Au revoir Paris!

I can't believe how quickly the time has gone!  Our final day of class we sketched and painted Square Rene Viviani. We had a final critique and shared our work, there were some really phenomenal works created in only a very short time, check them out...

The last two weeks have been truly amazing. While I am sad to leave Paris, I am so excited and renewed for the upcoming school year. I have gained so many new ideas not to mention seen many of the places that I teach lessons on throughout the year. My time here has been so valuable and I am forever grateful to the Fund for Teachers program for providing me the opportunity to have this amazing experience.

Thank you!

Its all about the details

Two weeks almost over! I can't believe it. France has has so much more to see than what I had time to throughout my stay. Since I began my painting class I have had trouble finding time to post as the course has had us visiting sites all over Paris. The class is a small group fo 15 and we have spent time discovering the details of many Parisian neighborhoods. I couldn't help but feel a bit like Renoir or Van Gogh as we looked in depth as some of the following beauties...

Another view of Notre Dame, this time looking up from down by the Seine

Louvois fountain

Trying my best to draw the difficult sculpture!

Pont de Arts

Louvre

Place Saint-Sulpice

Getting a lesson in how to paint water

The workshop provided a great opportunity to to work on my drawing and painting skills but more importantly spend some time paying attention to all of the intricacies of design throughout Paris. I am already trying to figure out how I can manage to buy a set of camping stools like we used in class to take my students out and do a similar workshop.

Drawing and painting the gorgeous city of Paris

So far this week has been a much needed renewed view of Paris. Last week after rushing around spending most of the week visiting museums and historic sites, I somehow felt that I was missing a bit about what everyone most loves about Paris...the shops, the beautiful architecture, cafes, the history. This week I began my painting and drawing course.

My class with the Atelier Alupi has provided me with a brand new set of eyes on the city. We have spent time drawing and painting several well known and hidden gems in throughout the city including; the Cluny Museum, the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Luxemborg Gardens, as well as local markets and gardens. An added perspective to the class is that the course is full of people form all of the world! Talk about seeing everything through new eyes. My classmates include adults from Argentina, England, Australia, and Italy(just to name a few). I have also had the chance to collaborate with a classmate of mine and friend from her hostel for impromptu drawing in the evenings at the Sacre Coeur, which has been excellent practice and such a great time! Just a quick update...More photos coming soon:)

The Sun King and Cathedrals

What wealth! I can see why the Third Estate was so upset. After waiting in line for over an hour outside of the Palace of Versailles I (along with many many others) was able to walk thorough the Palace. While it was quite overwhelming, it was pretty amazing to be able to see in person many of the things my co-teacher and I have been teaching in class. The French Revolution is one of our larger units at the start of the school year and we spend quite a bit of time talking about the Sun King, because he's such an interesting figure. I mean come on, look at the guy, with his sense of style? ... so much to discuss!

Louis XIV, the Sun King

As I herded along with the other tourists we came upon the Hall of Mirrors. At the time the hall was built no one has seen anything quite like it. Even today the room feels lavish and remarkable.

Hall of Mirrors

Not only is the Palace itself a sight to see but the land surrounding Versailles is expansive, it takes 40 minutes to walk from the Palace to the Queens Hamlet. Here are some of the lovely sites along the way...

View from just outside the Palace

Latona Basin

The Apollo Basin

After stopping for a quick panini along the Grand Canal I headed towards the Trianon Palaces and Marie-Antoinette's Estate. Designed to be and "escape" for the royals (on their own estate) the Trianon Palaces certainly feel separate from the Palace. They are a much smaller scale and have been preserved very well since their establishment.

Wing of the Grand Trianon

I walked a bit further through Marie Antoinette's hamlet and then back towards the main palace to head back to the train station.

The next day I decided to head to Musee du quai Branly I had been intrigued to visit by the lush gardens that surround its unique building and the museum also sits at the foot of the Eiffel tower so its hard to miss.

Entrance to Musee  du quai Branly, with Eiffel Tower peeking out 

The museum houses indigenous arts from Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas. The interior of the museum was sculpted out of wood that guides visitors throughout the exhibit. It also featured an installation by Charles Sandison called The River which projected words from the museums collection along the entrance ramp with movement like a flowing river. I loved what he had to say about his installation,

"The rivers are the circulatory system of our planet...Language works the same way in both medium and message. Ideas flow like the words in space and time, materializing momentarily fleeting events and objects imbued with a special meaning...The text itself interacts with increasing and decreasing the data stream up and down the ramp. The whole represents a "hydrological cycle" language."(Sandison.  http://www.quaibranly.fr/fr/musee/espaces/la-rampe.html. November, 2009.)

