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Bienvenue à notre Livre d'Or!
Welcome to our Guestbook!
2007 Fall Semester Fellows
Gilbert Chaitin
I found conditions here ideal for thinking and writing. In
addition to the sunlight and magnificent view of the sea and
cliffs and the lack of distractions and responsibilities other
than for my project, the ability to work either in the library
or in the privacy of my apartment made it very easy to
concentrate on the job at hand. The presence of wifi in both
places made it possible to check facts and bibliography, to read
texts and to research topics on the web. With so many resources
now available on the web, the lack of a research library here is
much less of an impediment than it must have been in previous
times. The presence of a congenial and diverse group of fellows
made my stay all the more enjoyable and intellectually
stimulating. I now understand why two of my colleagues told me
before I applied to Camargo that their stays here were among the
best times in their lives.
Julia Deppert
Being at Camargo gave me
the opportunity during a very special period of my life to focus
on my compositional work in a beautiful environment. Naturally
rather limited in the radius of my actions, I feel extremely
grateful for spending this autumn under the Mediterranean sun
and for being kindly supported by fellow residents and the
Camargo staff.
Margaret Flinn
Jeff Fort
We worked hard, we played hard... An indelible experience.
Fenton Johnson
Camargo allowed me to renew my lifelong, rich, complex
relationship with la belle
France. The stunning views, the beautiful sea –
these are a given, but what was more to the point for me was the
chance to have French in my ears and France at my feet as I
struggled with a complex and difficult project in English. The
juxtaposition was symbiotic, nourishing for both the
English-written novel and the French-loving heart.
Laura Kalba
Juraj Kojs
My Camargo
residency was one big bucket of delight. For three months, I
lived in an incredibly stunning place. I managed to complete my
project. I met a number of terrific people—the fellow fellows,
whose company made my residency an unforgettable experience.
What else can an artist wish for?
Karan Mahajan
I ate non-stop.
B. Ruby Rich
My time at Camargo was unexpectedly
restorative. I expected to get a lot of writing done, and I did.
But I didn't realize I would regain a sense of life as it
ideally could be: full of town and nature, friends and solitude,
excellent food, and productivity as well. My partner and I will
always remember this time here, thanks to the Dautricourts,
Jerome Hill, the town of Cassis. A very special time and place.
Laura Sextro
Alan Tulchin
My wife
and I really had a marvelous time and got a lot of productive
work done. We both made important professional contacts and some
dear friends.
Cassandra Tytler
Every morning I would wake up and pinch
myself, not believing that I lived amongst such beauty. Cassis
is a haven for both quiet contemplation, and social exchange
with the other fellows. I also loved my weekly trips to
Marseille for art supplies and attempts at conversation in
French. I am sad it has come to an end, but am all the richer
for my experience here in the South of France.
Charlotta Westergren
Magic.. The landscape of Cap Canaille out
my window with the blue of the Mediterranean will be imprinted
on me forever.
2007 Spring Semester Fellows
Christopher Butterfield
The Camargo Foundation is a
haven for creative and scholarly work, free of distraction and
expectation. It’s a true ivory tower, and there are not many
left in the world. I hope, for the sake of future fellows, it
will always be that way.
Edwin Duval
Toute leur vie estoit employée non par loix, statuz, ou
reigles, mais selon leur vouloir et franc arbitre, car gens
liberes, bien nez, bien instruictz, conversans en compaignies
honnestes ont par nature un instinct, et aguillon, qui tousjours
les poulse à faictz vertueux, et retire de vice, lequel ils
nommoient honneur. Tant noblement estoient apprins, qu’il
n’estoit entre eulx celluy, ne celle qui ne sceust lire,
escripre, chanter, jouer d’instrumens harmonieux, parler de cinq
et six langaiges, et en iceulx composer tant en carme que en
oraison solue.
Là est le bien que tout esprit desire,
Là, le repos où tout le monde aspire,
Là, est l’amour, là, le plaisir encore.
- Ned Duval (with help from François Rabelais
and Joachim Du Bellay)
Heiko Kalmbach
Jerome Hill's vision and generosity is kept alive by the
Camargo Foundation and its dedicated staff. The time in
Cassis, shared with fellows from all different fields, has
made for an incredibly enriching and fruitful experience.
Thank you!
Susan Kinsolving
If there’s a heaven, I hope
Jerome Hill is in it because he left one here.
John McManus
Beryl Schlossman
2006 Fall Semester Fellows
Jen Bervin
I often thought that we were making not only our work here, but that
we were making time as well. It was easy to be productive, focused,
and marvelously alive.
