It all started because the town of Orléans on the Loire river (116 000 inhabitants) is one of the two only places in France (with Rouen) to own a painting by Spanish painter Diego Velazquez. The Musée des Beaux Arts is one of the richest in France due to large donations in the 19 th century, and it is well … Read More
The Michel Périnet sale, an event at Christie’s
The catalog itself is a piece of art and the estimates of 1-2 million € modest apparently for some of the pieces from the Michel Périnet collection of African and Oceanian art, sold at Christie’s Paris by François de Ricqlès on June 23. Well known for his expertise as an auctioneer, Ricqlès was President of Christie’s France from 2010 to … Read More
Drawing now Alternative, a fair always full of good surprises
Drawing Now has always been one of my favorite fairs in Paris ever since it was at the Carrousel du Louvre and then at Carreau du Temple and I discovered many young artists thanks to it. This year, it was smaller because of health restrictions and called Alternative, yet very charming with two major galleries, Anne de Villepoix and Lelong … Read More
Magic is in the decor! with Benita Kusel.
Benita Kusel is a painter of decors… She does marble, wood, slate, but mostly frescos on paper with shells, flowers, vegetable and can paint on anything including radiators to hide or ugly chests. For a wedding in Belgium, she painted silk vests, tablecloths in Italy, for a country house she devises a decor of deers and willow trees and with … Read More
Prix Bob Calle for Livre d’artiste is celebrated at Beaux Arts de Paris and at Centre Pompidou
Bob Calle would be happy today. Six years after he left us on April 6, 2015, this oncologist turned art lover and creator of the Carré d’Art in Nîmes, is celebrated through a third Prize for Artists’ books conceived with and organised by his widow Laurence Dumaine Calle. The selecting committee, made of 15 experts who come from all over Europe, … Read More
El Anatsui, a good reason to visit the Conciergerie
The majestic XIV th century fireplaces of la Conciergerie, the prison where Marie Antoinette was kept prisoner during the Revolution, could not have been better adapted to show El Anatsui‘s metallic sculptures. The Ghanean artist who is present in all contemporary art fairs, uses discarded bottle tops and aluminum objects to create vast shiny curtains. I have always been fascinated … Read More
Hyacinthe Rigaud in Versailles, don’t miss it!
This is probably the most gorgeous exhibition of the moment: it has been “unopened” for four months and closes on June 13. So if you have time to go to Versailles, do not miss this show of 150 portraits (mostly men) by Louis XIV th’ painter Hyacinthe Rigaud (1659-1743). With a set designed by Pier Luigi Pizzi, it is the first retrospective … Read More
Leonardo Drew is strong at Galerie Lelong
At 60, Leonardo Drew is now very famous in America but I had never seen any of his works and it was quite mesmerizing to discover, on a rainy morning, his wood sculptures at Galerie Lelong (until July 13). The power which emanates from his pieces is fantastic. Born in Tallahassee, Florida, and raised in the projects in Bridgeport, Ct, with … Read More