Local Expert
Kate Cyr
Originally from a small town in upstate New York and most recently living in New York City, I transferred to Paris for work in April 2007. I'll admit it: I came to Paris convinced that no city could…
Originally from a small town in upstate New York and most recently living in New York City, I transferred to Paris for work in April 2007. I'll admit it: I came to Paris convinced that no city could compare to New York. But little by little, day by day, Paris is winning my heart as I discover its beautiful art and architecture, its fabulous food and the unique attitude of its residents. I'll share these winning discoveries here.
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In researching cultural activities in Paris, sometimes I discover things that stump me: brilliant or ridiculous? In such cases, I can only report and let you decide. So, BABYDISCO.
Now through the beginning of January, this disco for children ages four to seven is inplace at the Palais de Tokyo on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. BABYDISCO was conceived by the dance collective I could never be a dancer as dual-purpose art installation: for the adults, a cultural reference reinvented by children and for the kids, an entirely rebuilt reduced-scale disco with no parents are allowed. Groups of 12 to 15 kids take over the space in hour-long sessions, dancing to music provided by an impressive roster of internationally known DJs and musicians. Once a month the famous Paris boutique Colette offers a kid-sized version of its Colette Dance Class. The best way to understand this is to watch a video of recent disco babies.
The hour-long sessions cost between 8 and 12 euros, and advanced booking is required, either on the internet, over the phone, or at the Palais de Tokyo up to 10 minutes before the start of the session.
We all know it's possible to have too much of a good thing. It may happen at some point during your stay in Paris that you tire of the city's breathtaking beauty that accosts you at every turn*. When you can't stand to look at another bridge over the Seine bathed in the pink and gold light of a Paris evening, or the thought of lounging by the fountain in the Jardin du Luxembourg leaves you cold, you may just need a dose of pure yuck. Head to the sewers.
The first drainage systems appeared in the streets of Paris around 1370 with the construction of a vaulted gutter from rue Montmartre to the Menilmontant stream, but the sewer system developed slowly until the late 1800s when Baron Haussman and his engineer Eugene Belgrand developed a 600km water distribution and sewage network which is the basis of today's 2100km system. Learn more about how the sewers developed along with the city with a visit. From the ticket booth at the Pont de l'Alma along the quai d"Orsay, head underground and follow the circuit along which you will see the main drainage collector from Avenue Bosquet, the sewers from the rue rue Cognacq-Jay, storm sewers from the place de la Resistance and even a part of the tunnel which brings waste water from the rive gauche to the purification station of Achères. Also on display along the way are examples of the heavy machinery used in the care and maintenance of the network. The visit takes place in the cleaning tunnels, which are clean and safe, and the museum gallery provides historical context on techniques of water purification and the supply of drinking water throughout the history of the city. Admission is around 5 euros, and there are no visits on Thursdays and Fridays.
Visite des égouts
Pont de l'Alma, rive gauche,
Face au 93 quai d'Orsay.
75007 Paris
Tél. : 01 53 68 27 81
*After 18 months this still hasn't happened to me yet.
Pablo Picasso was one of the great painters of the last century and could even be considered one of the founders of modern art. Like any artist, Picasso was directly inspired by what came before. Copying paintings by Spanish masters was an important part of his formal training and some of his best-known works from later in his career are his "variations" on works by painters such as Delacroix, Velazquez or Manet. The exhibition, Picasso and the Masters, opening this week at the Grand Palais, puts Picasso's works alongside the masterworks that inspired him.
With over 210 works from international public and private collections, the show features the works of an art-history Dream Team: El Greco, Vélasquez, Goya, Zurbaran, Ribera, Melendez, Poussin, Le Nain, Dubois, Chardin, David, Ingres, Delacroix, Manet, Courbet, Lautrec, Degas, Puvis de Chavannes, Cézanne, Renoir, Gauguin, Douanier Rousseau, Titien, Cranach, Rembrandt, Van Gogh. See how Picasso's "painting of painting" was more than just an academic exercise by comparing, for example, his Les Ménines to that of Velasquez, painted three hundred years earlier.
