Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Unique objects with a soul...


I had lunch in the Abbesses area yesterday (Tuesday) and before I head back to work, I walked around the area and came across one of these bollards that Le Cyclop (who I already featured on PDP in September 2010) turns  into works of art. It turned out that the bollards were in front of Akiza art gallery, which precisely sells them together with other unique and very creative objects like this red bag (look at the handle, it's a phone handset!) or this old telephone lamp. A cool place to visit, (located at 3 rue Tholozé) if you're in the neighborhood. 

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

French army monument


Gee what a long day! Work, plus launch or Portraitsparisiens (thank you very much for all your nice comments and "likes"!) not to forget plumbing problems (I will spare the details!)... I did not have the time to take a single photo today. So here is one from my "collection", that I never showed you, even if I like it. It's a monument to the "glory of the French army", located at Trocadero. It's actually what we call a "bas haut relief", that is a hallow depth sculpture often located against a wall, like in the present case. It's a beautiful monument, made by Paul Landowski to commemorate the WWI (1914-1918) French army. Also, a special thought to my American visitors who live on the East coast of the USA and who are going to have a rough time with Sandy...

Monday, October 29, 2012

Parisian portraits


I've decided to show you Paris in a new way... Not only through my eyes, but through the ones of its inhabitants : les Parisiens... To do so, I've started a new blog, called Portraits parisiens, in which I only photograph - and video interview - people who live in Paris (and suburbs). It's a new - time consuming - project, but it allows me to meet new people, learn new techniques (people are harder to photograph or film than buildings!) and it's fun! There won't be one per day of course, but as often as possible... You can visit it right now (I officially launched it today!), follow it on Twitter and/or like it on Facebook. I'm also open to your suggestions. Have a good week everyone.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Rio Christ in Paris!


No, you're not currently looking at Rio de Janeiro daily photo! but, yes this is the "Cristo Redentor" (Christ the Redeemer), or rather a replica that was offered to Notre de Dame de Paris and was being towed somewhere. I happened to be at Gare du nord when I saw it. I dug out my camera real quick and started shooting. Sometimes, you're just lucky, even it if makes a more intriguing photo than a good one...

Saturday, October 27, 2012

Street art


I had a meeting at Café Lomi this morning, a beautiful place that is also a coffee roaster, so you can imagine how good coffee tastes over there... Opposite to this café, there is one of the largest graffiti walls in Paris and I could not help but taking a photo. To be fair I "enhanced" it a bit - especially the colors - but not that much ;-) I really like it. Have a great weekend everyone. 

Friday, October 26, 2012

Spooky!


Can you guess what this is? A new Mc Donald's? A Macarons vending machine? A Morgue? All wrong... this is a brand new metro station! I found it yesterday, while I was coming back from a little gathering with the vacation rentals service ParisSharing community. It's located at Porte de Vincennes, that is in the very east side of Paris, where they recently installed a new tramway - and therefore reshuffled the whole underground public transportation. Pretty cool isn't? A quite a change from the traditional Hector Guimard's Art Nouveau style!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Place des victoires


I know you're going to say I'm a little obsessed with Place des Victoires, but like I said it several times here, it's probably my favorite square in Paris! I often photographed it at daylight, but this time let me offer you a night view - and without the scaffolding that they removed recently. Reminder: this square was inaugurated in March 1686 and it owes its beauty to a local bill that made it compulsory to build symmetrical buildings around it. And of course, the guy on his horse is... Louis the XIVth. And just FYI, The blue sky is not fake!

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

A true masterpiece


Close to my home, there is super gallery called Nota Bene with a lot of art from the 19th century. Recently, I noticed this stunning bust in the window and did not resist photographing it! It was made by French sculptor Auguste Henri Carli and is called Buste de jeune Nègre (nègre has now become very derogatory, but was not when this bust was made). FYI in France, slavery was abolished in 1791/92 then reinstated by Napoleon  in 1802 and abolished again in 1848!