Marilynn Desmond
Every day at the Camargo is a gift, a gift of time, of light, of fellowship with academics and artists. Cap Canaille, the lighthouse, the sea and the Calanques offer an extraordinary context in which to write.
Jason Geistweidt
After the rush to complete my PhD, it certainly was a relief to turn to a new project in a relaxed, timeless atmosphere. It is important to work, but what a wonderful place to play as well! Simply put, it is paradise. The colors of the Mediterranean and the surrounding cliffs are surreal; many times I half-way surmised they were large-scale projections. The back alleys of Cassis are fun to explore, those of Marseille even more so. The staff are incredibly supportive and the atmosphere provides the silence to work as well as the activity for occasional distraction. My fellow colleagues were each exceptionally gifted in their own ways and the chance to interact with these individuals was one of the more important aspects of my time at Camargo. The time and freedom to think about who we are and what we are doing, this is the true gift of Camargo.
Maria Gindhart
The Camargo is truly a magical place.
I will never forget hiking in the calanques, swimming at Bestouan,
drinking hot chocolate on the terrace of Monsieur Brun, shopping at the
Wednesday and Friday market, eating decadent treats from the pâtisserie Sucré Délices,
and taking trips to Marseille, among many other things.
And I will always cherish the friendship and general joie de vivre *not to mention the culinary skills!*
of the other fellows with whom I was lucky enough to spend the semester.
Moreover, the Camargo provided an ideal setting and intellectual environment
in which I was able to write several chapters and re-conceptualize my book as a whole.
The uninterrupted writing time and the generous feedback provided by my Camargo colleagues
were invaluable. As I work on completing this project and on beginning new ones, I hope to continue to be buoyed by the spirit of the Camargo.
Elizabeth Kadetsky
I was blessed with the top floor terrace at Pierrefroid, among whose immense pleasures was its view of the full moon, which arrived the same night we fellows did last September. I recorded the movement of the moonrise for each of our four full moons-- 120 degrees acorss the horizon between september and december. Sadly, not a single fellow had enough science to predict, after the September moon, whether it would rise farther to the right or to the left when it came around in October. As it turned out the answer was Left. Ignorance priovides wonderful opportunities for mystery!
Sharon Kinoshita
Imagine a workday that begins being awoken by the sound of
the Mediterranean gently lapping against the sea-wall
below your open window and concludes with a shared bottle
of wine and impromptu potluck with some congenial fellow
Fellows. Imagine the day punctuated by trips to the
twice-weekly open-air market to sample the regional
produce and artisanal charcuterie, or hikes deep into the
calanques, marveling at the variations of crystalline blue
in the waters below. Imagine day trips to nearby
Marseille—its size and bustle a thrilling counterpoint to
the quiet and leisure of Cassis. Then you will begin to
understand why a residency at the Camargo Foundation is a
gift not just of time but of peace of mind, encouraging
that sense of expansiveness beneficial to all scholarly
and artistic endeavor.
Jane MacAvock
The Camargo is perfect for me. First was the opportunity to work on my project, relating to art in 17th century Aix. This, in a beautiful campus in a naturally rich environment, with easy access to a vibrant multi-cultural city (Marseille), a chic, baroque city (Aix), amazing hiking trails (the Calanques) and a wonderful beach (the plage du Bestouan next door). I love to swim in the sea and I don't think more than 3 or 4 days went by during my semester without me going for a dip. I will always remember swims and hikes with other Fellows and Residents when we discussed a wide range of subjects while swimming or walking (and climbing) in spectacular scenery. We also dressed up in our best clothes and went into Marseille for a meal in a restaurant and a visit to the opera. The delicious produce in the local market inspired me to broaden my cooking repertory, helped by the numerous potlucks we organised. For me, the combination of being in an amazing location with a group of lovely, interesting and challenging people has been truly wonderful and enriching.
Brian Nelson
Elle est retrouvée.
Quoi?—L’Eternité.
C’est la mer allée
Avec le soleil.
Time and tranquillity, the pleasures of place, the support of staff, and Fellows who become friends, make the
Camargo the best working environment anyone could possibly imagine. I’m profoundly grateful for the experience.
Michael Osborne
The Camargo Foundation, with its stellar and supportive staff, and
my former cluster of colleagues enabled focus on the tasks of scholarship as no other residential fellowship I have held. My dear former fellows and the staff at Camargo
now sit
on my shoulder as I write and will do so until the pen falls silent.
