In bed with Charles Pigeon...

Let me start my "retrospective" with a little quiz... Where did I take this photo? In a museum, in an art exhibit... (I already posted once about it, so if you're a long time PDP follower you may have guessed). I remember well when I took this shot for at that time I used to work in the 14th arrondissement of Paris and used to go through Montparnasse everyday. For, yes, this incredible sculpture is located on the top of a tomb at the Montparnasse cemetery! Click here, it will take you to my original post in which you'll have a broader view and a more informative caption.

Car Swap!

I pass by these cars almost every day and I've never taken the time to photograph them. It's not the result of an accident, but a unique sculpture (I was unable to find the name of the artist anywhere though). It's on display right at the entrance of an insurance company (Allianz) which aims to raise awareness of safe driving. I love it!

Roarrrrrrrrrrrr!

Yes, another sunset (it's been sunset week!). This one from the Tuileries gardens. The lion was made by Giuseppe Franchi.

Up a tree!

If you're on social networks, you probably have seen this already. This? Is an inflatable piece of art by Paul McCarthy, an American artist (from Salt Lake City) known for his provocative installations (check this article). Therefore, what on earth could this giant green mushroom that grew over night on the Place Vendôme really be? Various propositions circulated these past days - including, of course, a giant sex toy - but the reality is much less daring... This is simply a Christmas tree! 

Weird monument!

In the very chic Avenue Foch - once the most expensive street in Paris - I found this weird monument. A sculpture made by Aime Jules Dalou, dedicated to Jean-Charles Alphand, a French Engineer who took part in the renovation of Paris under the direction of Baron Haussmann between 1852 and 1870. It was inaugurated in 1899 (December) and shows Alphand (in the middle on the pedestal) and his coworkers Edmond Huet, Joseph Bouvard et le peintre Alfred Roll. Pretty odd!

Victory and willpower!

I already said it several times here, I love it that in Paris you can casually come across beautiful pieces of art in many streets. Hence these two sculptures by Emile-Antoine Bourdelle that I found at rue de Lille, near the back entrance of Le Musée d'Orsay. The first one is called La Victoire (the Victory) and the second one La force de la volonté (the strength of willpower). Quick photography remark; I always find it hard to shoot statues, because they always seem to absorb the light. These ones were even harder, as they would blend in the background!   

Hope!

Look what I found in a little garden in the 15th arrondissement! A statue called "hope". I thought that, providing all what's happening in this world at the moment, it was pretty appropriate! It was made by French sculptor Carlo Sarrabezolles (I never knew of him before, but he seems to be better known for sculpting concrete than metal). We have a saying in French that goes: "Where there is life, there is hope" (tant qu'il y a de la vie, il y a de l'espoir), so I guess, there is still plenty of hope...

Famous Pegasus!

I took this photo last evening from the rooftop of Les Galeries Lafayette (yes I went back!) and I really love it. The statue on the right shows Pegasus, but if you were to see it from the other side (facing the Opera Garnier) you would also see Pheme (Renommée in French), a greek divinity symbolizing fame. Its one of the two sculptures that you can see on both sides of the Garnier opera house. It was made by Eugène-Louis Lequesne

Hi chair!

Have a close look at this mini Eiffel Tower. It looks like the real one, doesn't it? Well... providing it's location (on the river banks in front of the Musée d'Orsay Palais de Justice) you guessed it's a replica ;-) But the most interesting part in the replica is that it's entirely made of... bistro chairs! The ones made by French Manufacturer Fermob who's celebrating its 125th anniversary (FYI, this exact same sculpture was on display in front of the real Eiffel tower a few weeks ago).

Holy cow!

In one of the most beautiful covered passages of Paris, the Galerie Vivienne (not to mention the one where I live of course, the Passage Verdeau, which to me is the most beautiful one LOL!), I found the store of Emilio Robba, a florist that specializes in "permanent botanicals and landscaping environments.". You may dislike the idea of "fake flowers and plants", but not after you've seen the ones of Emilio's! He even uses them to make beautiful scupltures, like this one of a cow that I could not hep but take a photo of. A must visit place, for sure.

