The Paris Effect
  • Welcome
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Press

If Montmartre Could Talk

2/13/2017

8 Comments

 
Picture
Happy-go-lucky  **  Offbeat  **    A bit naughty 

So goes the ballad of Montmartre, the irresistible butte on the edge of Paris, 
a gathering place where eccentrics, artists and (too many) tourists hang out.
  On every trip to Paris we always make time for the historic hill,
hoping to drink in some of its storied past and village-like atmosphere.
  But mostly we go because it's our chance to snare a taste
of their artistic holy water, our hopes high with the possibility of
absorbing some of its edgy aesthetic for a few memorable hours.

​Where is a good place to begin?
​Not necessarily where you might think; Place du Tertre? The Moulin Rouge?
​Contrary to popular opinion, I recommend a museum --
 Le Musée de Montmartre -- located just a few cobblestone streets
away from the party crowd on laid back rue Cortot.

​So why would anyone suggest a time out from all that fabulous
 Mardi-Gras-style-merrymaking
to walk through the halls of a stodgy/conventional museum?
​Read on, s'il vous plait, because this may be just the place to 
   discover the artiste that lies buried deep in your soul.
PictureYou'll do a high kick when you see how much art is devoted to the cancan.



Picture
Picture
Le Musée de Montmartre wasn't meant to be a museum at all.
​The 17th century building was first conceived as a "country villa" by dramatic actor/playwright Claude de la Rose, a man better known as Rosimond. 
​His pastoral retreat included several acres because even in
 1680 Paris, life was hectic and the rolling natural landscape
seemed like the perfect solution.

Those early ties to the theater served as a foreshadowing of its future. 
 Extending a flair for the dramatic, the property
was converted into art
studios, and by 1865 set  the perfect stage for emerging artists of the period.
  The very names we most recognize and venerate today made it their local
hang out, and over the years it became a gathering spot for the likes of
 Renoir, Maurice Utrillo, Raoul Dufy and Toulouse-Lautrec, just to name a few.
Their combined love of art and pursuit of pleasure married their easels
​to the Bohemian Montmartre lifestyle where it was universally accepted to
live a ragged lifestyle in run-down houses and bawdy cabarets.
   
​Visionaries to the end, they were in the right place at the right time,
a neighborhood that awakened their emotional highs and creative genius. 

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." Maya Angelou

​
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
The most wonderful thing about this museum is you don't need
an archaeologist's pick to uncover all manner of Montmartre artifacts.
  Everything is logically presented -- a hit parade of paintings, photographs,
furniture and posters, all representing the era of Montmartre's artistic glory.

  Le Musée de Montmartre, first established in 1960, has been carefully restored
and curated several times over the years, with special effort dedicated to
 the 300-year-old mansion that is the cornerstone of the property.
  The museum is spread out over two buildings and includes a garden -- Jardin de Renoir -- rightfully named as it was here where one of the greatest leaders
of the Impressionist movement painted his famous work "The Swing". 
I got goosebumps seeing this pretty jardin -- swing included -- easily
​ projecting myself into the charming scene Renoir so vividly painted.

​My favorite room of all is the studio-apartment of Suzanne Valadon,
  its extraordinary light and breathtaking view almost startling.
If only that wall of windows could talk!

​One of just a handful of women who enjoyed success in the
macho male dominated world of the Paris art scene,
Suzanne Valadon's life was somewhat of a melodrama itself.

  This working girl started out as a circus performer.
Following a frightful fall from the trapeze, she rose to a
new level of daredevil -- as an artist's model.
   In those days, artists and their models routinely formed an intimate relationship.
  A dalliance in the studio oftentimes didn't just produce a great canvas;
​more often than not, it  produced a whole new generation....
​
​Suzanne's nature was to offer "everything" her career demanded,
 thus the rumor that her unplanned pregnancy was the result
of amour fou  with one of her famous employers.
  The baby-daddy could have been Renoir, Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, 
or perhaps another painter who staged her long limbed body
on the "casting couch" -- she wasn't telling.
 Whether or not one of those celebrated artists fathered her son,
Suzanne gained much from those relationships.

  Talk about life imitating art!
Suzanne Valadon became more and more interested in the artist's
palette, absorbing both technique and passion from the very
 artists who captured her essence time and time again. 
You cannot buy that sort of education.

​Valadon's art was well received and another Montmartre star was born.
​Toulouse-Lautrec and Edgar Degas both encouraged her budding career
​and by 1894, Suzanne became the first female painter admitted to
the Societé des Beaux-Arts, a who's who of the best artists in Europe.
 And in a turn where truth is stranger than fiction, her love-child
became an artist as well, one whose name is synonymous
with both art and Montmartre -- the unrivalled Maurice Utrillo.


