Juliet Greco (2009)
It has been said that her voice “encompasses millions of poems,” and at 85 years old the darling of Saint-Germain-des-Prés is still performing, appearing tonight and tomorrow at Théatre du Châtelet.
I think this tour of Paris is a nice way to celebrate with her.
Jane del Monte, bridging the distance
(Photo: Harry B.P. Jaeger)
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Vincent Van Gogh, White Roses (1890)
In a perfect world, where I could choose where my tax dollars were put to use, a great part would go to support The National Gallery of Art — no question. Would that other branches of the government fulfill their mission so successfully. If I took it for granted while I lived in Washington, two years in the Atlanta area have changed that.
After a two year period of restoration, repair and renovation, we have the welcome reopening of the 19th-century French galleries, those devoted to Impressionism and post-Impressionism. While the freshly refurbished rooms are little changed in appearance, the paintings themselves are newly grouped in thematic, monographic and art historical arrangements that, in the words of French cultural attaché Roland Celette, “place the viewer at the very heart of France’s artistic life during the 19th and early 20th centuries.”
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, The Girl with a Watering Can (1876)
And what a life it was! The Impressionists were considered radical in their own lifetime, their daring experimentation not widely well-received. Thankfully, that has changed. But far more than painters of rural landscapes, these painters of color and light were avid chroniclers of the urban scene and have left us with a rich visual record of Parisian society of their time.
Despite being the new kid on the block among its competitors in this area of collection– the Metropolitan, Art Institute of Chicago, Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts and the Musée d’Orsay are at the top – the National Gallery has a sumptuous collection of Impressionist and post-Impressionist art, including masterpieces by works by Manet, Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, Van Gogh and Gauguin.
Claude Monet, the Bridge at Argenteuil (1874)
To learn more about the 19th-century French galleries, visit www.nga.gov/french. Then, plan your visit.
Jane del Monte, bridging the distance
(All images are in the public domain in the USA.)
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More than 500 years since it was begun, the portrait of La Giaconda (or, in French, La Joconde) continues to make the news. Read about it at history.com.
The Two Joconde
If you happen to visit Paris between March 29 and June 25, you may see the two side by side at the Musée du Louvre.
Jane del Monte, bridging the distance
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FRANCE Magazine
Lovers of France, that is. If you’re reading this, I think it’s safe to assume you figure among them? And I surmise, since many of you are fellow-bloggers, that you probably like to write. I thought this was good enough to share.
FRANCE Magazine is offering American readers the chance to write about their recent trips to France, with the oppotunity to win a $100 gift voucher.
To enter, email their editorial page at editorial@francemag.com. What do you have to lose?
Jan del Monte, bridging the difference
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By no means comprehensive, just a few things that may be of interest.
Paris
Through 26 February 2012 — “Cezanne et Paris” (Cezanne and Paris), Musée du Luxembourg (Métro Luxembourg), www.museeduluxembourg.fr
Through 19 March 2012 — “Fantin-Latour, Manet, Cezanne: Hommage à Delacroix” (Fantin-Latour-Manet, Cezanne: Homage to Delacroixà, Musée Eugène Delacroix (Métro St-Germain-des-Prés or Mabillon), www.musee-delacroix.fr
Through 16 April 2012, “New Frontier: l’ art américain entre au Louvre. Thomas Cole et la naissaince de la peinture de paysage en Amérique” (New Frontier: American Art Enters the Louvre. Thomas Cole and the Birth of Landscape Painting in America), Musée du Louvre (Métro Palais Royal), www.louvre.fr
Through 3 June 2012 – “L’Invention du sauvage” (The Invention of the Savage), Musée du Quai Branly (Métro Alma-Marceau), www.quaibranly.fr
