“When I realised that I would see this light again every morning, I could hardly believe my luck. So said the great painter Henri Matisse when he first travelled to the Côte d’Azur. I, too, felt exactly like Matisse when I visited the French Riviera for the first time in 2014. It was a magical two weeks in the town of Menton on the Italian border, during which I was able to see and feel this incredible light every morning – the very light that so deeply impressed Matisse. From the balcony of the holiday flat, I painted this beautiful old house, framed by the lush and colourful Mediterranean vegetation.