THINGS TO SEE AND DO THIS FALL

New York in the fall:  so MUCH to see and do. Here are just a few of the places and events where you will find me:

First, on Wednesday, September 30 is the IFDA: "Desgin Dialogue: Global Trends for Tomorrow, Today". THIS I am looking forward to! The speakers are Hermine Mariaux and Patricia Bouley. For those of you not familiar with these two, take a look at the link for IFDA. They will, among other things, be presenting their finding from Maison et Objet, which, of course, I will find very interesting... I will report to you next week.

1. Met Home Showhouse:  This is open through October 18, but unfortunately only on weekends. This year it showcases 14 designers and should provide lots of food for thought...

2. Museum of Art and Design:  "Slash: Paper Under the Knife" which opens October 7th, 2009. This exhibit "takes the pulse of the international art world's renewed interest in paper as a creative medium

and source of artistic inspiration,....."  

About a year ago I had been to MAD just after it opened and reported this in a post in an earlier, now defunct, blog:

A Visit to MADl

I went recently into New York to see the new Museum of Arts and Design at 2 Columbus Circle. What an experience! It is truly wonderful and a must see for anyone involved in the visual arts. The current exhibit: Second Lives: Remixing the Ordinary is fascinating. The vinyl records, the plastic forks, the ancient Chinese water vessels, the fine china from German factories, the spools of thread: all these items, and many more, have found a second life. 

The second exhibit: Elegant Armor: The Art of Jewelry is equally wonderful (especially for those of us addicted to all forms of jewelry!). And, be aware that you are allowed to open all the drawers under the glass cases!  Sas

3. Guggenheim Museum: Kandinsky, on view until January, 2010.

4. MOMA:  The one I want to see is Monet's "Water Lillies".  Through April 2010.

5. DIA BEACON:  The ongoing exhibit "Imi Knoebel: 24 Colors-for Blinky, 1977" is a must see. And anyway, this place is just beautiful: on a fall day, along the Hudson River, it is stunning.

6. State University of New York at New Paltz:  Yes, here is a surprise! Rave reviews of the museum and ALL the exhibits celebrating the Hudson River and it's history.  Take the train, the bus, or drive up here: this is one you will NOT want to miss.

DETAILS OF PLACE: PARIS APARTMENT CONTINUED

This is a typical courtyard in Paris.

You walk by door after
door, big, heavy doors, blue or green or red or stained and have no idea what
is behind them. Sometimes, and this occurs more often than one would expect,
the doors are open and there is construction going on either in the main
courtyard, or an apartment inside. The amount of construction all over the city
was amazing…. I just read that apartment prices in Paris are down about 8% for
this year, making it, maybe… the time to buy. Well, someone certainly is doing
that!

I showed you our courtyard in an earlier post.  The amazing
thing is, with so many apartments all opening on this enclosed space, it is SO
quiet! 

And THIS is the renovation that took place in our apartment about three years ago. Adrian Leeds, who owns it, did a REALLY FABULOUS JOB!  

(Thanks to Adrian Leeds for many of these pictures)

While staying in the apartment a funny, quirky thing happened: I asked Adrian if she had ever heard this, but no, it was news to her.....  READ ON!:

Twice, in the
evenings, we heard loud rap music coming from somewhere in the courtyard … couldn’t place
just where. Well…… within 10 minutes, both times, a whistle….yes, an old gym
type whistle, was blown and all was silent!  We were, well, flabbergasted. That’s the best word for sure.
Who blows it? And these people “obey”???? 
In New York the music would probably be turned up even louder!  A different culture? Did the building
have a meeting and this was decided upon? Who knows!

A final view of the courtyard:

CAFE DETAIL AT CHARLES DE GAULLE AIRPORT

I was at the American Airlines Terminal at De Gaulle Airport, waiting for my flight to come home. It was morning, and I am a big tea drinker, so I ordered some Assam tea and three small pastries. I think it was about 4 euros, or $6.00. THIS is what you get:

Now, how CIVILIZED is that? Not your usual paper/styrofoam; no, not in France, not even at the airport!

What a nice send off!

MAISON ET OBJET: DESIGN ELEMENTS

You are probably asking: aside from color, what else did I see at Maison? 

STRIPES and more stripes and more stripes. This was the predominant surface "design"! 

Limoges had a really nice collection of dinnerware pieces: stripes of varying widths in (surprise, surprise!) plum, with two greens, chocolate and a bit of orange. It was wonderful.

Linum Textiles had stripes, either vertical or in "patchwork" squares. Plum, grayed blues, grayed greens, mushroom.

Here, as they say: "The napkin, not the Scottie!":

Artiga, Roche, Tissage de Luz, Bayadere: all had stripes with variations of plum and gray and soft green.

And these from shops around Paris:

Also noteworthy:

A traditional style sofa covered in a gorgeous deep indigo silk with teeny "jewels" scattered around to look like constellations! Really outstanding.