Through 2 September 2012 — “Les Histoires de Babar” (The Stories of Babar), Musée des Arts Décoratifs (Métro Tuileries or Palais-Royal), www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr
Through September 2012– “Poèmes en cristal: De Gallé à Lalique, la verrerie Art Nouveau du Petit Palais” (Poems in Crystal: From Gallé to Lalique, the Art Nouveau Glass of the Petit Palais), Petit Palais (Métro Champs-Elysées-Clémenceau), www.petitpalais.paris.fr
2 February 2012 – 15 November 2013 — “Trompe-L’oeil: Imitations, pastiches et autres illusions” (Trompe-l’oeil: Imitations, Pastiches and Other Illusions), Musée des Arts Décoratifs (Métro Tuileries or Palais-Royal), www.artsdecoratifs.fr
8 February – 28 April 2012 — “Doisneau, les Halles, ” Hôtel de Ville de Paris, Salon d’accueil (Métro Hôtel de Ville), www.paris.fr
7 March – 18 June 2012 — “Matisse, paires et séries” (Matisse, Pairs and Series), Centre Pompidou (Métro Rambuteau, Hôtel de Ville or Châtelet), www.centrepompidou.fr
8 March – 5 August 2012 – “J.M. Sert, le Titan à l’oeuvre (1874 – 1945″ (J.M Sert, the Work of the Titan), Petit Palais (Métro Champs Elysées-Clémenceau, www.petitpalais.paris.fr
9 March – 16 September 2012 — “Louis Vuitton Marc Jacobs,” Musée de la Mode et du Textile (Métro Tuileries or Palais-Royal), www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr
13 March – 1 July 2012, “Degas et le nu” (Degas and the Nude), Musée d’Orsay, Métro Solferino, www.musee-orsay.fr
21 March – 21 May 2012 — “Art Spiegelman,” Centre Pompidou (Métro Rambuteau, Hôtel de Ville or Châtelet), www.centrepompidou.fr
21 March – 16 July 2012 — “Beauté animale – de Dürer à Jeff Koons” (Animal Beauty — from Dürer to Jeff Koons), Grand Palais (Métro Champs-Elyséée-Clémenceau), www.rmn.fr
23 March – 23 July 2012 — “Le Crépuscule des Pharaons: Chefs-d’oeuvre des dernières dynasties égyptiennes” (The Twilight of the Pharaohs: Masterpieces of the Last Egyptian Dynasties), Musée Jacquemart-André (Métro Miromesnil or Saint-Philippe-du-Roule), www.musee-jacquemart-andré.com
25 April – 29 July 2012 — “Eugène Atget, Paris,” Musée Carnavalet (Métro Saint-Paul or Chemin Vert), www.carnavalet.paris.fr
16 May – 25 August 2012 — “Paris, vu par Hollywood” (Paris, Seen by Hollywood), Hôtel de Ville de Paris Salle Saint-Jean (Métro Hôtel de Ville), www.paris.fr
12 June – 9 September 2012 — “Misia, reine de Paris” (Misia, Queen of Paris), Musée d’Orsay (Métro Solférino), www.musee-orsay.fr
20 September 2012 – 10 September 2013 — “Van Cleef & Arpels,” Musée des Arts Décoratifs (Métro Tuileries or Palais-Royal) www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr
25 September 2012 – 20 January 2013 — “Impressionisme et la Mode” (Impressionism and Style), Musée d’Orsay (Métro Solférino), www.musee-orsay.fr
Lyon
30 March – 2 July 2012 — “Emile Guimet et l’Egypte antique” (Emile Guimet and Ancient Egypt), Musée des Beaux Arts de Lyon, www.mba-lyon.fr
Giverny
1 April – 15 July 2012 — “Maurice Denis, l’Eternel Printemps” (Maurice Denis, the Eternal Spring), Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny, www.mdig.fr
London
15 February – 15 July 2012 — “Picasso and Britain,” Tate Britain, www.tate.org.uk
Liverpool
22 June – 28 October 2012 – “Turner Monet Twombly,” Tate Liverpool, www.tate.org.uk/liverpool/exhibitions/TurnerMonetTwombly
Madrid
Through 12 February 2012 — “Bethe Morisot: The Woman Impressionist,” Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, www.museothyssen.org
9 October 2012 - 13 January 2013 — “Voyage to the Exotic: Homage to Gauguin,” Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, www.museothyssen.org
Montreal
12 October 2012 – 20 January 2013 — “Une histoire de l’impressionisme: Chefs-d’oeuvre de la peinture française du Clark” (A History of Impressionism: Masterpieces of French Painting from the Clark) Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, www.mbam.qc.ca
New York
28 February – 3 June 2012 — “The Steins Collect: Matisse, Picasso and the Parisian Avant-Garde,” Metropolitan Museum of Art, www.metmuseum.org
4 May – 23 September 2012 — “Edouard Vuillard: A Painter and His Muses, 1890 – 1940,” The Jewish Museum, www.thejewishmuseum.org
Permanent Collection: Wrightsman Galleries for French Decorative Arts, Metropolitan Museum of Art, www.metmuseum.org
Philadelphia
Permanent Collection, Rodin Museum, Benjamin Franklin Parkway at 22nd Street, www.rodinmuseum.org
Washington, D.C.