Another Maillot shot!

Do you remember this photo that I took last winter? Well, here is a close up, that I took a few days ago. It's probably my favorite Maillol Statue in the Louvre gardens. It's called La nuit (the night), it was made in 1909 and it's really breath taking (especially at sunset).

La Lady du Louvre

In the Louvre Gardens, where I passed by yesterday evening, there are several sculptures by Maillol. All of them are absolutely superb - I showed several ones on this blog, but never this one (whose name I forgot to note...). This garden is perfect for a picnic BTW: no cars, beautiful sculptures everywhere and comfy grass!

Cleaning the Gare Saint Lazare's clocks!

You may remember this piece of art by Arman called "L'heure de tous" that has been in front of the Gare Saint Lazare since 1985. I already photographed it in 2008, but at that time I had to make a close up for it was really dirty and full of pigeon droppings! Recently it was totally cleaned and it's really much nicer.

Trapped in the city

In front of Le Musée d'Orsay, there are 3 magnificent animal sculptures. I already showed you one of them once (a horse if I recall), which used to be on my way to school when I was a little boy. I used to climb on it, for I thought it was just a game for kids!). Now that there are in front of the Musée, I know that they are real pieces of art! Like this stunning "trapped Elephant" made by Emmanuel Fremiet, a French sculptor who was obviously very gifted.

The progress of Les Halles

Do you remember this post from November 2012? At that time Les Halles (the area that used to be the central market of Paris from  1135 till the early 70's, when they transferred it to Rungis, in the suburbs) was totally destroyed as they were working on its complete renovation. Even this big head - called L'Ecoute, by Henri de Miller - was barely visible. Well I went back there a couple of days ago and it has changed a great deal already, you can even walk around the head like before... Pretty soon the cranes will be gone too...

Les enfants du monde...

In the Parc de Bercy in the 12th arrondissement, you can see a bunch of sculptures representing the "children of the world". They were made by Rachid Khimoune and they show children from 21 countries. A bit stereotypical of course (Mexicans have large hats Asians pointy ones...), but really cool to see. And this park is great too - I already posted several times about it. 

Thinking of the future...

I wanted to start this new week with a photo I love. I took it at the Institut Hongrois (the Hugarian institute) at rue Bonaparte where they have, just outside their door, one of the most captivating sculpture: a barefoot woman sitting on a bench. It was made by Hungarian artist Lapis Andras, it's called "Kalap alatt" (under the hat) and it's a replica of an original one that was first made in 1975 and can be seen in the city of Szeged. Those of you who have been following PDP for a very long time may remember the first shot I made of this statue. I did not know the lady who was sitting next to it, but she was kind enough to come to the PDP picnic afterwards!

A bust not to bust out of the river banks!

Nice bust isn't it? I found it on the quai - the left river bank - not far from the Eiffel Tower. To be honest I did not know who this man was until I read the plaque underneath the bust; he's Habib Bourguiba, the founder and the first President of the Republic of Tunisia until November 1987 (before him Tunisia was a former French colony. The bust was made by Turkish sculptor Macunluoglu

Walking towards freedom...

I'm not sure if I've already shown you this monument (it's one dedicated to Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz that was sculpted by Antoine Bourdelle and given to France by Poland after WWI). Regardless, the real reason why I chose to post this photo today is, of course, because of the light. In Paris, it's located along the Cours Albert 1er, along the river bank.

Weird encounter

Here is a photo I took under one of the arches of the Cours du Louvre, but I know nothing about this weird encounter! I looked everywhere on the web and could not find a thing! Maybe it's to promote le Au galop parcours, a horse centric journey into the Louvre museum, but I doubt it. Or maybe is it just a prank!