​"The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our soul."
​Pablo Picasso​
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Favorite son Maurice Utrillo was one of Montmartre's most brilliant artists; after all, no one knew the streets as well as someone born and bred on the butte.

  He had a front row seat on the Montmartre fantasy we hold dear -- empty
bottles of absinthe -- long legs, leering eyes, the Cancan -- windmills,
bohemian cafés, untidy streets and joie de vivre -- warts and all.
  After all, this was the stuff of every day life, just outside his front door.

  Utrillo struggled with a double-whammy of alcoholism and mental illness so whenever he felt somewhat "healthy", he used his pain to obsessively paint.
  He loved using the imperfections of buildings and street scenes -- easy to find
in Montmartre -- and soon both art critics and public were buzzing with praise. 
Even today, you'll see his work reproduced on half a dozen Paris postcards.

Montmartre's revolving door of indelible talent lasted until around 
1912 when many artists abandoned the right bank and flew the coop
 to the hip new left bank neighborhood-du-jour, Montparnasse. 

Musée de Montmartre captures the district's foremost period in the sun.
  It feels like a genuine neighborhood museum with walls that talk.
  Montmartre gets to tell its own story, reminding you
the streets of the neighborhood were the real studio.

​   The fine line between living the good life and living in squalor
define the neighborhood, the art & the artists with
hardly an ounce of daylight between them.
​Yes, the myth is probably better than the reality but
​  wouldn't you kill for a day in the life of one of those artists?
Picture
Maurice Utrillo's landscapes truly captured the essence of Montmartre.
Picture
Walk in the garden where Renoir painted his lovely portrait "The Swing"
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
A special exhibit of Bernard Buffet made the museum an especially memorable experience.
Picture
Picture
Picture
The locals are friendly.
Picture
Picture
Picture
Montmartre's museum offers the golden opportunity
 to contrast "the good old days" with present-day times.
​Grab the chance for a front row seat.
​
​I'm glad I live in the here and now but how I treasure the moments I'm
able to escape back to a different time and this museum is just the ticket.

Embrace the very scene that inspired the legendary art
and the streets that became the famous artists' ateliers. 
A museum like this will recharge your battery and 
help you connect with both art and artist on an emotional level.
  Much like Gil in Woody Allen's "Midnight in Paris", it bridges
the gap between the Paris of old and the Paris of now.

​So by all means, when you're in the neighborhood, whoop it up, Party Animal!
Sexy food and wine, art & architecture hit the right nerve with just about everyone.
  Just remember to save a bit of energy for the neighborhood museum
 and its extraordinary capacity to bring Paris' most famous "village" to life.
​Musée de Montmartre, where the "natives" live on.


"Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time."
​
Thomas Merton, Writer & Theologian
Picture
8 Comments
    Picture

    AUTHOR
    MICHELLE MOGGIO

    Thanks for visiting  my blog!

    I've been experiencing the joys of Paris since the ripe old age of eleven.
    As a big fan of duck fat, raw oysters and bad French movies, my long career in advertising helped pave the way for drinking at lunch. When not living la vie en rose, my husband Gary and I live in Brentwood, TN, where we stay busy planning our next travel adventure and offering unsolicited advice to our daughter.

    Archives

    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014


    RSS Feed

    Click below to buy
    The Paris Effect 
    book today
    Enter your email address to receive blog updates -
    Subscribe Now
    Buy Now