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

United Buddy Bears


Bears invaded Paris this past week... Not real ones of course, but the United Buddy Bears, fiberglass painted sculptures that aim at promoting peace in the world (no less!). Each of them (140!) represent a country and, as such, were decorated by a local artist. After being first shown in Berlin in 2002, they have been everywhere:  Sydney, Kuala Lumpur, Pyongyang.... and as of October 12, 2012 Paris, and more precisely the Champs de Mars, by the Eiffel Tower! Pretty cool actually. I photographed half of them, so see for yourself in this little video

Monday, October 22, 2012

The new Printemps


For once we had a little bit of blue sky today in Paris and I did not resist catching it on "film"! I was at Le Printemps area (one of the main Paris department stores) when I took it and as you can see there is scaffolding everywhere. Why? Well because the new owners (the Rinascente group and the Deutsche Bank) who bought it in 2006  have decided to turn the place into a high-end store and  to do so has decided to give it a little face lift - for a slight investment of 30 million Euros (of which 7 only for the scaffolding)! Let's hope it'll be worth it... No matter what, the facade of the building, which is protected, will still remain the same of course, which is good news...

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Fiac 2012


Paris is full of modern art events and exhibits at the moment... Why now? Because it's La Fiac (Foire Internationale d'Art Contemporain), a huge modern art exhibit that takes place every year at le Grand Palais. I went yesterday morning (Saturday) and even though I dislike the snobby artsy people that you often encounter is this kind of places, I did not regret it. Each booth (that is each gallery) had so much creativity and so many talents to offer that I could not take my eyes off of many of the pieces on display. Nor my camera... I took a lot of photos, but did not have time to post pick the best ones yet. In the meantime let me offer you this beautiful head that I found at the Michael Werner gallery.

Saturday, October 20, 2012

When modern art meets the classic one


If you're familiar with Paris, you will probably have recognized the Hotel de Ville, that is the Paris town hall, a typical Renaissance revival type of building. But the reason why I took this photo today is because of the piece of art in front of it... A piece by Alain Kirili, made of concrete and gravels, called Rythmes d'automne (autumn/fall rhythms), that you can actually see better on the Paris.fr site . I like it when modern art meets the classic one; it allows Paris to keep its traditional flavor while keeping in touch with the present trends. Now, about this piece in particular, I'm not so sure... ;-)

Friday, October 19, 2012

Paris by night...


Those who are in Paris at the moment will know right away that I did not take this photo today! Why? Because we haven't seen this kind of blue sky in a very long time in Paris! I actually took it last July and since I was too busy to take a photo today, I thought this one was a nice replacement. The little man in the center, on his horse, is Henri IV (the 4th), a French king that reigned between 1589 till 1610, when he was murdered. He also changed 6 times religion... And the square is the one of Le Pont Neuf, at the tip of the Ile de la Cité

Thursday, October 18, 2012

La Dame de Pic


You may not see any woman in this kitchen and though this brand new restaurant (it opened only one month ago) is owned and managed by a woman (which is still pretty rare in the haute cuisine trade). Her name is Anne-Sophie Pic (hence the name of the place which is also a play on words - Dame de pique means queen of spades in French) and she is not exactly a newcomer in the business; she already has a 3 star restaurant in Valence (near Lyon) - there are only 26 of those in France out of a zillion places, so you can imagine how hard it is to get these stars... La Dame de pic has not been rated yet, but it already has excellent reviews. I'm not big on spending a fortune on one meal, but this one looks really tempting (I love that you can see the kitchen from the outside). I may try it on a special occasion! 

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Sun in the night


It's been a while since there has been a neon sign on top of the Samaritaine. Today, on my way back from Ile Saint Louis, I noticed there was something new up there and I could not help but taking a photo of course. Now... what does it say? "Sun in the night" ! What does it mean? Well it's not very important (although there is an actual meaning, click here to see it - in French only). The main thing to know is that it's actually a modern art piece, made by French artist Laurent Grasso which will last until October 21st, 2012.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Do judge a city by its facades!