A lamp that was a HUGE blowup of the traditional clip on style we all have at our art tables. But this had a base that was maybe two feet in diameter, likewise the enourmous shade. The light was at least ten feet high. Came in bright, stunning colors of grass green, brilliant red, or taxi yellow.

Mirrors: now these don't usually grab my attention, but here they were SO oversized and so striking I couldn't help but be amazed. The frames, of brushed nickel or gold or copper were enourmous, amorphous "frames". These mirrors would need high ceilings and a large room indeed, but they were stunning.

Another wonderful, large exhibit was that of designer Kenneth Cobonpue of Hive

"There are 350 pieces of natural rattan poles sitting on top of a cushion, and those poles just sink softly when you sit on them. It’s comfortable. ". (from their website) It's very comfortable; almost squishy: they let me try it!
All his furniture is made from natural fibers and products. Very innovative and certainly eye-catching.

Finally, at the entrance to Building Three, was the Nelly Rodi "ArtyTube", a contemporary "tube" showing the work of various "Ateliers des Arts de France": or "Art Workshops of France", showing craftsmen, artists and manufacturers of France. The themes here were Vibrant Desert, Dolce Vita Blues, Mixed Cocktail and Tribal Song.(Once again, too bad: no pictures allowed) There was jewelry, ceramics, prints, wood carvings, wovens, lighting: all handmade in France. Lots to think about and begin to incorporate into our design thinking.

MAISON ET OBJET: COLOR

I've been gathering both my thoughts and reference to report on some of what I saw at the show. It is huge! Five buildings: Ethnic Chic, Textiles, Tableware, Interior Decoration, and Home Accessories. 

What colors did I see? Well, a little bit of everything, of
course….At any trade show you are going to see “something for everyone”; but
the trick is to sort out what is new or trendy or traditional or cute or…old.
What I DID see here that was NEW was the color PLUM.....or mauve or amethyst or fig:

Yes, this color in combination with an eco green, both light
and dark, a pinkish beige or chocolate was the newest, trendiest color
combination.

Take a look below:

            The
Emile Henry booth had a really wonderful display of these colors. I talked to
one sales person who named the “figue”, or fig, as their most popular, new
color.

            And
in textiles for both kitchen, bath and fabric I again saw this almost mauve
color. Here it would be combined with grayed blues and again, a neutral beige
or tan.

Plum
= 18-1718 or 5195       Green = 399     Tan = 16-1324

That picture at the bottom left is a gift/home furnishings boutique near the Place des Vosges, also highlighting the plum and green. 

A related color story, and one I also noted all over, was a brown. Here I would choose a Pantone 19-1217. The most prominent display of this was the Mercedes booth (well, it was hardly a "booth" as it extended halfway down an aisle!)  One luxurious car front and center. I asked the name of the color and was told "Cuprite Brown". 

Now, I had certainly never heard of this before. I thought maybe the French accent had thrown me? No, there IS such a color. "Cuprite Brown" is a "reddish-brown, brittle, translucent oxide mineral"....So, Mercedes says the color has been selling well, and, as you can see, also has add ons to purchase..

  And then, for something fun, here are some very colorful textiles from Italy:

  

  

                  If you're interested in attending, this could not have been easier to do: the website is at  Maison et Objet.   The next show is January 22-26, 2010.                

APARTMENT IN PARIS

It's called Le Provencal and yes, it looks it! Bright, sunny colors: all shades of yellow, reds, burnt orange, green make for the most cheerful space. Here is the entrance:

First, the door to the street:

And here's the locked gate/entrance to the courtyard:

The courtyard: we are on the third floor:

And this, courtesy of Adrian Leeds:

Here are some shots of the interior: (again, courtesy of Adrian Leeds)

Look at this wonderful mosaic work! She has it in the kitchen, the bathroom, and the small table in the main room. It's very effective in both holding the colors together and in conveying the wonderful sense of Provence.

The shower:

Table detail:

And, here is the dinner we had the first night in Le Provencal!

PENCILS TO REMEMBER!

It's the little things, remember? The details, no matter how small: these are the elements of design that are so important to all of us visual people.
Thus, I give you, these, from the Musee des Arts Decoratifs:

I bought a handful of these pencils, and a few pens....They also happen to have nice, soft leads, and yes, the erasers really work!

LANGUAGE CLASS IN PARIS

One of the things I have wanted to do for several years is
attend a language session of ParlerParis. As many of you know, I am always,
always trying to improve my French! I love the language, started learning it in
school at age 10, took it through one year of college, and then dropped it
completely!

About 8 years ago I started up again. I took one course at
our high school, which led to meeting my local “Franco-American” group, then to
meeting my friend Lisa from Toulouse (who is married to an American), to being
invited to “join” an even smaller group of French speakers who meet monthly for
lunch, to befriending another French couple who were here for just two years,
to studying with a tutor for 3 years, to traveling to France (almost) every
year, to my present state of dedicated Francophile! 

At the start of this journey I somehow came upon the
website: www.parlerparis.com.

