Heidi Ellison
Giotto e Compagni
On the Road to The Renaissance Saint Francis preaching to the birds, from the predella of “The Stigmatization of Saint Francis of Assisi” (c. 1295-1300). © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée du Louvre)/Michel Urtado The Louvre has gathered together its holdings of … Read More
Félix Vallotton: Le Feu sous la Glace
Smooth Surfaces, Seething Undercurrents “Femme Nue Assise dans un Fauteuil Rouge” (1897), by Félix Vallotton. © Rmn-Grand Palais/Jacques L’Hoir/Jean Popovitch How refreshing it is to discover an artist whose work you haven’t already seen over and over, especially when it … Read More
Paris 1900: La Ville Spectacle
The Invention of Gay Paree “Marcelle Lender Dansant le Boléro dans Chilpéric” (1895-96), by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. © Bridgeman Giraudon If Paris were to be summed up in the popular imagination in one period of time, it might well be … Read More
Paris Metrotrash
One Parisian’s Trash… “Paris Metrotrash: Naureen,” by Darren Palmer. Ever since a terrorist placed a bomb in a gas cylinder in a public trash bin, Paris has used transparent plastic bags attached to a simple frame – the better to … Read More
L’Impressionnisme et la Mode
Dressing to Kill for the Impressionists Renoir’s ”Jeune Femme à la Voilette” (1870). © Musée d’Orsay. RMN/Patrice Schmidt The title of the exhibition “Impressionism and Fashion” at the Musée d’Orsay may be off-putting to those who have little or no … Read More
L’Ordre du Chaos
The Method in Soutine’s Expressionist Madness Soutine’s “Le Village” (1923). © ADAGP, Paris 2012 © RMN (Musée de l’Orangerie)/Hervé Lewandowski Some of the paintings by Chaïm Soutine (1893-1943) on show at Paris’s Musée de l’Orangerie look as if they were … Read More
Raphaël: les Dernières Années
Who’s Who in Raphael’s Sphere ”The Madonna of the Rose” (c. 1516), attributed to Raphael. Read a thorough analysis of this painting here. © Museo nacional del Prado, Madrid In his short 20-year career, Raphael (1483-1520) managed to produce a … Read More
L’Art d’Aimer au Moyen Âge: Le Roman de la Rose
For the Love of a Rose:A Medieval Best Seller Surrounded by cavorting rabbits, a young couple embraces in this 14th-century version of the Roman de la Rose. BNF, dept. of Manuscripts The Roman de la Rose is probably not high … Read More
Simon Hantaï & Roy Lichtenstein
Shared Detachment inSeparate but Parallel Careers Lichtenstein’s “M-Maybe” (1965). © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein New York/ADAGP, Paris, 2013 The two major exhibitions currently showing at the Centre Pompidou are worth seeing together for the interesting comparison they provide between the … Read More
A Liminal Square: Portraits from Kiev
Paris Update Art Notes ON THE FRONTLINES IN KIEV From the exhibition “A Liminal Square.” Photo © Tatiana Grigorenko Paris-based American photographer Tatiana Grigorenko, whose family has roots in both Russia and Ukraine, found herself in Ukraine just after the … Read More