I love the facades of Paris (well, most of them...). It's like walking through a history book. Sunday evening I was invited at friends' in the 15th arrondissement and I took this photo from their balcony! This is very interesting because you can see two types of facade: a typical Art Deco one from the 30's on the left and a little bit of what we call "post Haussmannian" style on the right. The latter is different from the original Haussmannian because of the "discovery" of elevators; top floors were no longer for servants, but for rich people who were not afraid to have to climb stairs anymore and wanted to enjoy more light. I love Paris!

Monday, October 15, 2012

Montmartre grapes harvesting feast


If you like what's French, well, the Vendanges de Montmartre (grapes harvesting) is probably the place to go to. I personally had never gone before this Saturday and, believe me, I discovered a whole world up there (they even have a Republic of Montmartre!). Montmartre is a little hill in the Northern part of the city, and somewhere near the mythical Lapin Agile cabaret,  there are still grapes. Their harvesting offers an occasion to celebrate, drink, laugh, eat, exchange and... discover many produces that the regions of France have to offer (these people for instance, "promote" garlic from Vaucluse - a region in the South of France!). Have a look a the little video that I shot for you.

Sunday, October 14, 2012

The best patisserie in Paris?


Those of you who follow me on Instagram (ParisDailyPhoto) may already have seen this photo today, but I don't resist posting it on PDP too! I took it at Les Petits Mitrons, a fantastic patisserie (pastry place) located at 26 rue Lepic in the 18th arrondissement. All their tarts - either sweet or quiche like - are fresh of the day, and made on site. Don't miss it if you happen to be in the Abesses area, near Montmatre.

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Valuable load


It's not very usual to see that a colorful péniche (flat boat) on the Seine. So when I saw this one from the Pont des Arts, I was first intrigued, then my camera "forced me to point and shoot"!  When blowing up the photo, I saw that this boat was actually carrying "valuable goods", which is code for recycling papers and cardboard. Hence the flashy colors and especially the green... The bottom line is that it makes a cool photo - you will all have recognized the Pont neuf and the Ile de de la Cité in the background, of course...

Friday, October 12, 2012

The electric man


Do you know who invented the DC dynamo?! Now you do, it's this man whose name is Zénobe Gramme. He was born in Belgium then moved to Paris where he worked in several workshops (he was originally a joiner!) and ended up inventing the dynamo which is still what we use today to produce electricity. I photographed this statue in front of le musée des arts et métiers, a Paris museum that I love. The difficult part was to find an angle that was not too boring... I picked this one, even though I could have done with more front light.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Coup de boule !


In France, like in many latin countries, football (soccer for Americans) is very important. We're not too good these days, but we still remember the world final of 1998 when we became champions thanks to the talent of Zinedine Zidane is a very gifted French soccer/football player from Marseille. Gifted, but also agressive... In 2006, during another final, he headbutt an Italian player called Materazzi and  triggered one of the most commented sport events of the decade (I know it's silly!). This has remained in everybody's memory so bad that since the end of September 2012, there is even a monument to commemorate this infamous episode in front of the Beaubourg Center; it's called Le coup de tête (headbutt) and it was made by Adel Abdessemed and Algerian conceptual artist who lives and works in Paris;

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

The new Folies Bergère


The Folies Bergère theater is one of the oldest and mythical music halls in Paris. It opened in 1869 and was one of the first theaters to show nude women and to offer costumed numbers which apparently was previously banned by the law at that time. A lot of Paris art history took place there: Josephine Baker had a review in the 30's so did Maurice Chevalier, Mistingett, etc. Maupassant mentioned it in Bel Ami, Manet painted one of the most famous impressionist photos there (Le Bar des Folies Bergère)... to name a few. I was going to forget why I took a photo of it today... Simply because they just redid the facade during the summer (it was about time!) and it really looks neat now!

Tuesday, October 09, 2012

Pont de Bercy


There are two bridges that allow the metro to cross the Seine in Paris: the Pont de Bir Hakeim, not too far from the Eiffel Tower and the Pont de Bercy on the Eastern part of Paris, near the Ministry of Finance. It's a beautiful bridge that was transformed many times throughout history (the first version originates from 1832!) including a first widening in 1904 to support the metro line 6 and a second one   between 1989 and 1992 to add additional traffic lanes. Now it's also a bike lane, as you can obviously see it! 

