Izis, Paris des Rêves at Hôtel de Ville
  • 19
  • Mar
  • 2010

Asked why he chose Paris after having fled the persecution of Jews in Lithuania in 1930, Izis replied, “Because it excited my imagination. It was the City of Lights. For me everything was happening in Paris. Liberty, Equality of man and Culture, that’s what made us dream.” The retrospective of his photography at Hotel de Ville “Izis, Paris des Rêves” invites us to discover this dreamlike poetry in the everyday life of Paris.

The exposition opens with a series of portraits of maquisards, the French resistance fighters. Izis who joined the French Resistance army during the war, decided to portray of his companions soon after liberation of Limousin in 1944 using only a white background and no retouching. It is precisely this raw quality of the portraits of men with bright eyes and timid smiles that makes their heroism more credible and palpable. The portraits of famous French people Izis took during twenty years of collaboration with Paris Match also capture their unrehearsed dignity.
Together with other photographers such as Robert Doisneau, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Sabine Weiss and Willy Ronis, Izis represents the French Humanist photography in the second half of the 20th century. Every one of Izis’ photographs of children, workers, flower and bird vendors, vagabonds or cripples emanates with the beauty and grace of the human being.
“I was often told that my photographs are not realist,” Izis admits “Maybe they are not realist, but this is my reality.” extract out of text by Joanna Bronowicka for Vingt.

Hôtel de Ville - Salon d’accueil,5, rue Lobau, 75004 Paris, M° Hôtel de Ville

Until 29th May 2010
Open every day from 10am – 6:45pm except Sundays and public holidays.
Last admission at 6:15. Admission free.

The blue note
  • 03
  • Mar
  • 2010

At Musée de la vie romantique starting March 2 until July 11 2010 an important homage is presented to the famous composer Frédéric Chopin (1810-1949), specialy about his parisian years -  the last ten years of his life.

The atmophere is one of all the art (literature, painting, music) that surrounded him and influenced him . You will see important letters, paintings and drawings from famous artists borrowed from important museums around the world.

Musée de la vie romantique, 16 Rue Chaptal, 75009 Paris, M° Blanche
You can just have a stroll to the museum from the Montmartre Studio Loft.

Rose, c’est Paris
  • 27
  • Feb
  • 2010

Startin 8th of April until 11th of July 2010 at Bnf Richelieu, photo gallery.

A young woman, B., looks for her twin sister Rose who is missing. That’s the start for a look into the not so known intimistic parts of Paris taken by the camera of Bettina Rheims and written by Serge Bramly.

Hunderd photos and a movie tell the voyage at the heart of Paris between the wars. The mysterieus serie is divided in 13 episode in which you can find not so known decors of Paris. Over hunderd models and comidians did work with them such as Monica Bellucci, Valérie Lemercier, Anna Mouglalis, Naomi Campbell, Charlotte Rampling, Jean-Pierre Kalfon..

BnF / Richelieu ,58 rue de Richelieu, 75002 Paris, M° Bourse-Palais Royale

The Russian Ballets at Musée de l’Opéra
  • 23
  • Feb
  • 2010

Until 23 of May an exceptional exposition can be seen at Bibliothèqe-Musée de l’Opéra.
This exposition shows a hundred works from its most important collection of Russian Ballet. The Russian Ballet gave 19 “seasons” of spectacle in Paris between 1909 an 1929. It was an imediate succes due to the renovation of the classical ballet by choreographers as Michel Fokine, Vaslav Nijinsky, Leonide Massine, Bronislava Nijinska and Georges Balanchine. But also and maybe even more important where the mutations of the decors and costums.

This manifestation is organised for the year France-Russie 2010

Opéra Garnier, 9, Rue Scribe , 75009 Paris, M° Opéra

Every day 10-17h and in function of the openingshours of the Palais Garnier.