This is an interesting picture & I love the DS. However, I am always a bit surprised when I see pictures of Paris. I have lived in London & England for ten years now; I go to Paris quite often. I can assure you Paris has changed far more than London in this period: at least one fantastic world-class museum has opened, the Quai Branly, two underground lines have opened (RER E and metro 14). The vitality of the creative sector is ways above par: Colette is probably the most fashionable store on earth, creating trends rather than following them, there are now more first-rate places dedicated to contemporary art in Paris than in any other major city (the 104, the Palais de Tokyo, the Plateau); there are two major art fairs (FIAC which is now at the forefront of modern, contemporary & actual art; plus Art Paris which offers a great new take on the art fair concept)... In fashion, Balenciaga, Balmain, Lanvin, Chloe, Louis Vuitton, Dior or Dior Homes are today's hot names & a host of smaller houses are extremely creative too.
The list goes on: I don't know any European city which has modernised itself more than Paris in the past ten years.
I think it is high time we update our vision of Paris, which is, in many case, a wee bit outdated!
Apologies for ranting: I really like this post. Where did you take this pic, btw?
He however fails to mention that Paris is also one of the most historical cities in the world with a great, great past, incredibly rich in culture, and more often than not associated with romantic references... which is what i believe you meant to convey with this photo? Am i wrong? Anyway, i love it, quite charming! :)
Davidikus, I definitely see your point. As someone who has only been to Paris once many many years ago, I am not following its modernization so closely. Thanks for telling me about it, though- fascinating! Seems so rapid. Not necessarily a good or bad thing- both seem romantic to me still, albeit in different ways. I am not sure where in Paris this photograph was taken even. What I have is this romanticized idea of the city that somehow seems compounded by the emotional quality of this photo, and that's all I have to speculate on. Please, no worries at all about the rant- I love reading your comments, and I believe in discourse always.
Helene, you got it! All photographs that appear here share an underlying intention that is fundamentally emotional. This one is no exception, and I definitely appreciate the beauty, history, and nostalgia here.
Sorry about the rant! I definitely see your point about there remaining historical monuments & reference points. It's more the DS that surprised me, I have not seen any in Paris in the past 20-25 years!
5 comments:
This is an interesting picture & I love the DS. However, I am always a bit surprised when I see pictures of Paris. I have lived in London & England for ten years now; I go to Paris quite often. I can assure you Paris has changed far more than London in this period: at least one fantastic world-class museum has opened, the Quai Branly, two underground lines have opened (RER E and metro 14). The vitality of the creative sector is ways above par: Colette is probably the most fashionable store on earth, creating trends rather than following them, there are now more first-rate places dedicated to contemporary art in Paris than in any other major city (the 104, the Palais de Tokyo, the Plateau); there are two major art fairs (FIAC which is now at the forefront of modern, contemporary & actual art; plus Art Paris which offers a great new take on the art fair concept)... In fashion, Balenciaga, Balmain, Lanvin, Chloe, Louis Vuitton, Dior or Dior Homes are today's hot names & a host of smaller houses are extremely creative too.
The list goes on: I don't know any European city which has modernised itself more than Paris in the past ten years.
I think it is high time we update our vision of Paris, which is, in many case, a wee bit outdated!
Apologies for ranting: I really like this post. Where did you take this pic, btw?
http://davidikus.blogspot.com/
Lol to the previous commenter's rant!
He however fails to mention that Paris is also one of the most historical cities in the world with a great, great past, incredibly rich in culture, and more often than not associated with romantic references... which is what i believe you meant to convey with this photo? Am i wrong? Anyway, i love it, quite charming! :)
Davidikus, I definitely see your point. As someone who has only been to Paris once many many years ago, I am not following its modernization so closely. Thanks for telling me about it, though- fascinating! Seems so rapid. Not necessarily a good or bad thing- both seem romantic to me still, albeit in different ways. I am not sure where in Paris this photograph was taken even. What I have is this romanticized idea of the city that somehow seems compounded by the emotional quality of this photo, and that's all I have to speculate on. Please, no worries at all about the rant- I love reading your comments, and I believe in discourse always.
Helene, you got it! All photographs that appear here share an underlying intention that is fundamentally emotional. This one is no exception, and I definitely appreciate the beauty, history, and nostalgia here.
I agree with Helene . . . Paris is full of romantic reference points and I see nothing wrong with that . . . even if it has modernized itself.
Sorry about the rant! I definitely see your point about there remaining historical monuments & reference points. It's more the DS that surprised me, I have not seen any in Paris in the past 20-25 years!
I promise I'll rant less in the future.
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