Monday, October 08, 2012

Meet Huan Ly!


I very rarely post animal photos on ParisDailyPhoto, but for once I'll make an exception... Why? Because I came across Huan Ly today, an adorable 3 month old Shar Pei (which means "sand skin" in Chinese) at Bercy, an open air shopping mall located on the Eastern part of Paris. She was an absolute star of course! Having a dog in Paris is not that easy though; you have to walk him every day, if he is too big you must buy a metro or bus ticket for him... and, more and more (and despite a common belief!) pick up after him. There are a lot of resources on the Web though, including Chiens en Ville, Paris à quatre pattes and even a list of dog friendly gardens

Sunday, October 07, 2012

Rain!


It's been raining since the beginning of the afternoon here and, well, I did not really feel like going out (although I have to at the time of posting this photo, to go to a dinner party!) so here is a shot I took during a previous rainy day in Paris (there has been many lately...). I actually think this photo is kinda of funny, more than realy illustrative of the bad weather conditions ;-) I wish you a dry and sunny Sunday everyone (which probably means you live in the Southern hemisphere!)

Saturday, October 06, 2012

La Pérouse !


Jean François de Galaup, aka comte de La Pérouse is a famous French Navy officer that lead several expeditions around the world and took part in the American independance war around 1780 (read more about his captivating life here, if you interested). I found his bust on the river banks, not far from the Eiffel Tower. That's all for the week ;-) Have a good weekend everyone!

Friday, October 05, 2012

Marché Montorgueil


I was early to a dinner party yesterday evening, so I took advantage of my spare time to wander in the rue Montorgueil, a street that was named after a little hill to which it would lead to, called "Le mont orgueilleux" ("the vain hill"). It gave its name to the whole area "we call it "le quartier Montorgueil" which is now a famous pedestrian area where you can find  many trendy cafés and restaurants, open late at night. A definite must see if you come to Paris. They even have a dedicated website (in French only...).

Thursday, October 04, 2012

Paris through Hollywood's lense


What do "The Three Musketeers", "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", "the Aristocats" or "Da Vinci Code" have in common? They all take place or feature Paris! Apparently there are about 800 American films that have Paris for scenery and the Paris town hall is currently honoring them in an exhibition that can be visited until December 15. A great idea! Find out more here (in French only!) or here where 5 main films are commented by Antoine de Baecque, the exhibition curator

Wednesday, October 03, 2012

Liberty watching over Paris


I'll never get tired of it! "It" is the Paris statue of Liberty, the one that was given to the Americans by the French, as a gift in 1885. I know you heard the story many times, but some still don't know it: sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi (and Gustave Eiffel for the metal structure) started its construction in 1875, completed it in 1884 and shipped it to the States (in 350 pieces!) in 1885. And on July 4, 1889 the American community in Paris offered the French a bronze replica of the Statue (1/4 scale, about 35 feet high) which is the one in this photo! This dramatic sky, though, did not come with the statue ;-) it was the one I saw yesterday around 5 o'clock.  

Tuesday, October 02, 2012

Fashion week, Paris


I'm not big on fashion; not that I don't look up to the talent of designers, but I'm just very foreign to this world. And though today, thanks to Ingrid Chua (aka "the bag hag"! that I met through PDP), I got to pay a visit to the showrooms of a few British designers. A fantastic moment. I took many photos of course (which you can see on the ParisDailyPhoto Youtube channel), including this one at Mary Katrantzou's showroom. One of the models was in a playing mood, so I played!

Monday, October 01, 2012

Silhouette


October 1st, time for a theme day! This month's theme is "Silhouette", which can mean several things. I chose to show you the silhouette of Céline Holynski a comedian that I photographed recently for another blog that I'm going to release soon (eh eh!)? I took her in the theater she performs at, every Sunday so it was easy to play with the lights. See what other City Daily Photo bloggers have come up with (while our portal is down you have to visit our Facebook group).