox again in 2026 (let’s take a moment to be incredulous together at how quickly this year went by!).
Until then, take care and I hope the holiday season will be kind to you.
Judith xx
Reference photo, which I cropped for better composition
Close-ups
Monthly inspiration
I recently visited some beautiful churches in London, and I thought it’d be fitting to talk about them in this newsletter. After all, the only time I went to church as a child was at Midnight Mass, on Christmas Eve.
I’m not a religious person, but I like beauty. And a lot of churches are stunning. Some feel very peaceful too. You don’t have to be a believer to feel calmer within their walls.
I was reminded of Venice’s Basilica di San Marco upon entering Westminster Cathedral, with all the golden mosaic. This 1903 church has the particularity of not being finished inside: most of the ceiling is just exposed black bricks. It makes for an amazing contrast with the parts that are ornately decorated.
The Temple Church, built by the Knights Templar in the 12th century, was less grandiose but full of great details. I loved the circle of portrait heads all around, known as ‘The Grotesques.’ They’re stone effigies of knights, just like the memorial sculptures found on the floor.
The tiles covering the floor at the top of the stairs had great designs. I especially liked Pegasus.
All Saints, Margaret Street, was richly decorated from floor to ceiling and I loved it! Designed in 1850, it is regarded as one of the foremost examples of High Victorian Gothic architecture in Britain.Want to get this blog directly in your inbox each month? Just subscribe to my Inspired Substack.
