I love that Paris encompasses a mix of historical sights alongside new concepts. There is a timeless beauty to this city yet it isn't stagnate, but breeds inspiration to create and innovate.
Take the Jardin des Tuileries for example. These gardens between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde were originally created by Queen Catherine de Medicis in the 1500's. Fast forward to the present where the gardens still exist (albeit different in style) and hosted part of a contemporary art fair on its historical grounds.
In October the FIAC (Foire Internationale d’Art Contemporain) came to Paris for a weekend (Oct 24-27). This annual art fair celebrated its 40th anniversary this year. The main exposition was in the Grand Palais, but the €35 entrance fee (almost $50 USD) was a little steep for me. Luckily I was still able to enjoy part of the exhibition in the Tuileries garden for free.
Planetarium Sorrow by Berger&Berger
Shen Yuan's Pont
This ceramic bridge was inspired by both Chinese and Arabic culture. The design reminded me of typical blue and white Chinese ceramic and of some of the Moorish decorative art I've seen in Spain.
Jamie Lee Byars' Untitled, 2010
One thing I appreciated about the exposition is that during certain times, there were students from L'Ecole du Louvre to answer questions and give some insight into the works. At first glance, I dismissed Francisco Sobrino's untitled work below as some piece of contemporary art that I just didn't understand. But after speaking with the student representative who encouraged me to circle the sculpture to see how movement played a large part of the work, it became one of my favorites. The way the sculpture reflected the trees around it and seemed to change shape as I walked around it made me really enjoy it.
Jean Dupuy's Here
Jean Dupuy's Where
Unfortunately these sculptures are no longer on display. But the wonderful thing about Paris is there are often events like this cropping up, so there are many more opportunities to come to experience art unexpectedly throughout the city.