Real Tennis, Bidarry Court – Sketch From Life (In Context 2)
Watercolours are easy to pack and are a practical choice when on holiday.
I’m completely captivated by these charmingly, rustic Medieval Trinquet Courts with their weathered, cobwebby wooden beams. I may not play Real Tennis, but I enjoy painting/sketching it whilst supporting my husband who plays.
The French Basque Country is the birth place of all racquet sports. My husband is a player of Real Tennis, and it was through him that I came to watch the Trois Tripot Tournament in the southwest of France on the Spanish boarder. Real Tennis, formally known as Jeu De Paume, (Game Of the palms; a racquet-less sport played with the palms of one’s hands), until racquets were introduced. Real Tennis has been played by Kings since the Middle Ages and is a precursor of today’s Lawn Tennis.