Paris Suburb, Saint-Germain-en-Laye

Paris is so full of treasures that once I’m there, I don’t like to leave. But last month, the friend of a friend invited me to the cultured suburb of Saint-Germain-en Laye, a half hour from Paris by train. My only regret was that I couldn’t stay in this elegant, medieval city a little longer.

History lovers in particular will want to visit Saint-Germain. French kings François I, Henry IV, Louis XIII, and Louis XIV have all left their mark on the town; the last made the town’s chateau his main residence from 1661 to 1681. Today the chateau contains the National Museum of Archeology, which houses the world’s largest collection of prehistoric art.

Mozart visited Saint-Germain-en-Laye in 1778, staying in the lavish Hôtel de Noailles. This building, built by Hardouin Mansart at the end of the 17th century, is one of the stops on a self-guided walking tour of the city’s historic dwellings. At the beginning of the tour is the birthplace of Claude Debussy, where a small museum contains some of the composer’s personal belongings.

Nabi painter Maurice Denis also lived in Saint-Germain; the museum in his home displays work by Denis, his contemporary Paul Sérusier, and Bonnard, Roussel, Vuillard, and Gaugin. The high point, though, is the 17th century chapel. Entirely designed by Denis and completed in 1928, it is a stunning work of modern art in a beautiful, old world setting.

Complete immersion in the history of Saint-Germain involves an overnight stay at the Château du Val (pictured above). Built as a hunting lodge by Henri IV and later enlarged by Louis XIV, this grand residence with ties to the prestigious Légion d’Honneur sits on the edge of town. Beautifully renovated and appointed, with fabulous food, beautiful gardens, and surprisingly low prices, it’s definitely worth the trip from Paris.

Les Macchiaioli at Musée de l’Orangerie

At the heart of Les Macchiaioli , the current show at Musée de l’Orangerie, is the question of whether Italian painters developed their own version of Impressionism independently of the French, at about the same time.

Macchiaioli, named for areas of light and shadow, or “macchie”, shares traits with French Impressionism, to be sure. Painters of both movements rejected academic compositions and historical themes in favor of rural scenes; they expressed variations in lighting through contrasting patches of color. Both were influenced by photography and plein air painting.

Yet the Italians were fueled by political fervor, to protest against art that had become too elitist. They worked with a more restricted color palette than the French, eschewed industrial innovations as subjects, and developed an unusual elongated horizontal format.

My favorite work in the show, Le Rotonde de Palmierei, by Giovanni Fattori, uses simplified forms and horizontal bands of color to capture the movement of wind and light beside the ocean. It made me think of Boudin, who painted seaside in Honfleur, and of the influence of Japanese prints on French Impressionism.

The show at l’Orangerie is a thoughtful and delightful collection of work. On view are striking images of domestic life, landscapes bathed in sun and shadow, realistic battle scenes, even a film that incorporates political upheaval and decorative interiors.

Until July 22.

Have you seen this show? What do you think?

Chagall at Musée du Luxembourg

The more I learn about the 20th century Russian painter Marc Chagall, the more I appreciate his work. The current show at the Musée du Luxembourg, “Chagall, Between War and Peace,” taught me this: however much Chagall’s work seems to depict imaginary worlds, the artist was grounded in reality.

The expo examines the artist’s life and work against the backdrop of 2 World Wars, exile, and intermittent moments of peace. As imaginative as his paintings appear, Chagall’s subjects came from his immediate environment.

Paintings of his wife Bella, who he married in Russia in 1915, express safety within the intimacy of family, despite a world at war. Drawings of wounded soldiers in the streets of Vitebsk, near the Russian front, chronicle the ravages of war. Later, Chagall drew on his Jewish roots in his sets for the Jewish Theater in Moscow, and in a series of gouaches in preparation for Bible illustrations.

The show contains more than 100 works, including oil paintings on canvas and paper, ink drawings, preparatory gouaches, watercolors, and pencil drawings. The works evoke a magical world—inhabited by life as Chagall knew it.

Until July 21.

Paris neighborhoods: the 14th

When staying in Paris with clients, I choose a centrally located neighborhood. My criteria: a short walk to the Seine, great restaurants and interesting shopping nearby.

