I took a liking to Franz West (1947-2012) as soon as I entered the exhibition at the Centre Pompidou and saw this quote by him: “I’ve always thought that the ideal is to do nothing and still be able to … Read More
Fearing monumental gimmickry, I was wary about visiting Paris’s much-lauded new blockbuster attraction, the Atelier des Lumières, billed as a “digital museum.” Why is a screen needed to look at great art; why not just look at the art itself? … Read More
Don’t be surprised, as I was, if you don’t see any Impressionist paintings until the very end of the exhibition “Impressionists in London.” The title is misleading – it would more accurate to use its subtitle, “French Artists in Exile, 1870-1904,” … Read More
The exhibition “The Water Lilies: American Abstract Painting and the Last Monet” at the Musée de l’Orangerie is an uplifting look at the influence of Monet’s late work – which progressively veered toward pure abstraction – on American abstract painting. … Read More
In a letter covered in daubs of paint of many colors, the 29-year-old Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863) asked his art supplier to urgently send him paints that were “more liquid than the colors prepared for everyone else,” revealing both his passion for his … Read More
When a friend heard that I was going to see a retrospective of the work of Pierre Soulages at the Fondation Gianadda in Martigny, Switzerland, she said, “But it’s all just black, isn’t it?” Well, no. First of all, Soulages has used … Read More
Warning: this is an X-rated exhibition, with representations of penises and vaginas galore, but never has “porn” been so sparkly and glamorous – so much fun! For the first show to be held in contemporary art dealer Daniel Templon’s second Paris … Read More
The magical Musée des Arts and Métiers is one of Paris’s neglected treasures. While hordes of visitors are trying to get a snapshot of Mona at the Louvre, only a handful are marveling at the early flying machines hanging from … Read More
The Fondation Cartier has just extended the end date of the exhibition “Junya Ishigami: Freeing Architecture” to September 9, and I am very grateful. Otherwise, I might have missed this superb exhibition of the work of a rather madly creative … Read More
I must admit I was a bit leery about seeing the Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) exhibition at the Musée Jacquemart-André, fearing an overdose of saccharine paintings of babies and mothers, but I’m glad I went. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of … Read More
