Basilique St Sernin

The Urban Sketchers chapter of Toulouse uses to meet at least once a month, on the last Sunday. February's meeting leaded us to sketch the iconic basilica of Saint Sernin. This huge and richly ornamented church is nothing less than the largest remaining Romanesque building in Europe.

On this cold and rainy winter Sunday, there was almost no way to sketch from outside the bell tower or the imposant apse and its nine chapels. Most of the participants took refuge in the Saint Raymond museum of antiquity next door. But not far from here, the Chapelle des Carmélites, fully covered by XVIIIth century baroque paintings, was also a pretty nice shelter.

We were less numerous to stay inside the church under the barrel vaults of the nave and the ambulatory. I always feel comforted by the harmony of the semicircular arches and by the sensation of being able to see the interior volumes much better than in Gothic and its countless angles and edges.

Since the organization of the USk national meeting in May 2023, each local event now brings together at least 25 people in winter and 50 the rest of the year.