When I’m in Paris alone, I venture farther from the center, and often return to the neighborhoods south of Montparnasse. Staying in the 14th or 15th, I forget that Paris is the world’s favorite destination for lovers of art, food, fashion and romance. I focus instead on the joys of everyday living in a culture that I adore.

I wander, with no destination in mind—or I set off with a French guide book in hand, in search of hidden architectural delights. I look for lines at the neighborhood bakeries to determine where to buy my bread and morning croissants. I stop to read restaurant menus, noting tiny places filled at 1:00 and 9:00 with locals.

Here are a few favorite addresses in the 14th.

• Near Métro Pernety, rue de Plaisance and rue Boyer-Barret contain small gardens and courtyards, as well as artisan shops. There is a lovely square at the eastern end of rue Thermopyles, where residents unpack picnics and relax with a book. And Cité Bauer is an architectural delight (see the image above).

• The owner of La Fournée d’Augustine, 96, rue Raymond-Losserand, makes one of the best baguettes in Paris. He won the Grand Prix de la Baguette in 2004, and was runner up in 2003.

• Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson—located in a trim, 5 story building on Impasse Lebouis— beautifully exhibits the photographs of Cartier-Bresson and his contemporaries. The privately owned museum is housed in a former atelier built in 1913 by Molinié.

• Venture two blocks north, to the Métro Gaîté, and you’re in a funky theater district, with thriving restaurants and bars—including the Café Tournesol (Sunflower Café) where tables on the street fill quickly, the colors run to neon, and the music ranges from soul and jazz to funk and techno. 9, Rue de la Gaîté.

What are your favorite addresses in the 14th?

Giverny Update

As part of my research for a spring trip to Paris with gardeners, I recently checked the Giverny website to see what was new. Monet’s home, studio and gardens are closed now, but the website changes often, as does the practical information, such as opening and closing dates.

The site had indeed been updated since my last visit. Navigation has been streamlined—you can plan a visit, buy tickets on line, and find photographs and videos of the gardens more quickly than before.

And speaking of photos, scroll down to the bottom of the home page for glorious new images—photos and videos—of the house and gardens, as well as interesting information about artist residencies that take place at Giverny, and discussion of specific flowers (the latter in French only).

Another improvement to the site is the detail that the secondary navigation makes possible. Click on the “Giverny” tab at the top of the page, and you find beautiful photos of the estate, nicely complemented by text. One page recalls Monet’s planting plans, another discusses his love of Japanese prints.

Select “Monet” and you can read quotations from Monet’s letters to other artists, and a delightful description of the artists and benefactors who have spent time at Giverny (in French).

I’ll send my group to the site before we leave for Paris; with more details under their collective ceintures, they’ll better appreciate being there, and get infinitely more from their time.

Now Playing at Studio 28

Look up from the bottom of rue Tholozé, in Montmartre, and you’ll see the Moulin de la Galette, one of 2 remaining windmills in the 18th. Renoir’s painting of the same name hangs in the Musée D’Orsay.

At nº10, rue Tholozé, is Studio 28—another delightful, if less well known, surprise. The movie theater is named for the year it opened as an experimental theater. Truffaut and Cocteau presented work here, and Cocteau designed the lamps inside.

All films are played in VO, Version Originale, i.e. their original language. Non-French films are never dubbed; all other language films are subtitled in French.

Don’t speak French? English language films offer a great opportunity to experience the theater (and, if you want, to improve your French by reading the subtitles.) Playing this week, in English, is Lincoln; coming soon are Hitchcock, Les Miserables, and The Life of Pi.

Check the schedule, and if you can’t make a film, their lovely cafe/bar opens in the afternoon.

Secret Sources to Share

Some say I have the dream job, but it isn’t always as divine as you might think. When I explore Paris, I make mistakes, get lost, eat bad food, pay too much, and wait in line, so my clients don’t have to.

To narrow my prospects, I do a lot of research on-line before I even set foot out the door. Here are a few fun sources:

David Lebovitz. American expat food blogger and pastry chef on dining, shopping, and more.

