We began our final day in Montmartre. Our group stands in front of the Art Nouveau "Metropolitan" sign located in this bohemian part of the city. This emblem of the metro became a symbol of an ever expanding and growing Paris in the late 19th Century. As a movement against industrialization and the straight lines of progress, the Art Nouveau movement stressed the fluidity, movement and curves of the natural environment. All of these characteristics are seen in this metro sign (this is original) and many of the other replicas around Paris. Today we had a wonderfully knowledgeable guide who has lived in Paris for the last quarter century. Tailoring our tour to concentrate on the art movements found in Montmartre, our guide provided tasty bits of information about the lives of the Impressionists, cubists, and other famous Parisians from this area of the city. We saw the location for Renoir's "Bal du Moulin de la Galette" (as seen yesterday in the Orsay) and we gained a clearer understanding of the lifestyle of the painters who resided in Montmartre. We also learned a great deal of Le Bateau-Lavoir (Picasso's Studio) and the statue of St. Denis, whose head was chopped off by the Romans a long time ago for spreading Christianity. The back lanes of Montmartre gave us a wonderful view of Parisian life in the past and the present. Hilly, winding lanes, and flowers blossoming made this an incredibly pleasant stroll through a beautiful area of Paris. After lunch we made our way to the Pompidou Center. Quite a contrast with the scenes of Montmartre, the pieces of modern art in the museum challenged us and we appreciated the power of Piccaso's, Chagall's, and Matisse's work. We ended the day with a visit to the renovated Paris Opera Garnier. Our last metro ride was tonight as we jump on the Eurostar train tomorrow for London. Au Revoir Paris!
Day 4 Photos
No comments:
Post a Comment