Tag: france

The Rouen Cathedral

The Rouen Cathedral, Rouen, Normandy, France

The Rouen Cathedral, the tallest building in France until 1880, contains a tomb of Richard the Lionheart which contained his heart. His bowels were probably buried within the church of the Château of Châlus-Chabrol in the Limousin. It was from the walls of the Château of Châlus-Chabrol that the crossbow bolt was fired, which led to his death once the wound became septic. His corporeal remains were buried next to his father at Fontevraud Abbey near Chinon and Saumur, France. Richard’s effigy is on top of the tomb, and his name is inscribed in Latin on the side.

The Cathedral also contains the tomb of Rollo (Hrólfr, Rou(f) or Robert), one of Richard’s ancestors, the founder and first ruler of the Viking principality in what soon became known as Normandy.

The cathedral contained the black marble tomb of John Plantagenet or John of Lancaster, Duke of Bedford, one of the English commanders who oversaw Joan of Arc’s trial. He became a canon priest of the cathedral after her death. His original tomb was destroyed by the Calvinists in the 16th century but there remains a commemorative plaque .

Christophe Gans, “Brotherhood of the Wolf”

Brotherhood of the Wolf, Directed by Christophe Gans, Narrated by Jaques Perrin, 2001

Brotherhood of the Wolf (French: Le Pacte des loups) is a 2001 French historical horror-action film directed by Christophe Gans, written by Gans and Stéphane Cabel, starring Samuel Le Bihan, Mark Dacascos, Émilie Dequenne, Monica Bellucci, and Vincent Cassel.

The film is loosely based on a real-life series of killings that took place in France in the 18th century and the famous legend of the Beast of Gévaudan; parts of the film were shot at Château de Roquetaillade. The film has several extended swashbuckling fight scenes, with martial arts performances by the cast mixed in, making it unusual for a historical drama. It was well-received with critics praising its high production values, cinematography, performances and Gans’ atmospheric direction.

An older film with a werewolf horror atmosphere; a good thriller to watch.

François-Léon Benouville

François-Léon Benouville, “The Wraith of Achilles”, 1847, Oil on Canvas, Musee Fabre, Montpelier, France

François-Léon Benouville’s splendidly modelled figure of Achilles intrudes into the space of the viewer. He literally steps beyond the surface of the canvas. Thus, in the painting’s careful attention to the human form and in the precision of its modelling of paint, it fulfils ideally the task of the painted academic figure studies required of Prix de Rome winners.

Benouville’s painting of Achilles, a popular subject for nineteenth-century painters, shows the Greek hero at the moment where, after quarrelling with his leader, Agamemnon, he retreats from battle to his tent in a rage. Humiliated, Achilles refuses to continue fighting with the Greeks, who subsequently suffer a series of catastrophic defeats. As Agamemnon’s envoys enter Achilles’ tent, in the hope of convincing him to return to battle, Achilles springs to his feet, launching into a tirade. With a dramatic realism, Benouville renders this precise, violent moment.

Thanks to http://lyghtmylife.tumblr.com for the image.

The Carpeaux Fountain

The Carpeaux Fountain at Jardin Marco Polo, South of the Jardin du Luxembourg in the 6th Arrondissement of Paris

The central axis of the Luxemburg Garden is extended, beyond its wrought iron grill and gates opening to rue Auguste Comte, by the central esplanade of the rue de l’Observatoire, officially the Jardin Marco Polo, where sculptures of the four Times of Day alternate with columns and culminate at the southern end with the 1874 “Fountain of the Observatory”, also known as the “Fontaine des Quatre-Parties-du-Monde” or the “Carpeaux Fountain”, for its sculptures by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. It was installed as part of the development of the avenue de l’Observatoire by Gabriel Davioud in 1867.

The bronze fountain represents the work of four sculptors: Louis Vuillemot carved the garlands and festoons around the pedestal, Pierre Legrain carved the armillary with interior globe and zodiac band; the animalier Emmanuel Fremiet designed the eight horses, marine turtles and spouting fish. Most importantly Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux sculpted the four nude women supporting the globe, representing the Four Continents of classical iconography.

Max Ernst

Max Ernst, “Deux Oiseaux (Two Birds)”, Colour Lithograph, 1975

Max Ernst was born in Brühl, near Cologne, the third of nine children of a middle-class Catholic family. His father Philipp was a teacher of the deaf and an amateur painter, a devout Christian and a strict disciplinarian. He inspired in Max a penchant for defying authority, while his interest in painting and sketching in nature influenced Max to take up painting himself.

In 1909 Ernst enrolled in the University of Bonn, studying philosophy, art history, literature, psychology and psychiatry. He visited asylums and became fascinated with the art of the mentally ill patients; he also started painting that year, producing sketches in the garden of the Brühl castle, and portraits of his sister and himself. In 1911 Ernst befriended August Macke and joined his Die Rheinischen Expressionisten group of artists, deciding to become an artist.

In 1912 he visited the Sonderbund exhibition in Cologne, where works by Pablo Picasso and post-Impressionists such as Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin profoundly influenced his approach to art. His own work was exhibited the same year together with that of the Das Junge Rheinland group, at Galerie Feldman in Cologne, and then in several group exhibitions in 1913.

