CNN
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Leaving the US and moving near the French Pyrenees was not part of Taylor Barnes’ life plan.
But as the cost of living in the U.S. increased and the 60-year-old Los Angeles artist struggled to find an affordable place to support other artists, she began thinking about a new life abroad.
In 2021, Barnes, who is divorced with one daughter, moves to the medieval village of Saissac, in the Aude region of France, near the Montagne Noir mountain range.
Taylor Barnes
Los Angeles-based American artist Taylor Barnes moved to the medieval village of Saissac near the French Pyrenees in 2021.
“I was considering, among many things, where I would like to spend the last quarter of my life,” Barnes told CNN.
“I felt the village was visually inspiring, surrounded by oak and pine forests, so many species of wild birds I can’t count and two rivers running down the gorges on either side of the castle.”
Relocating to another country is rarely easy, but Barnes felt that this remote location in the south of France would be an ideal location for her residency programs, giving artists a place to thrive and feel inspired.
“In the US, real estate and the cost of living quickly made an affordable program impossible,” she says.
Barnes, who has spent her entire life near the ocean, says she felt an “emotional resonance” when she first visited Saisak in 2018, and the village’s pristine surroundings reminded her of coastal California.
Built on a granite massif, Saissac offers spectacular views of the Pyrenees – the chain of peaks separating France and Spain – and the valley below. An ancient medieval castle anchors the village to the mountain, creating a fairytale mood.
“France felt like home,” she adds, explaining that the view from Saissac has the same “emotional impact” for her as the boundless view of the ocean. “It also looked like home; the topography is very similar to northern California.
To limit the likelihood of unnecessary delays during the moving process, Barnes hired a consultant to help her navigate the system, adding that it was the best money she ever spent.
“He helped me get my visa, my phone, my bank account, my building insurance and answered pressing questions about taxes and anything else that came up,” she says.
Taylor Barnes
In 2019, Barnes bought an abandoned crab restaurant and turned it into an artist residency.
In 2019, Barnes bought an abandoned crab restaurant and transformed it into a residency, 3.1 Art Sassaic, where artists can stay and share ideas.
The building, which dates back to 1900, has been remodeled to offer its guests maximum privacy, with space for intimate dinners and events.
The top floor has been completely transformed into living quarters for visiting artists, with each room designed with maximum sound insulation to allow guests to concentrate.
Visiting artists have access to a large studio that overlooks the Vernassonne river gorge, surrounded by wild oak trees and birds.
Barnes had to adhere to the strict rules imposed by the French artistic heritage authorities during the renovation process. Fortunately, an architect restorer helped her navigate the procedures.
The main living room has a large open fireplace and a dining room with a library for winter gatherings.
“Our kitchen is modern and residents who like to cook are welcome,” says Barnes. “The region inspires culinary experimentation with all the fantastic outdoor markets and local produce. It’s amazing how many artists tend to be great cooks.
A wild hilly path leading to the country castle can be accessed from the property’s garden terrace, which is used for concerts and film screenings.
To attend one of the residency programs, held from spring to fall, artists must apply with a specific project they plan to work on while at Saissac.
Built in the Middle Ages, the ancient setting of the village, with its stone walls, cobbled roads and to see her (stone wash basin) proved to be a great source of inspiration, transporting visitors to another place and time.
The area was once a popular destination for Impressionist painters and it is likely that parts of the landscape have remained unchanged.
The locals are made up of creative people and artisans: carpenters, bakers, cooks, gardeners and herbalists.
Taylor Barnes
Barnes with guest artists, Dennis Miranda Zamorano, Sonia and MB Boissonnault.
The cultural events organized by Barnes are well attended by locals and foreigners, mainly from England, Ireland and the Netherlands.
Since moving to Saissac, Barnes says she has happily embraced the slower pace of life.
“My time management underwent a transformation in favor of the leisurely pace that is a typical French day: two-hour lunches, five-day work weeks and reverence for holidays and weekends,” she says.
A typical day for her starts early in the morning with a walk in the woods and around the small local lake with her Berger Blanc Suisse dog, Storm.
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Then it’s time for an espresso at the local shop grocery storefollowed by lunch at the local Trésors d’Oc restaurant or a more traditional meal at the Montagne Noire restaurant.
While Sassaic is sleepy in winter, summer brings huge street parties, where residents bring chairs and tables, as well as home-cooked meals and trips to neighboring villages to listen to music at outdoor evening markets. After work aperitifs at the local bar are a must, says Barnes.
“You haven’t lived until you’ve seen a full moon rise over the French countryside on a balmy summer night. I constantly feel like I’m living in a charming French movie,” she adds.
Barnes, who spoke very little French when she arrived in 2021, tends to speak more quietly and slowly among her French friends, due in part to the culture and her lack of confidence in speaking the language.
She’s currently taking French lessons and using language learning apps, but says it’s a slow process.
Taylor Barnes
Artists must apply with a specific project before being accepted into Barnes’ residential programs,
When it came to eating, Barnes quickly discovered that the French were quite strict and he learned to eat at more specific times with restaurants, especially in small villages, operating on a strict schedule of 12.30pm to 2.30pm for lunch and 6 dinners from noon to 9 p.m.
Barnes, who has Residence permit five-year renewable residence permit, says living in a tight-knit community has changed her social habits and made her feel safer.
“In France I say Hello for anyone I pass on the street, it would be rude not to,” she says.
“In Los Angeles, I keep my eyes down because they’ll think I’m a crazy person if I say ‘Hi’ to everybody.
“In a city, you can easily move anonymously. But in a village everyone knows you and cares about you.
“The lack of anonymity can be annoying as a city person, but somehow I find it reassuring that it will be noticed if one day I suddenly disappear from the vicinity of the village.”
Barnes is impressed with the French health care system, which provides universal coverage for all legal residents, and feels more comfortable growing old in France.
“It’s obvious to me how difficult it is to age gracefully and healthily in the U.S.,” she says.
“Add to that the fact that the US tends to isolate the elderly, rejecting them in favor of youth culture, and old age in America is not an attractive future for me.”
When Barnes isn’t focused on her artistic work, she enjoys exploring off-the-beaten-track locales and activities such as boating on the Canal du Midi and hiking in the remote forest areas of Mont-Noire.
Barnes says she has come to rely on her friends in the village to make key calls on her behalf when she faces challenges and help artists attending her programs, which run from spring through fall, book transportation.
“I don’t know what I would do without my core group of supportive village friends,” she says. “You can’t make a move on your own — it literally takes a village.”