The exhibit, which runs through February 2009, has every indication of being an absolute blockbuster, so consider buying tickets in advance online.
Let's face it: insomniac art lovers get a raw deal in Paris. The city's great cultural institutions typically close for the day around 6:00pm, when most nightowls are just finishing lunch. Nocturnal types (and the rest of us) get their chance this weekend with the seventh annual Nuit Blanche. This artistic event takes over the city on Saturday night and Sunday monday. This year's festival centers around the city's train stations through which thousands of harried Parisians pass each day, without regard to their amazing architecture. At the gare du Nord, check out a video installation by New York artist Tony Oursler. Pierrick Sorin's interactive videos and exhibits will be at the gare de l'Est, or watch Bollywood director Shaad Ali film a scene for an upcoming film at the gare du Lyon. More video installations from the British duo Semiconductor will be at the gare Saint Lazare and Armenian director Artavazd Pelechain will screen his 1982 film Notre Siecle at the gare de Bercy.
Outside of the stations, there will be works to be seen at towers and churches. Japanese artist Ryoji Ikeda will render the much-maligned the tour Montparnasse spooky by bathing it in a intense white light and sound waves, and Chinese artist Gu Dexin will project video images of the sky onto the recently renovated tour Saint-Jacques near Hotel-de-Ville. In the churches, the highlight of the evening will be a concert by Patti Smith and her two children at l'eglise Saint Germain-des-Pres, and there are still more video installations to be seen at Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis in the Marais, and Saint-Eustache near les Halles. Many of the surrounding suburbs have programs for Nuit Blanche as well: this would be a great opportunity to see the Jeff Koons installation at Versailles.
at
For more information on the more than 70 artistic events ranging from visual arts, installations, concerts, dance, lectures, and even poetry, check out the website. Festivities start Saturday evening and the last event wraps up around 7:00 am Sunday morning.
This weekend, the
Festival America brings together 53 North American authors to lecture, debate and discuss the question: "What remains of the American dream?" i know that you didn't come to France to think about the North American continent, but the roster of assembled authors is too good to pass up. Amy Bloom, Nathan Englander, Richard Russo, Marisha Plessll, Richard Ford, Mary Gaitskill, Colson Whitehead and Gary Shteyngart are among scheduled participants in the panel discussions, lectures and master classes. Many of the authors who will be in attendance were not born in North America but moved there at some point, granting them an outside perspective of the American dream. The 'Une heure avec..." discussions between an author and an editor are a chance to discover an individual writer's worldview while discussing his or her work in depth.
In addition the literary activities, there are concerts scheduled throughout the weekend, including a piano recital of classic Broadway show tunes, a young Native American singer-songwriter from Nevada, and a country duo made up of Woody Guthrie's granddaughter and a descendant of John Steinbeck. Put faces to the names of your favorite authors at the exhibit of photographs of American authors by French photographer Jean-Luc Bertini or experience New York through the eyes of a Parisian with the photographs of Alexandra Bellamy.
No, it's not an expressway. Paris' newest municipal multi-use art space, "104", will open its doors to the public on October 11. Located at 104, rue d’Aubervilliers in the 19th arrondissement, this 39,000 square meter building was built in 1873 as a parking garage for hearses. The recent renovation work has retained elements of the the late 19th century industrial style, while transforming the interior into a state of the art creative space, including eighteen studios, two performance halls, and space for 200 permanent artists and 30 annual artist residencies, as well as commercial space.
At the opening festivities, the public will have the chance to see works funded by the "1% artistique" program, where 1% of the cost of public building projects must be donated to the creation of works of art. Beneficiaries of this program whose work will be on display include filmmaker Anri Sala and composer Gerard Presson. The center's artists in residence will also preview their work: look for the photos of Mai Lucas and Alain Bernadini and the large-format images of Stephane Couturier, or listen to the sound installation of Olivia Rosenthal. Later in the evening, there's a free concert by Tricky, followed by a party open to the public.