Easy Fashion. Portraits of fashionable people in the streets of Paris.

The Catacombes. An underground collection of bones that you can visit (don’t forget your flashlight).

Vingt Magazine. For and about artists and anyone interested in the arts – here, a great post on vintage clothing shops.

Paris Film. Everything you need to know to shoot your next film in Paris (or watch one).

Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. The second most impressive performance space in Paris.

Does any of these sites inspire you? Which ones? Do you have a favorite Paris source to share?

Chaïm Soutine: Order out of Chaos, at Musée de l’Orangerie

Either you love Soutine’s distorted, Expressionistic paintings, or you hate them—and I was not a fan, until I saw “Chaïm Soutine: Order out of Chaos” at Musée de l’Orangerie.

The show’s 4 rooms, each addressing a different theme, provides general context, specific information, and intriguing insights. The more I learned, the more I liked the vivid, exaggerated paintings.

Soutine, it seems, wasn’t just a tormented painter toying with his subjects, but an artist who studied the masters in the Louvre. Key works in the show are inspired by Jean Fouquet, Rembrandt and Chardin. Photographs of the original paintings hang beside Soutine’s impressions.

The artist also cared deeply about the people around him. He painted in series: portraits at the beginning of his career, followed by landscape, then still lives, and finally figures. While the figures weren’t new to me, this time I saw them as the culmination of a career, imbued with empathy, and originality.

Do you agree? Are you a Soutine fan?

Here is virtual video visit, with description in French.

Until Jan 21, 2013

Paris for Fashionistas – “Impressionisme et la Mode” at Musée d’Orsay

“Impressionisme et la Mode” at Musée d’Orsay is a multifaceted show, featuring paintings by Manet, Monet, Caillebotte and other Impressionist painters; beautifully conserved 19th century dresses from Musée Galliera; photographs and lithographs from Paris department stores; and, to fully recreate the fashion world of the late 1800s, chairs marked with names as if for a fashion show, and quotes from Zola and Baudelaire.

Seen in this context, paintings like Manet’s “La Dame à l’Eventail” and “Le Balcon” take on new life. Works by women artists Berthe Morisot, Camille Corot, Eva Gonzoles, and Mary Cassatt lend female perspectives to the period and the dress. Men’s fashions are treated, too, with works such as Caillebotte’s wonderful “Au Café” and Fantin Latour’s “Un Atelier aux Batignolles”.

The collection brings together custom, culture, fashion and art. It renders the world of the Impressionists not just visible, but sensorial, experiential.

Afterward, shop the excellent museum bookstore for books on fashion through time, mother-of-pearl buttons, and hats by contemporary milliner Marie Mercie. Until Jan 20, 2013.

Paris via Montreal: Cinemania

One of the ways I relax in Paris is to see French films. This is doubly a treat because many of the films I see never come to the US. Others make it, though they arrive at least a year later.

So I’m really looking forward to Cinemania in Montreal next month. Cinemania is the largest French film festival in the Americas. Many of the greatest names of French cinema as well as young up-and-coming talents are featured at the festival. The 10 day event is like a passport to Paris, minus the jet lag, and at much less cost.

Unlike other major Montreal film festivals, Cinemania features one film at a time, at one venue, the amazing Imperial Cinema. Its large-screen format, always in 35mm, make it wonderful all around.

There is an air of suspense, too. Films aren’t announced until a week before the festival. Fortunately, I have my sources.

I’m teaming up with former independent theater owners and film festival programmers Rick Winston and Andrea Serota. For those who would like an in-depth film experience with a like-minded group, we’re going to provide a weekend of film, food and conversation at the festival, Nov 2-4.

Over the course of the weekend, we’ll see 7 films together (all films have English subtitles), and talk about them in depth. Rick will give background on the films before we go, and he and Andrea will facilitate discussions throughout the weekend. We’ll also recommend lodging and lunch spots near the Imperial, and suggest Montreal activities and addresses for free time.

Our group is limited to 12, and price (discounted until Oct 9) includes tickets and dinners for all 3 days.

Hoping I can tempt you to join us… but in any case, do check out the festival. The experience is sublime!