Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Quiet Paris 2: Zadkine Museum

John and I did a little tour of Montparnasse recently. We visited the studio/home of one of our favourite sculptors.
Ossip Zadkine and his wife, the painter Valentine Prax, moved to their lovely studio and garden in 1928. It is a quiet place because it is set down an alley off of Rue Assas near the Luxembourg Gardens.
At the entrance we were greeted by The Weather Vane of 1965.
 We were greeted by Zadkine's  Rebecca ou la grande porteuse d'eau, 1927 
 and a portrait of Ossip Zadkine in 1914.
 The ground floor workspaces are filled with light and the sculptor's work.
He was influenced by Cycladic, Egyptian, Cubist and Deco art.
Tête d'homme, 1922.
Tête d'femme, 1930.  This lovely wooden piece was once owned by English designer Eileen Gray.
Torso of a Hermaphrodite, 1921-1931
At the foot of the stairs to the living quarters we found Female Torso, carved from ebony in 1961.
 We stepped out of the ground floor galleries into a tranquil garden. We sat for awhile enjoying the quiet and the scent of the plants.
 This a view of his house. That's John on the right taking a picture
of Project for a Monument to Guillaume Apollinaire from1948.
 Across the lawn from the house is Zadkine's workshop.
 Phèdre, 1954
 Head of a Man, 1924
As we stepped out of the workshop, we took one last look at the garden.
Then we walked to the gate and back into the alley.
Musée Zadkine is a quiet Parisian gem. Admission is free.

5 comments:

  1. Wow it looks lovely in the summer.
    My mother and I had visited in the winter a few years ago. There was a photo exhibit - transparencies scattered around the building in light boxes.
    It was definitely off the beaten path.
    LisaRR

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  2. Exhibit sounds interesting. Fun to think of you and Cheri there in winter. Winter in Paris -- how romantic!

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  3. Wow, you'd never know you were in the city. So beautiful.

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  4. Yes, it really is a special place in Montparnasse, Shelley.

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  5. What a wonderfully peaceful looking place. Inside and out.

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