Musee de Sculpture en plein air and other Paris, France Off The Beaten Path Tips

As we walked westward from the Jardin des Plantes on the Quai St. Bernard along the Seine, we came to a desolate strech of carefully designed concrete in the form of a plaza extending to the river edge like a boat-landing. In the area were a number of modern sculptures. There were no signs or labels (which is characteristic of such "gardens"). I subsequently learned that it is also called the Tino Rossi garden, but I do not know who he was). The stiff metal creations looked as sterile as their setting (somebody keeps it clean). The only vigoruos structure was a small stone "toadstool" covered with graffiti (undoubtedly placed by a second hand). The views from the landing of the Ile St. Louis and the Seine were an extra dividend. My guidebook said we were to see (and maybe we photoed them) a Zadkine "Development of Form" and Schoffer's "Chronos 10". Please advise.

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We were driving to Chartres and beyond and our route took us past the Place whrere we saw the Lion, We recognized an old friend and had to stop. We had seen the original while driving from Colmar to Troyes as we passed Belfort. On the rock face below the citadel we saw this immense carving (it is 22x 11m !). We stopped to look and in our books found that it was to commemorate the only French military"victory" in the Franco-Prussian War at that spot. The leader of the defense at Belfort was Col. Denferet-Rochereau, the sculptor was Frederic-Alphonse Bartholdi (1834-1904) known to us as the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty in New York harbor. We already knew of the smaller copy of that one that is on the Allee des Cygnes in the Seine. So here he did it two again but 15 years earlier. Bronze workers often do this; Rodin made a living at it. Awareness of the Lion must have motivated Gutzon Borglum to do the carvings of U.S. Presidents into the face of Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota. There are other reasons to come to the Place. There is the entrance to the Catacombs , but we have seen so many of these elsewhere (but if you never have, it may be worth a visit; look at the VT Tips). But we missed something else that is here and may someday come back, It is the 2 toll-houses flanking the Av. General-Leclerc, one of which is the entrance to the catacombs (the Barriere d'Enfer) (1784).

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The buildings are the same ones created in the 1660’s by unknown architects. There also is a modern museum and a school of graphic design (called also Gobelins). The av. des Gobelins out front is a WWI widening of the old r. Mouffetard , renamed, extending to the Pl.-d’Italie. The tapestry factory still functions. It was started by a family of scarlet dyers of that name at the existing location on the banks of the Bievre. It was bought by Louis XIV in 1662 to fulfill Colbert’s concept of a new art: interior decoration. It made both furniture and tapestries of all sorts including upholstery. It closed in 1694 when Louis went broke, but reopened 3 years later confining itself to tapestry (mostly royal) competing with rivals at Beauvais. Carpet manufacture was added in 1826 It is now state run. To get ther use Metro Line 7 ; Les Gobelins. Address 42 Av. des Gobelins. The avenue begins 1 block south of St. Medard Church where the r. Mouff. ends at the multi-intersection. The Gobelins is one block south.

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Phone: 48.87.24.14

A significant part of a visit is the modern art loom area. Tapestries and carpets by the original technic are still being made. It is amazing that immense carpets and tapestries are still placed in new enormous rooms built by governments and other places of wealth that can commission such things, often to very specific designs. There are also computer stored patterns and models that can originate “original cartoons in the style of X”. The craft is still carried out in the original manner with the most ergonomically designed equipment using the mirror matching method to execute the cartoons. A visit includes the work area.

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Phone: See Pt. 1

On our earliest long visit to Paris, 25 years ago, we found ourselves in the Montparnasse area (15 Arrond.) and since we are medico-biological scientists, decided to look at the Institut Pasteur. We were not yet fully inquisitive tourists and since the buildings showed no signs of welcome, we did not try to enter, only looked at the outside. If we had tried , we would have learned that (for a fee) there is a film and maybe a lecture, Louis Pasteur's tomb and his living quarters (as a museum).(afternoon M-Fri.) We have read "for children" accounts of Pasteur's exploits to our grandchildren, and they were all quite excited about them. We have never tried to go back to the Institute, although I have had commercial dealings with them since that time; it is a very active French business.

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Phone: 45.68.82.82
Website: 25 r. du Dr.-Roux
Other Contact: Metro:Pasteur (6,12)

The Hotel is a most imposing Mansion, actually a palace, finished by 1710. The interiors are elaborately designed and many of the leading artists of the 18C provided work for it. It is the Musee de l'Histoire de France but also contains the National Archives (Fee). We went inside but did not stay long.

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The North edge of the Cimitiere St. Vincent is situated just south of the rue Caulaincourt , east of the Lapin Agile. (It is adjacent to the building housing the condominium in which we were staying with my wife’s sister who exchanged her home in Bethlehem, Pa. for a month with the French owners. The cemetery looks just like the major Montmartre one only without famous people in it (at least that we could discover).

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A two-story high upper floor condominium in an 100 yr old building with an ancient elevator is a pleasant way to experience Paris and get you close to Parisians. It was situated on the edge of the Butte Montmartre with exciting view of Sacre Couer both at night and during the day. It was in the 18 Arr. right near the metro (Lamarck-Caulaincourt), making sightseeing easy. The area had some of the feel of an old village since this was not a tourist site and one could wander over most of the neighborhood in solitude as tourists seldom leave the Place du Tertre. The exchange was made by my wife's sister who traded her home in a Pa. city to the French family for a month. They wanted to visit her neighbor (a mother of a member of the French family)

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The Parvis before the Notre Dame Cathedral is ignored by almost every visitor. It is used only to view the cathedral facade, but it contains two sites worthy of recognition.
1)Embedded in the center of the square is a bronze plaque which marks the point from which all road distances from Paris are measured.
2) Under the Parvis is a Museum called the Archeological Crypt (fee; accepts Museum Pass). The entrance is near the back of the Parvis. The excavations were carried out from 1965-72. The limits of the works below ground are delimited by markings in the Parvis. The ruins contain vestiges of Gallo-Roman ruins, medieval walls and fragments of church buildings from the predecessor of Notre Dame. There are indicator lights. You must be a lover of ruins to enjoy it. We are! Do you know that there is a magnificent Roman Bath incorporated in the Cluny Museum? Or that there is a small Arena not far from the rue Monge? (See our Tips on these).

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When you have seen the "Name Sights" of Paris, it may be time to indulge your yearning for fine Impressionism without standing in line or pushing to drink in the details. And if you think Monet is the best of the lot, here are about 100 of his best (the most anywhere?) plus the painting he received in trade for from almost all the others (that is, his personal collection...the ones that never made it to Giverny). They are here, a gift to the Academy of Beaux Arts by his second son, Michel (in 1966). Oh, yes it includes many late (Water-lily) ones. There is much more since the Marmottans started this ball rolling before that (1933) giving their collection and mansion to house it all. Other collectors followed and in 1981 Daniel Waldenstein gave his hobby-collection of 313 miniatures: illuminations, mostly pieces of parchment cut long ago from medieval and later manuscripts. When we visited the museum, photography was not permitted except for these little pieces of Art. This is understandable because the "initial" Monet was stolen "Impressions Sunrise". Even walking to the museum from the metro is a pleasure. I think they do not accept the Museum Card, admission 8 euro (audio 3 euro, closed Monday, hours 11-6, open Tuesday to 9) You may want to spend the whole day so identify a lunch or dinner spot.

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Website: www.marmottan.com
Other Contact: Metro Line 9, Station