Suffering for Art

Wednesday was the first day I actually ached from head to toe. We walked and walked and walked and there was that moment coming home this afternoon where we all eyed the 4 floor walk up and groaned in unison. The Centre Pompidou is several blocks from where we are staying and although we had walked round the outside of it our first weekend here, today we ventured inside to see an amazing collection of Modern Art. (12 euro for me, free for the girls!) This is my genre and I was beside myself with the beauty of the gallery set ups, the space, the lighting and the work itself, a grouping unmatched in my viewing since maybe the (Peggy) Gugenheim in Venice, Italy.

There was an entire room devoted to the work of Philppe Starck, including an aray of 'prototypes' of his more recognizable home furnishing items, which sat on a ledge above the final production models. Talk about an education in industrial design! I was lucky enough to stay in the Paramount Hotel in NYC a couple of times, where the entire place, down to the sinks and soaps had been designed be Starck. I think you can find many items in 'homage' to him in the aisles of your local IKEA.

F is less of a fan of 'modern' art, but was a goood sport as we wandered through it all. P shared my joy at seeing some lifetime-worthy masterpieces. We all picked favorites. It was easy for me, an amazing large canvas I recognized from a book, 'Slave Trade' by neo-expressionist Jean-Michel Basquiat. His short career was prolific, but there are very few publicly shown works, and this was a thrill to see. (And huge, at about 5ft high and 8 ft wide!)

"Every line means something." - Jean-Michel Basquiat. And how.

Thursday- Musee d' Orsay

In an attempt to avoid the crowds we went to this amazing museum at 4 pm because it's open Thursdays till 9pm. A converted train station, the place is HUGE and the lighting unbelievable even late in the day. It is just across the Seine from the Tuileries Gardens, where we walked from the metro stop through a carnival we had watched getting set up last week. (More on that later when I can get the pics from P.) We decided to split up so we could all see our various interests and meet back under the two story high gilt clock in 2 hours. The crowds were there- but all hovering around the Van Gogh and Renoir rooms listening to their tour guides give them a crash course in art appreciation. ("Got it- got it- got it...") I bee-lined for the Art Nouveau rooms (almost empty!) where furnishings, sculpture, paintings and -SIGH- glass (Lalique! Galle!) were set in scaled tableaus and cases. If I was born in a previous time, it was the late 1800's. In fact, the clowns that dance across my back are from a 1901 book and not only my favorite orange and green, but classic of the 'noodle' design lines of the era.

My new favorite artist has become Georges Lacombe, who is identified as a sculpture primarily. His series of four carved wood rectangles depicting the cycle of life really were breathtaking and tucked unceremoniously in a hall way between rooms. My favorite was L'Amour. (A poor pic here above, but look at the d'Orsay archives on line for more...www.musee-orsay.fr) He must be my "guide" on this trip as I remember his stunning grave at Perre Lachaise, black marble near Proust- where I stopped to read his name twice, before I realized it was not spelled the same as my pricey cosmetics. As I was on my way out of the d'Orsay, I saw his "ISIS" which was oddly prophetic and made me tear up a bit before I pressed on to meet the girls and venture into the dusk and the sparkling lights of the Gypsy's carnival.