After viewing the collection I strolled along the Seine, enjoying the beautiful weather and in search of a folding chair for my painting class. Before I knew it I had walked all the way back to the Cathedral of Notre Dame! With the sun setting and still without a folding chair I headed inside to catch a glimpse of the famous Cathedral. Even though there was a mass going on I was able to wander around and learn the history of the structure and snap a few photos.

Last original medieval rose window in the Notre Dame

I grabbed a sandwich from a  local vendor for dinner and headed back to Montmartre, to prepare for my next adventure...Chartres. Its a one hour train ride from Paris to the town of Chartres and an easy 5-10 minute walk to the Cathedral from the train station. I was excited to see one of the best known examples of a Gothic Cathedral and compare it with Notre Dame which was still fresh in my mind. The Cathedral dominated the skyline of the town.

View of the Cathedral as I approached from the train station

The interior of the Cathedral was spectacular, and I can see how the beauty of the Gothic style (and the size) brought in the masses.

Chartres nave

And if the height of the ceiling isn't enough to make one's jaw drop, the stained glass story telling is out of this world. 

North rose window

I could go on more about the Cathedral but I think I am going to do a separate post exclusively about its history... Speaking of  stained glass the town of Chartres is also the home of the International Stained Glass Center, Centre International du Vitrail. I took a tour of the space and had no idea what I was in for. The initial entry floor has the history of stained glass and a video about how the process works, however the real gem of this place was downstairs in their exhibition space featuring Contemporary Art of Stained Glass in Germany. Rather than talk about the work I will just show you some of my favorites...

David Schnell

Karl-Martin Hartmann

Xenia Hausner

Headed back to the city, ready for some rest and to get prepared for my painting class which begins tomorrow. Au revoir Chartres!

Impressionism, Engineering, Modern Art Oh My!

So much has happened since my last post I don't know where to begin! I was going to post yesterday but I was too exhausted. Tuesday morning I woke up and head to Musee d'Orsay which is located in a magnificent restored old train station. The Orsay houses French art from the 1800s and early 1900s and  is probably best known for its extensive collection of Impressionist works. Some of my favorites to see in person were  Degas's dancers and Toulouse Lautrec's work. Degas was such a master of material, he managed to create work in so many different mediums it was amazing to see in person. Did I mention it was crowded? Really, really crowded? After two hours of looking at work I headed to catch a glimpse of the Post Impressionist work of Van Gogh only to stumble upon a HUGE line. I decided to move on and come back to the Orsay another day (thats the beauty of the Museum Pass I can come back as many times as I want!). Unfortunately I could not take pictures of the art work but was able to snag this glorious photo of the interior of the museum.

Musee d'Orsay

I decided to wander a bit and recover from the museum crowds grabbing a sandwich along the way. As a strolled through the streets of St.-Germain-de-Pres I saw signs for the Musee Rodin and decided to head that way. What a breath taking space, the museum is housed on the site of mansion Rodin lived in alongside his contemporaries. Well demonstrated through his work is the process he would go through to in creating his work. I have noted this this in many of the museums I have seen and it is definitely an idea I hope to bring back to my students, the process is an enormous part of the final creation. Rodin is also interesting in that he did not much of the work is outside in his garden which was beautiful.

The Burghers of Calais, 1889

After the Rodin Museum I head towards the Champs Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe.  I teach  about the history and art of the Arc in class and was excited to finally be able to see it in person. It was 284 steps to the top but definitely worth it, from the top you can see all of Paris. I wandered through Parc Monceau and got on the Metropolitan, tired from the day.

Right pillar of the Arc d Triomphe,  La Marseillaise

View... 284 stairs later:)

Wednesday I headed to the Musee de Arts et Metiers. While I was planning to see my American interpretation of Arts and Crafts I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was a museum focused on craft and design of technology. The museum was organized chronologically and began with the development of clocks, compasses, measuring systems and ended with the creation of sound and film. One of the most interesting displays was the history of the loom, its growth from a small scale loom in the home to the large scale employed during the industrial revolution. This museum has so much to offer, I spent almost three hours there but I know I could have spent all day. My plan was then to head next to the Les Arts Decoratifs, however upon my arrival I was sad to see that it was closed (I have found that many things are closed in Paris during the month of August).  

Circular loom, who knew?!

Aeroplane de Clement Ader dir

I meandered through the Tulleries Garden headed for my next adventure... A night time bike ride through the City of Light. I had an amazing time with Fat Tire Bike tours and was able to gain a better sense of the geography of Paris.

View of the Louvre as the sun sets

I woke up this morning and headed to the Montmartre Cemetery which is where many of the famous artists who used to live in the area are now buried there. It was a very peaceful place to begin my morning. My next stop was the museum and former studio and apartment of symbolist artist Gustave Moreau. Moreau created works incorporating biblical and mythological ideas. The works are shown on a an enormous scale and with incredible detail, so much so that many of the works on display are unfinished.