You will see their language group under “parler parlor”, and
the once a month networking group under “après-midi”. So yes, I went to one
language group while there and just loved it! You speak French for 45 minutes,
then English for 45 (there are native French speakers who want to learn
English..). Of course, everyone else either lives in Paris, full or part time, or is there for an
extended time. Someday, someday that will be me too!

Here I am, both in “class”, and with Adrian Leeds, the
founder of the group:

 

Then, there is the "après-midi" group:  a casual get together and a very
nice “service” to those ex-pats living in Paris.

It really showed me, in talking to several  people there, the many ways one can make it
work i.e. spending more time in Paris!

Yes, this is me:

If anyone would like more information about this group, or want to ask me questions, please feel free to contact me. I would be more than happy to discuss.. I would say, that to participate in the parler parlor "classes" one should be at an intermediate or above level in the language; you just do get more out of it that way.

THE COLLECTION SHOP

I came across the most charming and exquisite shop today, called The Collection.

It's in the Marais, on rue de Poitou. In the windows were hand painted wallpapers: just two rolls, the ones in the middle of the collage below. Textured, hand painted backgrounds, then the little birds were appliqued on, with fabric and then some little twigs. I know, it doesn't come through very well here, but take a look at their website and then go to wallpaper. Even the city scenes at the bottom of my collage had various appliqued pieces to give the most wonderful textured effect. They were really unusual and fun! You can buy on line. The owner, Allison Grant, doesn't sell directly in the U.S. (yet) but did exhibit at Maison et Objet last week.
The lights you see hanging were sort of skeleton frames, made of velour!.And the tree in the picture is, of course, a textured collage.

And here, to whet your appetite, is what we had at a small creperie on the rue du Vielle Temple:

This is a "Dame Poire": compote of pear, figs, vanilla ice cream with caramel butter sauce.

Needless to say, it didn't last long on the plate!

MUSEE CARNAVALET

I had heard about the Musee Carnavalet many times, everyone saying it is one of the gems of this city. So, today we went over toward the 3rd Arrondisement, to the rue de Sevigne (sorry, can't get those accents to come up here..) and oh, what a total joy! First saw the gardens of the Musee Cognacq-Jay: just gorgeous

.

Then, just down the street was a small park:

Then the Carnavalet. This is the "museum of the history of Paris", from Roman days through the twentieth century. It's huge (but no, nothing like the size of the Louvre) but do-able. I concentrated on the seventeenth century, as Mme. de Sevigne fascinates me. But I highly recommend a visit here. The courtyard is quiet and peaceful; the inside a lesson in history. Both are worthwhile!

All of these places can be also be seen in the book, "Quiet Corner of Paris" which you can order on the Amazon site to the left here.

SHOPPING IN PARIS

This post was actually written last September, when I was in Paris. I'm posting it again as part of The French Obsession Party!

What a subject: shopping in Paris! uh duh, you might say! Well, there is shopping, and then there is shopping.... We went this morning to the BHV store. If you've never been here, you MUST go when in Paris! Anything and everything for your home, for you, for your table, your windows, your desk, your walls, your bathroom, your art table... What else? well, probably anything you can name. I LOVE it. I could wander these floors for hours; I am only hampered by the poor souls with me (in this case, my daughter who finally said, ok Mom, ENOUGH!) So off we went for a lunch of rose wine and crepes.

Anyway, one of the DETAILS I came away with was their very clever little wheeling cart! Here is the back of me with the cart:

Now, this cart wheels very easily and goes up and down the escalator with no problem, and, of course, holds any of your previous purchases, or a coat, or whatever. Why, oh why can't Bloomies have such a thing??

Here are some more colorful images from BHV also: love these spools on the "mannequin":

And, another favorite of mine: these wonderful, handy rolling carryall bags. I see them whenever I'm here and am envious! How cool to walk the show in Atlanta with one of these!

And now, to finish off the evening, here are the pastries we bought at the local patisserie this afternoon on our way back to the apartment for an hour's break: these, with a box of raspberries and another box of figs, made the most wonderful afternoon "snack":

PRESENTATION

Presentation is all, right? I mean, lots of time, money and know-how go into exactly HOW to present a product, service, place, person, or brand. Today I saw an example of just how sophisticated a presentation can be: this is the front of a restaurant in Paris. It will remain nameless for now; maybe you know it and have walked by?
 

 

It was stunning in its simplicity. Beautiful smooth white cement walk and stairs, same for the building facade. The grass you see here was so manicured I wonder if each and every blade was individually cut...then, indented in this gorgeous grass were cut out squares containing either twelve red apples or twelve green ones. Then, the espaliered crab apples.
While I was hanging out here, taking pictures, several other people also stopped by and, in various languages, talked about the "presentation" with an "Oh, look at that", or "Have you ever seen anything like that?".
Now, this is an old, established... and very, very, very expensive restaurant. We simply could not believe the prices: most entrees were about 100 euros (this is almost $150), meaning that a meal can easily be $500 per person. No, we did NOT make a reservation! 

To finish up tonight, I have an old, favorite treat: another view of the Seine! Enjoy...