Cool Paris

From September 2010 we’ll be going one better with the biggest Monet exhibition in thirty years, organised by the associated national museums and the musée d’Orsay.

The last large Monet exhibition in Paris was in 1980 (at the Grand Palais once again), and since then much research has been done about the artist, bringing to light many lesser known aspects of his work. The exhibition will showcase Monet’s entire career which started in 1860 and his evolution from a young, rather traditional artist to his blossoming as an impressionist whose work was sometimes on the verge of abstract.

From Normandy to Paris, via London, the centre of France or Rouen, Monet created a new style and palette of colours, often painting the same scene in several different lights to incredible effect.

At 50 he created his garden at Giverny, and it was to become an endless source of inspiration for his paintings. The light, the seasons, the flowers… his deep attachment to nature inspired him daily at all times of year.

The retrospective at the Grand Palais – containing nearly tow hundred Monet pieces – mixes famous and lesser known works and tries to surprise the visitor, especially with its use of juxtaposition, helping you to have a new view of the paintings and show that Monet was an extraordinarily modern artist.

Of course some weeks ago we did indeed visit the big Monet exhibition. There are a lot of people who had the same idea, so it is rather crowded. They take care that there are not to many people admitted, but to my feeling you are still with a lot  visiting the exhibition. The exhibition gives a nice idea of Monet’s work and the influences he used. I liked it but I didn’t got the “wow” feeling. Maybe it was because of the crowd, maybe because of the big number of works, maybe I was not in the mood… But after all, it’s a must do when in Paris this fall.

Monet exhibition, Grand Palais, 22nd Sept 2010 – 24th January 2011, M° Franklin D. Roosevelt

Open every day except Tuesdays and Xmas day from 9am – 8pm (last ticket). Admission 13€ / 9€. A joint ticket with the Orangerie is also available for 19€. Be sure to buy your tickets in advance.

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As written by Brendan Seibel for Vingtparis :

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One of the most important car-exhibitions of the world, is the one in Paris. It’s a unique chance to admire big world premières close by.

This year “Mondiale de l’automobile” starts October 02 until October 17 at Porte de Versailles.

Salon de l’automobile, Porte de Versailles, from 10h00 to 20h00 - Nocturnes on Thursday 7 & 14 octobre until 22h00, M° Porte de Versailles

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Written by Valerie Gladstone for the New York Times :

Few events could so completely satisfy an escapist fantasy of a life lived in luxury than the Biennale des Antiquaires. Now in its 25th decadent year, the festival brings together exceptional antique art, jewelry and furniture at the glorious Grand Palais from Sept. 15 to 22. Art dealers, collectors, jewelers and anyone curious about great art can wander exhibitions as refined as the objects on display. And expect crowds: the last Biennale drew about 80,000 people.

“It’s one of the great art fairs of the world,” said Hervé Aaron, chairman of the Syndicat National des Antiquaires. “It’s wonderful if you can buy — probably the least expensive item on sale might be an ancient coin for 2,000 euros — but if not, it’s still a wonderful place to enjoy an enormous number of breathtaking objects in exquisite circumstances.”

The atmospheric setting of the Biennale itself (Avenue Winston Churchill;
www.bdafrance.eu; admission 25 euros, or about $31.50), created by the architect Patrick Bazanan, features a dark, covered entrance with 25 alcoves full of roses. From there, a single, wide passageway leads to the stands, each of them framed by an arch and open on all sides. Along the way, visitors can linger in front of tinkling fountains and rest in secluded spots, surrounded by slender bamboos.

This should be ample preparation for the stepping-stone section on the balcony, where archaeological finds share the stage with Asian, Islamic, pre-Columbian and Oceanic art, as well as books and manuscripts, 18th-, 19th- and 20th-century furniture, sculpture, ceramics, Old Master and modern paintings and tapestries.

When asked about fair highlights, Mr. Aaron pointed to a pair of Chinese flying dragons in gilt bronze from the Tang Period (c. 618-907); stylized earrings with palm trees and antique faceted drop emeralds designed by Cartier; and paintings by Brueghel, Pissarro and Chagall. The Marlborough Gallery will exhibit Francis Bacon’s large-scale painting “Three Studies of the Human Body,” from 1970. With an estimated value of 30 million euros (about $38 million), it will be probably the most expensive work at the Biennale.

So that all the senses are satisfied, visitors can even dine at the fair, at a pop-up restaurant from the well-respected Parisian caterer Potel et Chabot. At lunch and dinner, four chefs — Alain Dutournier Gilles Tournadre, Davy Tissot and Jean-Georges Klein — will alternate cooking; on Sept. 13, for the opening gala dinner, three chefs will be in charge.

XXV Biennale des Antiquaires, Grand Palais, 75008 Paris, M° line 1 or 9  Franklin Roosevelt

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