Karen Pagani
Time, Space, Color and Calm are just a few words that come to mind. The beauty of the surrounding areas, the personable staff and the wide range of talents and interests among the fellows and friends of the Foundation made my stay both pleasurable and productive. An all around positive experience.
Scott Sanders
My stay at Camargo has been one of the best things that has ever happened to me. The surroundings are beyond beautiful, and the work environment is perfect for a writer (or composer, academic, windsurfer, hiker, cyclist, beach bum.) Basically, it's just an ideal location to be lucky enough to experience no matter what you do. If I'd only stayed a week, I would have been grateful, but instead I got to live here for three and a half months. Some of the best months of my life. I completed an entire novel of four hundred pages, and still had plenty of time to hike, bike, swim (into December), and eat incredible food. I even learned to play pitanque with the local men and women. It has been utopia and paradise all rolled up into one. As cliche as it may sound, it was truly the experience of a lifetime.
Juan Felipe Waller
As a composer, one is constantly dealing with the flow of time and its different speeds, its smoothnes as well as its abruptness. While being at Camargo, the gradual and yet constant tranformation of the breathtaking view, in combination with a majestic working space, have given me the chance to re-examine my own perceptions of time. It will certainly have a emphatic lasting effect in my future working processes. It has been a precious experience to reencounter nature at its best, and let it echo into my own creativity.
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2006 Spring Semester Fellows
Claudia Aravena Abughosh
Camargo fué el escenario de una nueva etapa en la producción de mi trabajo,
y yo estoy muy feliz de que este escenario fuese uno de los lugares mas
bellos en donde la gente puede vivir la experiencia de una cultura otra; un
verdadero privilegio.
Ann Cooper Albright
It was heavenly to be here with my kids and without all the responsibilities of being chair of an academic department, etc. etc. The other fellows were marvelous and I enjoyed their company and the time to write and walk. There is something to be said for working in the midst of beauty.
Richard Buckhard
A semester in Cassis at the Camargo Foundation is a scholar's dream, and I can happily say that when the dream turned out to be a reality, neither my wife nor I was disappointed. The working conditions were excellent, all the members of the Camargo Foundation staff were highly supportive, and interacting with a talented group of scholars and artists was a joy. The privilege of having time to write was enhanced by the opportunities to venture out to sample fresh seafood and local wine, to walk in the calenques, and to visit nearby towns. Although my wife and I started our pétanque practice too late to catch up with Director Jean-Pierre Dautricourt and distinguished linguist and spring resident fellow Denis Bouchard -- who both appear to have spent their youths honing their skills at one boulodrome or another -- we look forward to a rematch in the future.
Veronica Chambers
I thought that the big turn in my writing life occurred six years ago when I left my last full time journalism job and began writing fiction full time. But I came to Camargo, and I realized that the big turn was happening here, where I stopped writing fiction, as if on assignment, and started writing boldly and bravely, for myself. It is the end of an extraordinary semester and in the words of Edna St. Vincent Millay, I am very tired, but I am also very merry.
Michael Edwards
I feel extremely privileged to have been able to live and work at
Camargo and in Cassis for the past four months. To get to know and in
some cases reconnect with the musical environment of Marseille has been
of particular benefit to me as a composer and musician. Prominent
amongst many memorable and unique experiences here were the
improvisation evenings which Paul, Karin, and I enjoyed in La Leque.
Paul Elwood
There was not just adequate time to work here, but to read, reflect, listen, and play. The slow pace of life in Cassis along with the quiet and a lovely studio offered me adequate solitude to think and work and to come to some important life decisions pertaining to my work. Being at Camargo also afforded me the opportunity to travel throughout France, to interact with some local musicians and artists, and to be exposed to some extraordinary thinkers both in and out of the Foundation. I'm grateful for the time and opportunities that Camargo provided.
Vera Klement
Camargo illuminated my life and my work in so many ways: the breathtaking landscape, the view of the sea at dusk from our lofty, light-filled apartment, the abundance and tumult of the market days in the town square, the walks in the narrow streets of Cassis whose walls were mottled with its history, the weekly presentations of the fellows that were always stimulating and instructive, the wonderful people my partner and I got to know. And France. And Time. Time to be, to soak up, to paint and to write. It was glorious.
Nira Pancer
Marilyn Randall
The Camargo experience was a once-in-a-lifetime gift of beauty, peace and friendship. The incredible luxury of time and space, the inspiration of fellow scholars and artists, the marvelous staff, not to mention the incredible surroundings... there are not enough adjectives in the language...!