Olivier Valsecchi

 

The Dancers in the Dust Series: Photography by Olivier Valsecchi

Olivier Valsecchi, born in 1979 in France, is specialized in portraiture and photographing nudes; but the most attention he has recently gotten is with his series “Dust”. This series consists of nude males and females covered in white powder in awkward positions. This series was recently published in the spring issue of 2010 of magazine “Eyemazing”.

“Le Temps Qui Reste (Time to Leave)”

“Le Temps Qui Reste (Time to Leave)” : Directed by Francois Ozon, 2005

‘Le Temps Qui Reste” is a French film directed by François Ozon, released in 2005. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. It stars Melvi Poupaud as Romain, Daniel Duval as Romain’s father, Marie Riviera as Romain’s mother, Jeanne Moreau as Laura, and Christian Sengewald as Romain’s lover.

Romain, a gay 31-year-old fashion photographer, finds out he is terminally ill and has only three months to live. He rejects the treatment for his metastasized tumor that might offer him a slim (less than 5%) chance of survival. Romain stops working as his illness progresses, chases away his lover Sasha, and only confides about his illness to his grandmother Laura.

A great, simple yet capturing, film by Francois Ozone, director of “Swimming Pool” and “Jeune and Jolie”, whose films include many gay characters. Seek it out on dvd. If you have Netflix Streaming, you are in luck.

Jacques Reatu

Jacques Reatu, “Le Vision de Jacob (Jacob’s Dream)”, Oil on Canvas, 1792, Museum Reattu, Arles, France

Jacques Réattu was a French painter and winner of the grand prix de Rome. He was an illegitimate son of the painter Guillaume de Barrême de Châteaufort and Catherine Raspal, sister of the Arles-born painter Antoine Raspal – Antoine gave him his first lessons in painting.

In Paris, in 1773 he was a pupil of Jean-Antoine Julien, then entered the Academy in 1781, with Michel Francois Dandre-Bardon as a patron, he was a pupil of Jean-Baptiste Regnault. In 1790 he won the Prix de Rome, thanks to a work, currently exhibited at the National School of Fine Arts: Daniel faisant arrêter les vieillards accusateurs de la chaste Suzanne. Following anti-French riots of the Roman population, he fled to Naples, from where he could return to France.

Nicolas Deveaux, “5.80 Metres”

Nicolas Deveaux, “5.80 Metres”;  Directed by Nicolas Deveaux: Music by Olivier Milton, Released in Paris 2012

As a writer and director of animation films (3D and relief), Nicolas Deveaux has a very personal world around two passions : image and the animal world. In 2003, fresh out of his degree in computer graphics, he directed “7Tonnes2″, a short-film showing a realistic elephant trampoline champion. Its critical acclaim (Annecy Festival) gave him the opportunity to work on mny projects from documentaries to commercials and even amusement park films .

If you missed seeing “7 tonnes2″, that film by Deveaux is also posted on this blog. Check it out.

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

Musette de Cour

Musette de Cour:  Maker Unknown: ca.1700; France; Leather, Ivory, Silk, Wood, Silver, and Iron; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City

The musette is a refined form of bagpipe with a bellows that generates wind to inflate the bag and sound a chanter and a bourdon. The bourdon is a device to play the drones. This musette is one of the luxurious pieces used in French aristocratic circles between 1620 and 1760. The instrument features a double chanter, a novelty that emerged soon after 1670, and a bourdon for three double reeds and four sliders. The sliders allow the play of one, two, or three drones. The double chanter operates with only one double reed.

Jean-Pierre Jeunet, “Amelie”

Jean-Pierre Jeunet, “Amelie”

“Amélie” is a fanciful comedy about a young woman who discretely orchestrates the lives of the people around her, creating a world exclusively of her own making. Shot in over 80 Parisian locations, acclaimed director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (“Delicatessen”; “The City of Lost Children”) invokes his incomparable visionary style to capture the exquisite charm and mystery of modern-day Paris through the eyes of a beautiful ingenue.

Release date: November 16, 2001 (USA)
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Featured song: La Valse d’Amélie (orchestra version)

A great film on the top of my favorites list- great photography, especially with the use of color filters; great soundtrack; actors who really know their characters; and a funny but heart touching story.

Etienne Jules Ramey

Etienne Jules Ramey, Marble, “Theseus Slaying the Minotaur”, 1821-27, Jardin des Tuileries, France

Ramey was born in Paris and was a pupil of his father, Claude Rame. He trained in the studio of Pierre Cartellier, won the Prix de Rome in sculpture, 1815, with the subject, equally classicizing and sentimental, “Ulysses Recognized by His Dog”, and collaborated with David d’Angers on the sculptures for the triumphal arch at Marseille, the Porte d’Aix, 1828 to 1839.

His worked in partnership with Augustin-Alexandre Dumont and taught at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris. One of his pupils there was the Belgian sculptor Guillaume Geefs; another was Jean-Joseph Perraud.