Modern Paris Tour - Art Scenes

Modern

PARIS

The modern movement in Paris came up as a criticism to the extravagant life of the bourgeoisie and got fueled by the innovations of the industrial era; bringing minimalism, the avant-gardes and modern architecture to life — and for a day you can pretend to be the key “Parisian” in the creation of this new style, the Swiss architect Pierre Jeanneret also known as Le Courbusier.

Time period: 1900s

Movie or book: Ménilmontant (1926)/The Modulor by Le Courbusier

Soundtrack: Pierre Boulez/Paradis’ music

Fashion: color blocking, sailor sweater plus statement sunglasses

Budget:

John W Boughton: Outline map of Paris; Paris 1900

Commissioned by L’Algerie, American Express and Chemin de Fer du Nord : Plan Officiel - Exposition Internationale Des Arts et Des Techniques PARIS 1937

This tour would take you through the 16th arrondissement: the district where the elite built their modern villas during the Anne Folles; and where different palais (pavilions) got built for the 1937 International Exposition. The area is characterized by: art deco/modern architecture, and the controversial Montparnasse Tower. Auguste Perret, an Ecole del Beaux-Arts dropout student, pioneered the use of reinforced concrete in 1904 when he did an apartment building at 25 rue Benjamin Franklin; and latter on created the first Art Deco building of Paris and the world, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in 1913. Paris experienced a second golden era after WWI known as the Années Folles although now the trends came from NYC like cars, cinema and Jazz; but Paris wasn’t done yet. The city exported Art Deco/Noveau after the Exposition International des Arts Dècoratifs … of 1925. One of Auguste Perret disciple was the Swiss architect, Pierre Jeanneret: who opened his own firm in 1922 under the name of Le Courbusier. He would revolutionize the course of architecture with his books by promoting: the use of reinforced concrete, minimalistic designs, and the zoning of cities. He designed some mansions for the elite like Villa Savoye, Villa La Roche, or Maison Ozenfant. Another hero of the day was Mallet Steven (the son of Art collectors with a Villa in Belgium decorated by Gustav Klimt) whose film set design (L'Inhumaine) and art deco/cubist buildings made him famous; the couturier Paul Poiret, the viscountess Marie-Laure de Noailles, and the banker Daniel Dreyfu were among his most prominent clients. The modern movement of the Année Folles experienced a huge halt in 1940 due to the Nazzi invasion of Paris, with many artist migrating to New York City — but the school of Paris remained: Marcel Duchamp, Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. These artist were the 3 musketeers who moved art forward in the XX century: Duchamp with its ready made philosophy, Matisse with his use of color and silhouettes, and Picasso with his own style, cubism. Years after the second world war the president of France, Georges Pompidou, wanted to modernize the city in the 70s (and leave his mark in the city) by creating: the controversial Tour Montparnasse, Les Halles old shopping mall and obviously the Centre Pompidou. Other emblematic buildings were done during the 80s to keep the modern spirit alive like: Jean Nouvel’s Institut du Monde Arabe, Ming Pei’s pyramid of the Louvre (which gave new life to the museum), Ricardo Bofill’s Les Espaces d’Abraxas or Martin van Treeck‘s Orgues de Flanders — the last 2 being residential projects that provided social housing in the post-war era. The tour suggest visiting residential buildings by Le Courbusier and Mallet-Stevens in the morning; 3 palais done for the International Exposition of 1937 during the afternoon; and to end the day a quick visit to 2 post war controversial buildings with the viewing Deck of Tour Montparnasse if you have time. If you want another brutalist/modern day in your trip you should go to Noisy-le-Grand in the outskirts of the metropolitan area.