Michèle Belaiche, in front of three of her large watercolors

I had never heard of Michèle Belaiche before her exhibition at Galerie du Passage. And as soon as I met her, I realized we had so many friends in common that we should have met many times before… She spent her life surrounded by decorators and architects, travelled the world with Jacques Grange, with whom she worked for twenty years, and is now painting full time in Ménerbes, in Lubéron. Her watercolors are full of light and meditation and they are beautifully presented by Pierre Passebon in Passage Vero Dodat. The opening last week was the place to be.

Watercolor on Camson paper

Michèle Belaiche worked with antique dealer Didier Aaron for many years and she became Jacques Grange’s assistant while decorating Sylvie Vartan and Johnny Halliday and Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé’s houses. Painting every day is a soothing therapy for her, as she draws very thin lines, very methodically. She has the charm and the taste of a woman who’s always been around great decorators and her watercolors are beautifully exhibited in the gallery. Her modesty is disconcerting as everyone loves her work and her way of associating colors is exceptional. She says it just comes naturally  from having worked with  talented artists for so many years!

Pierre Passebon organized a perfect decor around her paintings with a few charming Lalanne animals and his usual 1950’s lamps and vases. This is a perfect exhibition for his space, a very intimate decor in one of the passages near the Louvre. The works sell between 1 200€ and 1 800€  and will put you in a good mood for the rest of the year…

Galerie du Passage, 20-26 passage Véro Dodat, until June 15.