    Categories

    All
    100th Blog
    20th Arrondissement
    Abbaye De Fontfroide
    Absinthe
    Academie De La Grande Chaumière
    Adrian Leeds
    Aix-en-Provence
    Albi
    Aligot
    Alsace
    Ambassade D'Auvergne
    Amboise
    American History
    American Revolution
    Amphitheatre
    Antibes
    Apartments
    Aperitif
    April In Paris
    Arc De Triomphe Du Carrousel
    Architecture
    Arena De Nimes
    Ariége
    Armenian Cathedral Of Paris
    Art
    Art Deco
    Artistic Paris
    Artlover
    Art Museum
    Art Nouveau
    Atonement Chapel
    Auray
    Avenue Foch
    Avenue Frochot
    Avignon
    Baccarat
    Baden-Baden
    Baguette
    Basque
    Bayeux Tapestry
    B&B
    Benjamin Franklin
    Bénodet
    Bercy Village
    Biarritz
    Biot
    Biot France
    Bistros
    Bonbons
    Books Set In France
    Boulangerie
    Brassaï
    Brittany
    Brittany American Cemetery
    Burgundy
    Cagnes-sur-Mer
    Cakes
    Canal Du Midi
    Candy
    Cap D'Antibes
    Caracalla Spa
    Caramels
    Catalan France
    Cathars
    Cathedral
    Cathedrale St-Just
    Cemetière De Passy
    Cemetière Saint-Vincent
    Chantilly
    Chapelle Expiatoire
    Chapelle Saint Vincent De Paul
    #Chapel Of Hospice Saint-Jean
    Charles Aznavour
    Charles Trenet
    Chartreuse Du Val-de-Benediction
    Chateau
    Chateau De Clisson
    Chateau De Foix
    Chateau De Fougeres
    Chateau De Malmaison
    Chateau Grimaldi
    Cheese
    Chinon
    Chocolate
    Choice Vs. Chance
    Christian Constant
    #Church Of Saint-Volusien
    Cimiez
    Cité Des Fleurs
    Cité De Trevise
    Claude Monet
    Clisson
    Cocktail
    Coco Chanel
    Cognac
    Cointreau
    Cole Porter
    Comedie-Francaise
    Cote D'Azur
    Coulon
    Cours Mirabeau
    Cours Saleya
    Coussin De Lyon
    Crêpes
    Dessert
    Dijon
    Dreams
    Duck-confit
    Eating In France
    Ecole Des Beaux-Arts
    Ed Clark
    Edith-piaf
    Eglise Notre Dame De Clisson
    Eglise Sainte-Trinité
    Eglise Saint-Germain-des-Prés
    Elsa Maxwell
    Entrevaux
    Environmental Challenges
    Eric Kayser
    Eugene Delacroix
    Fabergé Museum
    Falling For Paris
    Famous-faces
    Fashion History
    Fauchon
    Fernand Léger
    Fete De La Transhumance
    Fête De Vendanges
    Fish Specialties
    Foix
    Folies Bergère
    Fontainebleau
    Fontaine Du Palmier
    Food Markets
    Fougeres
    Fragrance
    France
    Francois-premier
    Free Museums
    French Atlantic Coast
    French Bread
    French Cuisine
    French Food
    French-food
    French History
    French-islands
    French Musee D'Art Moderne De La Ville De Paris
    French Music
    French Resistence
    French Revolution
    #FrenchRiviera
    French Riviera
    French Slave Trade
    Friedrichsbad Spa
    Fun Fair Museum
    Genevieve De Gaulle-Anthonioz
    Genièvre
    George Sand
    Germaine Tillion
    Germany
    Gertrude Stein
    Gordes
    Grand Mosque Of Paris
    Grand Palais
    Grasse
    Guerlain
    Gustave Moreau
    Harvest Festival
    Haut-de-Cagnes
    Healthy Travel
    Hediard
    Henri Le Roux
    Henri Matisse
    Holocaust
    Hometown Memories
    Hotel Belles Rives
    Hôtel De Soubise
    Hotel Dieu
    Hotels
    Ile De Bréhat
    Ile De Ré
    Isadora Duncan
    Jacques Genin
    Janet Flanner
    Jardin Samuel-de-Champlain
    Jay Z
    Jazz A Juan
    Jean Seberg
    Jewelry
    Josephine Baker
    Josephine Bonaparte
    Juan-les-Pins
    Keith Haring
    La Campagne A Paris
    La Couveroitade
    Lafayette
    La Jourrnée San Voiture
    Lalique
    Language Skills
    Languedoc
    La Rochelle
    La Verrerie De Biot
    Lavinia Wine Store
    Le Bonbon Au Palais
    Le Bon Georges
    Le Capitole
    Le Carrousel Des Mondes Marins
    Le Clos Lucé
    Le Cochon à L'Oreille
    Le Coq Rico
    Legendary Lovers
    Le Grand Véfour
    Le Musée Montmartre
    Leonardo Da Vinci
    Le Rostand
    Les Cocottes
    Les Fauves
    Les Invalides
    Les Machines De L'Ile
    Les Sept Iles
    Lichtentaler Allee
    Lille
    Little Gourmand
    Loire Atlantique
    Luberon
    Luxembourg Gardens
    Maison Carrée
    Malmaison
    Man Ray
    Marais Poitevin
    Marc Chagall