A perfect combination of nature and culture, solitude and society makes every day an adventure -- whether it is spent in study or in walking the Calanques, the moments are precious and the results invaluable for the body, mind, spirit -- and, of course, the book manuscript!
An enormous thanks to all, especially to my fellow Fellows.
Sam Temple
What can I say about this oasis of beauty and calm that has not already been said?
became very attached to our apartment, our view, our little walks and chilly swims,
oysters for lunch, fresh sardines for dinner and the thousand other small details that,
day after day, stimulated and refreshed the senses as we both slogged through our dissertations.
We grew very fond of Marseille and its kaleidoscopic and gritty culture, just as we loved Cassis for
its smallness and lack of pretension. Meeting the talented array of fellow escapees from around the
globe was a pleasure. Thank you Jean-Pierre, Mary, Beatrice, Madame Boeuf, Roger and Christian for making us feel so welcome, even if we are still coming to terms with our eviction!
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2005 Fall Semester Fellows
Cecilia Arditto
Camargo es un no-lugar en un no-tiempo. Es la posibilidad de concentrarse no solo en la tarea sino en el sentido profundo de lo que uno hace. Camargo es la posibilidad del sol, del agua, del cielo; pero lo mas valioso de Camargo es que nos regalan el tiempo y el silencio. En un mundo cada vez mas veloz y mas ruidoso esto es un tesoro.
Camargo is outside of time and space. It is about the possibility of concentration not only on the task but also in the deeper sense of what one is doing. Camargo is also about the possibility for sun, water, sky; but the most valuable thing we are given in Camargo is time and silence. In a world that is becoming more hectic and noisy, this is a gift.
Constance Berman
Camargo has been fun and educational. I've found myself rethinking my work rhythms and the distintions between fiction and history. Casssis and the region have been a lovely discovery.
Kate Bredeson
As a theater historian, it has been very exciting to write about the Living Theatre mere steps from the amphitheater where the company performed at the Festival de Cassis in 1966. The theater's backdrop, the cerulean Mediterranean, has been a constant source of inspiration and relaxation during my time at Camargo. I am grateful to have worked in such a resplendent setting, among such a diverse group of fellows. I have especially enjoyed my terrace, my desk, the beaches and hiking trails, and the looming presence of Cap Canaille.
Marcel Brouwers
Yvonne Fabella
The Camargo Foundation is rather unique in that it brings together a diverse group of academics and artists. I found this mixture to be particularly enriching since it allowed for an inter-disciplinary dialogue about fellows' respective methods, creative processes, and subject matter. As a graduate student I also appreciated the opportunity to work side-by-side with seasoned scholars and artists who treated me as an equal.
Marie Lathers
My best memories of Camargo are working at the library with an incredible view; taking my daughter to and from the local elementary school; and hiking to the Calanques. Camargo is a tranquil and exquisite place to work and live, one which will stay with me for a long time.
Naren Murthy
My stay at Camargo had two parentheses: The rustic view of the Mediterranean upon first entering Pierrefroide and the penultimate storm before I left, lashing waves twice as high as the lighthouse against the harbor. Everything in between was about the sounds of the sea as afflatus.
Glori Simmons
My time at the Camargo Foundation was creatively productive and unforgettable. It was a pleasure to be part of a supportive, interesting, and interested community. While a lot of my time was spent in front of a computer screen the place-Cassis, the Mediterranean-made a deep impression on me. Before living in the south of France, I'd always taken nature for granted. I'd lived in beautiful places-the Pacific Northwest, Northern California-in the past, but it was in Cassis that my appreciation for landscapes was awakened. I found myself often in awe of the views, the storms, the light, and contrasts in color. If I were to encapsulate my time here into one image or moment, it would be of swimming in the Mediterranean, looking out to sea while being inside of it, feeling its vastness along with its calm.
Rosemary Sullivan
Camargo is that rare place where you are treated as you have imagined in your wildest fantasies a writer might be treated. You live next to the sea and can watch its moods. You wake with the dawn to follow the sun as it changes every hour--in the early morning the sky is like cathedral glass. You have the privacy you need to work and the colleagueship of other fellows when you need to talk. In your apartment, everything has been thought of, down to the garlic press you require as you learn to cook a la Française. I met people in the port who have become friends. I traveled to places that have long loomed in my imagination. While in residence, I finished a 400 page book that I hope will mark a new direction in my career. Three months at Camargo is not nearly enough!
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