Through 8 July 2012 — “A New Look: Samuel F.B. Morse’s Gallery of the Louvre,” National Gallery of Art, West Building Main Floor. See www.nga.org
4 February – 6 May 2012 — “Snapshot: Painters and Photography, Bonnard to Vuillard, The Phillips Collection, www.phillipscollection.org
5 February – 6 May 2012 — “Picasso’s Drawings, 1890-1921: Reinventing Tradition,” National Gallery of Art, West Building, Ground Floor. See www.nga.org
Permanent Collection, “Small French Paintings,” East Building, National Gallery of Art, www.nga.gov
Permanent Collection, “Matisse Cutouts,” National Gallery of Art, East Building Tower. To protect the pigments and color, viewing hours are limited. See www.nga.gov
Richmond
Through 18 March 2012 — “The Jewels of Jean Schlumberger,” Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, www.VMFA.museum
Charlotte
Through 26 February 2012 — “Chanel: Designs for the Modern Woman,” The Mint Museum Randolph, www.mintmuseum.org
Atlanta
Through 29 April 2012 — “Picasso to Warhol,” High Museum of Art, www.high.org
Denver
25 March – 8 July 2012 — “Yves Saint Laurent – The Retrospective,” Denver Art Museum, www.denverartmuseum.org
Dallas
Through 12 February 2012 — “The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier,” Dallas Museum of Art, www.dm-art.org
Fort Worth
11 March – 17 June 2012 — “The Age of Impressionism: Great French Paintings from the Clark,” Kimbell Art Museum, www.kimbellart.org
San Francisco
18 February – 17 June 2012 — “The Cult of Beauty: The Victorian Avant-Garde, 1860 – 1900″ Legion of Honor Museum, www.famsf.org/legion
24 March – 19 August 2012 — “The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk” de Young Fine Arts Museum, www.deyoungmuseum.org
Los Angeles
Permanent Collection: “Neoclassical, Romantic and Symbolist Sculpture and Decorative Arts,” West Pavilion, Getty Center, www.getty.edu/museum
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Eugène Atget, Rue Lepic
Eugène Atget devoted 30 years to producing a photographic record of the architecture and daily life of Old Paris, more than 10,000 images that capture the capital as it was as it was then.
While doing some research for another project, I stumbled upon this online feature from the National Gallery of Art (www.nga.gov) showcasing 32 works from the gallery’s collections, along with maps and information about the artist.
Check it out at http://www.nga.gov/feature/atget/. I hope you find it as interesting as I did.
Jane del Monte, bridging the distance
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As you probably know, I’m always on board when it comes to mixing sustainable tourism with a plain, old-fashioned good time.
To kick off the new year, ARTS in PARIS offers you the opportunity to combine a visit to Paris with support for a very worthy cause. On any tour booked between now and April 1st, 10% of the tour fee will be donated to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins San Frontières (MSF). Click on the link to learn more about the wonderful humanitarian work of this extraordinary organization.
This offer covers prepackaged tours, as well as custom-designed personalized tours, and applies to all tours booked before April 1 and begun before December 31, 2012.
The next scheduled tour is Impressions of Paris, from May 3 – 11, 2012. For details on this tour, Schedule of Activities and Pricing Information, visit the site by clicking the link.
If spring travel is not on your agenda, learn about the Biennale des Antiquaires tour in September 2012.
I hope we can meet this year in Paris.
Jane del Monte, bridging the distance
(Photo by Michele Melick)
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