Jupiter and Semele, 1894-1895

Gustave Moreau's studio

I then headed back to the Orsay and see the Van Gogh I had missed earlier, his technique is certainly worth waiting for. Van Gogh once said, "the only time I feel alive is when I am painting" this quote is very clear in his works especially up close when one can see the think layer of paint delicately placed to blend just so with one another to tell his story of what he saw.

My final stop today was the Centre Pompidou. By far my favorite museum so far. Starting with the outside "exoskeletal" design it had my mind reeling before I even entered. Inside the museum the exhibit being shown highlighted works from their permanent collection from the 1960s to today. Joan Miro to Picasso, Francis Bacon, Man Ray, Marcel Duchamp and many more recent artists the list could go on for pages, it was awesome and I plan to go back again if I have time ... still more to see even after almost 3 hours! I was not allowed to take picture inside but I did purchase a few books to bring back to the classroom.

Centre Pompidou

Bonjour Paris!

Bonjour Paris! I arrived yesterday afternoon after a long flight with a  layover in Iceland. I managed to get myself on the RER train to the city. Once in Paris proper I planned to use my NYC subway skills to navigate the Metropolitan only to discover that the train I was supposed to take no longer stopped at Gare du Nord! So three trains and many stairs later I arrived in darling Monmartre where I will be residing over the next two weeks.

After dropping off my things at my studio I was eager to explore my new surroundings. I headed up the hill to the Sacre-Coeur. What a breath taking structure, not to mention the absolutely unbeatable view of Paris. Following the guidance of travel write Rick Steves I walked through the once bohemian streets of famous artists such as Pierre-August Renoir, Pablo Picasso,  and Toulouse Lautrec just to name a few. A bustling neighborhood with not only many tourists but artists as well. The main square is full of many artists and their current works. While tempted by the multitude of delicious creperies I ducked into the L'Espace Dali to view the work of Salvador Dali. The museum offered many of his unknown works featuring a number of engravings and prints. Very well known for his paintings this was excellent exposure to some of his less known works. After a bit more exploring and a sampling of the local boulangerie I headed home.

Well rested I woke up early to head to Musee de l'Orangerie the home of the paintings of Claude Monet's garden. Always beautiful in books and posters, to see them in person I was in awe. The circular rooms draw you into the garden. Claude Monet was nearly blind when he painted these and it almost brings me to tears to think that he could barely see what he was painting but created such masterpieces. He painted massive floor to ceiling paintings corresponding to the time of day and would move to the next painting as the sun changes. I felt like I was walking through the day with Monet. unfortunately I could not take pictures of the work, but they they wouldn't be able to deliver their beauty you'll just have to go visit them yourself one day! The museum also features unique works by artists such as Renoir, Picasso, Cezanne, Rousseau,  Modigliani and others.

I continued through the Tulleries Garden headed for the Louvre. Wow, I thought the Metropolitan Museum was crowded! It has nothing on the Louvre. The historic building which was once a palace houses amazing pieces,  Greek and Roman works, Near Eastern Antiquities as well as many of the Renaissance Masters. On of the most surprising parts of viewing these works in person is the sheer scale of the work. The Coronation of Napoleon painted by Napoleon's top propagandist artist Jaques-Louis David  is unsurprisingly the largest canvas in the Louvre standing at 20'4"x 32'1", check out how small the people are! The Venus de Milo is a work of art that no book could ever do justice I can't believe it was made in the second century. I visited many other works which can be viewed on my flickr account.

After my whirlwind tour of the Louvre I wandered along the Seine and spotted the spire of Notre Dame and decided to head in that direction. Along the way I popped into the Conciergerie which imprisoned those awaiting trial before their trip to the guillotine during the Reign of Terror. Notable prisoners; Louis XVI, Robespierre and Marie- Antoinette. As I exited the Conciergerie with my eye on the flying buttresses of Notre Dame I almost didn't notice the enormous line outside, being that it was almost closing time I decided I will return to view the interior later. Instead I used the light outside to grab some food and take a rive boat around the Seine. As our tour coasted along we got a tour via water of all the history Paris has to offer and I got my first view of the Eiffel tower! Thank you to the Fund for Teachers for this amazing opportunity.

Sacre-Coeur Basilica

View of Paris from Care-Coeur

Sampling of the variety of Dali's work; prints, sculpture, engraving

Coronation of Napoleon by Jacques-Louis David

Venus de Milo

Facade of Notre Dame

Flying buttresses of Notre Dame!

My first view of the Eiffel Tower