    Marché Beauvau
    Marché D'Aligre
    Marché President Wilson
    Marché Victor Hugo
    Marie Curie
    Market Street
    Marquis De Lafayette
    Matisse
    Maurice Utrillo
    Medieval Festival
    Medieval France
    Memorial De L'Abolition De L'Esclavage
    Memorial De La Shoah
    MFK Fisher
    Minervois Wine
    #ModernArt
    Monolithic Church
    Montmartre
    Montmartre Museum
    Montparnasse
    Montparnasse Cemetery
    Montpellier
    Movies Set In France
    Musee Carnavalet
    Musée De La Chasse Et De La Nature
    Musée Des Arts Decoritifs
    Musée Des Arts Forains
    Musée Des Beaux-Arts De Dijon
    Musee D'Orsay
    Musée D'Orsay
    Musee L'Orangerie
    Musée Marc Chagall
    Musee Marmottan Monet
    Musée Matisse Nice
    Musée Picasso
    Musée Yves Saint Laurent
    Museum
    Museum Of Decorative Arts
    Museum Of Hunting & Nature
    Museum Of Modern Art City Of Paris
    Nancy
    Nantes
    Napoleon Bonaparte
    Napoleon III Apartments
    Narbonne
    Nashville
    Natalie Portman
    Nazi Atrocities
    Nice
    Nice France
    Nimes
    Normandy
    Not-far-from-paris
    Not-far-from-paris
    Notre Dame De Lorette
    Notre Dame De Paris
    Occitanie
    #Occitanie
    Off-the-tourist-track
    Off-the-tourist-track
    Opera-garnier
    Operation Dragoon
    Oradoursurglane
    Our Lady Of Paris
    Palais Lascaris
    Palais Royal
    Paloma Beach
    Pancake
    Pancake Pantry
    Parade
    Parc De Bercy
    Paris
    Paris 1968
    Paris Arrondissements
    Paris Art Museum
    Paris Art Schools
    Paris At Home
    Paris Cafes
    Paris Fashion
    Paris Friend
    Paris Markets
    Paris Metro
    Paris Neighborhoods
    Paris Parks
    Paris Patisseries
    Paris Pets
    Paris Predestination
    Paris Retail Therapy
    Paris Travel
    Parks
    Passage Boudin
    Passerelle Simone De Beauvoir
    Pastis
    Patisserie
    Patricia Wells
    Paul Cezanne
    Perfume
    Pernes-les-Fontaines
    Pet Cemeteries
    Petit Palais
    Photography
    Picpus Cemetery
    Pinching Pennies
    Pink Granite Coast
    Place De Furstenberg
    Place De La Concorde
    Place Des Vosges
    Place Masséna
    Place Stanislaus
    Place Vendome
    Ploumanac'h
    Poilane
    Ponr Alexandre III
    Poster Art
    Promenade Des Anglais
    Provence
    #Provence
    Provence Markets
    Puffins
    Pyrenees-Orientales
    Rambouillet
    Raoul Dufy
    Regional Cooking
    Rennes
    Renoir
    Robert Doisneau
    Robert Wuhl
    Roquefort
    Rue Cler
    Rue Cremieux
    Rue De L'Eole Du Medecine
    Rue De Nil
    Rue Dénoyez
    Rue Des Ecoles
    Rue Des Martyrs
    Rue Irenee Blanc
    Rue Jules Siegfried
    Ruelle Des Chats
    Rue Montorgeuil
    Ruth
    Saintdenis
    Saint-Emilion
    Saint-Emilion Grand Cru
    Saint-Etienne-du-Mont
    Sainteustache
    Saint-Goustan
    Saint-Guilhem-le-Desert
    Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat
    Saint-Malo
    Saint-Medard Church
    Saint-Paul-de-Mausole
    Saint-Remy-de-Provence
    Saint-Vincent Cemetery
    Sculpture
    Senlis
    Serendipity
    Shopping
    Sliceoflife
    Slice Of Life
    Small Paris Pleasures
    Small Town Saturday Night
    Social Media
    So-Pi
    Springtime In Paris
    Square Des Peupliers
    Square Montsouris
    St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral
    Street Food
    Suzanne Valadon
    Suzy Solidor
    Sylvia Beach
    Texas
    The Avignon Papacy
    The-dreyfus-affair
    The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
    The Louvre
    The Moose
    The National Archives
    The Pantheon
    The-paris-effect
    The Pink City
    Toulouse
    Toulouse-Lautrec
    Tourrettes-sur-Loup
    Travel
    Travel Advice
    Travel Planning
    Troyes
    U.N. World Climate Conference
    Urban Art
    Uzès
    Vacation
    Vacation Planning Food
    Vel D'Hiver
    Vichy
    Vieille Bourse
    Vieux Nice
    Villa Eilenroc
    Villefranche-de-Conflent
    Villeneuve-les-Avignon
    Vincent Van Gogh
    Walking
    Walking Paris
    Willi Ronis
    Wine
    Wine Festival
    WWII
    #WWII France
    WWII Paris
    WWII Provence
    Yachts
    Yves Saint Laurent

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.