From The Archives: Paris in 2009

I made these drawings over 3 years ago, on a family trip to Paris. My blog didn't exist back then, so I never posted the art. Stumbling on these drawings makes me nostalgic for the favorite city. Maybe it's time to revisit...p.s. 3 years can be a very long time.

Notre Dame

Sacré-Cœur

Notre Dame

Paris :: Part 7 : I Am Beautiful (Je suis belle)

Auguste Rodin made numerous studies of figures and re-used his models in various groupings. One chance combination in plaster of the crouching female and the reaching male figures (both of which were studies for the "The Gates of Hell") became the basis for famous bronze casts. One of the sculptures sits in a glass case by the window at the Rodin Museum in Paris. It's titled "I am beautiful", after Baudelaire's poem:

"I am beautiful, oh mortals, like a marble dream,  

And my breast on which each sacrifices himself in turn, 

Was made to inspire poets with a love  

As eternal and silent as matter.'

The meaning of this sculpture is unclear.  It's ambiguity and intensity is what made me fall in love with it. It is a union of two opposites: female and male, fetal and erect, closed and open, empathetic and violent, static and moving. It's as difficult and as beautiful as the tension between two beings, the culmination of emotional extremes in an interpersonal relationship. Instinctively, I know that I have lived through *that* when I look at the figures. I understand it. But...cannot put it into words. Such is the power of Rodin's sculptures: they are a mirror of all things human yet invisible. 

Paris :: Part 6 : Le Musee D'Orsay

Here's a drawing of the great hall of Le Musee D'Orsay with it's magnificent gilded clock. This once-upon-a-time railroad station is now housing most incredible 19th-century art, including impressionism, realism, postimpressionism, and art nouveau. Turns out the museum is only 33 years old.  I LOVE this place like no other. There are giant Toulouse-Lautrecs (how DID he paint such huge canvases? "With a broom", jokes my teacher Ronnie, as she walks by.) There are Van Goghs, vibrating with so much energy that they practically emit sounds. There are Degas figurines-a whole wall of them! There is the famous Renoir's "Boating Party" painting  that Amelie's neighbor kept copying in the movie. There's the Monet's "The Picnic" that Picasso studied over and over again with his numerous iterations. There are Bonnards, Cezannes, Daumiers, Gaugins, Monets, Vuillards...all those great impressionistic paintings are so alive in person, so beautiful, that their impact just overwhelms. I get very emotional there. I miss you, D'Orsay. 

p.s. Happy Birthday, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec! 

Paris :: Part 5 : Wine Tasting Notes

...to continue with drawings from my Parisian trip in July, here are some happy memories from the wine tasting night. We met our sommelier Oliver inside the 17th century cellar that's adjacent to the Louvre and that once belonged to Louis XV.
 

Oliver began his lesson with Champagne, and we slowly drifted through the Whites and Roses to the Reds. By the way, I learned that Rose is made from red grapes without the skins (and not a mix of reds and whites); Champagne is made with the mix of 2 red grape varieties and 1 white grape variety; I also learned that the most telling and important item on the French wine's label is Appellation. And, of course, I learned in practice the three techniques to make me look like the legitimate wine snob (that I'm not): 1-how to LOOK,  2-how to SMELL, 3-how to TASTE the wine.

Frankly, I still stumble when I have to order a bottle at a restaurant. I think I might need a few more lessons: the know-how on the wine je ne sais quoi.

Paris :: Part 4 : Notre Dame de Paris

 

French for Our Lady Of Paris, Notre Dame is magnificent.

Since my childhood in Moscow, I fantasized about Notre Dame-a friend brought me a cardboard model of the Cathedral when I was about 10. The model I assembled lived on a bookshelf. Did I know then I'd be walking though this very Cathedral 20 years later?

Paris :: Part 3 : Montmartre

Atop Montmartre sits a rare jewel Sacré-Cœur. Despite it's grandeur, this white church feels miniature to me, as if it's an exquisite brooch decorating the highest point in Paris.

The streets of Montmartre, by contrast with the lightness of Basilica, are dense with color, crowds, art vendors, cafe umbrellas and smell of crepes...

I stumbled upon a two-story white building that once was a studio where Monet, Picasso, Van Gogh, Modigliani, Dali and others have worked at some point in the 19th century. I tried to imagine Montmartre back then: a quiet, desolate bohemian retreat. You don't see a soul, just hear remote footsteps, a glass shatters, laughter. And then...Eric Satie's melancholy piano sets in...

Paris :: Part 2 : Le Tour De France 2010

...Up until the day of the race, I couldn't imagine enjoying the event as much as I did.

During the last leg, cyclists make 9 rounds on Champs-Élysées, circling Arc de Triomphe, passing Rue de Rivoli (where I was "stationed".) And I was so thankful for those 9 rounds, because after 8 hours of anticipation, when first motorcycles of cortege appeared around the corner with roaring of the crowd, the Tour zooooomed by and was GONE in a blink of an eye! A few swooshes on the page...

Ahh...the cyclists were beautiful in their tension and speed. They looked like creatures made of mercury.

Similar to Olympic games of Ancient Greece, in honor of which wars between city-states were postponed for the duration of tournaments, Le Tour De France has an air of reconciliation. At least in my eyes. I tend to romanticize, but it's really a significant event-all cultures get involved. Turns out it was Revolutionary France that first emulated the ancient Olympics in late 19th century, for the first time since 426 AD. That event was called L'Olympiade de la République. Bravo, France!!

More drawings are in "Waiting For The Race" post >

Paris :: Part 1 : Waiting For The Race

I am back from a 2-week trip to Paris with new experiences to share with you, in drawings.

The brightest event was, no doubt, the last leg of Tour De France! Friends and I got out early to claim our spots, as the crowds gathered to cheer for the race. It was empty on Rue De Rivoli at 7.30 am. By 1 pm, the street in front of the Louvre was a stampede. Colorful array of flags and languages from around the world shook the air. The race was expected to pass us about 4pm, so there was plenty of time to people-watch.

Strangers made acquaintances with whoever was standing next to them, clinking their giant beer glasses and waving their national flags. A lonely American flag, hanging from the hotel window, was drowned in the sea of Norwegian, British and Spanish colors. The statue of Jean of Arc right in the middle added just the right spirit.

Iron lace

*drawn on my iPhone