Cafe du Commerce

With excellent Parisian food, and a (surprisingly) warm Parisian atmosphere, the Cafe du Commerce is nicely situated just far enough away from the Eiffel Tower to be slightly off the beaten track.

 Good food at an accessible price

Mouth watering meats, fresh sea food and french fries made with freshly cut potatoes are just a few of the many delicious options on the menu. 

This is a great place for escargot if you are a fan or simply just curious to give it a try. 

On Tuesday October 25, the daily seafood special was scallops with wild mushroom risotto and grilled vegetables.  Delicious! 

The price range is also quite affordable.  Count on spending 20-50 Euros per person for a two course meal with a glass of wine.

Return to the Annees Folles

The Cafe du Commerce was founded in 1921, and the 1920s atmosphere still reigns without being kitsch or drowning in nostalgia.  The lighting is warm and golden, the floors are tiled and the servers wear long aprons like the garcons of the past.   During the daytime all three floors of the restaurant receive natural light through a beautiful glass roof. 

I recommend this address to Parisians looking for a good French meal, or anyone curious about traditional French cuisine.  But come hungry!  The meals here are copious and doggy-bags are not a tradition in France!

-CSL

Le Cafe du Commerce
51 rue du Commerce
75015 Paris
+33 (0)1.45.75.03.27
Metro: La Motte-Piquet, Emile Zola, Commerce
Reserve your table in advance!

The imaginary world of Myoung-Joo Kim

Ceramist Myoung-Joo Kim, also comes from Korea and has been living in France for many years. This young artist has developed an enchanting universe in which fantastic creatures and plant people tell tales sprung out of her own imagination.

Painted tile mural

Kim has her workshop across from the Galerie Hayasaki (in the rue des Jardins St Paul), and exhibits regularly throughout Paris.   At the moment she is exhibiting with a painter friend at the Galerie Philippe Gelot through November 6th. You can follow her on her website : www.myoungjookim.com

Rencontre a Saint Paul
Myoung Joo Kim with Seyoung Kim
October 13 - November 6, 2011
Galerie Philippe Gelot
29 rue St Paul
Paris

Galerie Hayasaki presents Ere* Maria

While strolling through the Village St Paul between the eglise St Paul St Louis and the Seine, it is likely that you will stumble across this tiny art gallery hidden away in one of the Marais' mysterious medieval buildings. 

The gallery exhibits a multitude of artitsts.  The owners' goals are to promote young artists and to make artworks accessible to a greater public without cutting corners on quality.  Often ceramists training in the school installed in the basement show off their wares.  You will most certainly notice when you peek through the windows on the street, the great number of earthenware pieces stocked in the back room of the building, which was once the great French playwright Rabelais' tiny bedchamber.  But they also exhibit painters and photographers from all over the world.
Galerie Hayasaki
Village Saint Paul
Cours Rabelais
12-14 rue des Jardins Saint Paul
75004 Paris
www.hayasaki.fr
Monday-Friday 2pm - 8pm
Saturday 10:30am - 8pm

This past week the Japanese painter Ere* Maria took over the gallery and exhibited a series of angel paintings.  Ere* Maria's universe is quite charming and sweet.  Inspired by the heavens, she paints pink and orange and lavander people with a child-like touch. 

 Other examples of her creations are shown on Ere* Maria's website : http://angeland.info

Beauté, morale, volupté dans l'Angleterre d'Oscar Wilde

Exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum under the title "The Cult of Beauty: the Aesthetic Movement, 1869-1900", Beauté, morale, volupté is another fascinating exhibit in the way the Musée d'Orsay does best, giving visitors a look into an entire movement encompassing all the arts from literature to painting to decorating, and without forgetting fashion. 

The Aesthetic Movement regroup artists of Victorian England who strove to break away from a moralistic view of the arts developed in the earlier years of the 19th century.  Oscar Wilde's role was mainly in defining the mouvance and giving it a name : "English Renaissance".  In reality he put together ideas already developed by a number of different artists and theoricians : Morris, Ruskin, and Whistler. 

Although their theories are the common thread of the exhibit, it is not necessary to understand them in their finest details to enjoy the show.  Even so, the exhibit is quite dense and covers a topic that is not broadly known.  Each room has an explanatory text written in French and in English.  Beauté, morale, volupté must be visited attentively, and is definitely worth the detour.

Entrance to the exhibit is included in the 8€ museum entry fee (5€50 reduced price in certain cases). As the Orsay museum has high affluence on the weekends, it is suggested to go on a weekday.

- CSL

Beauté, morale, volupté dans l'Angleterre d'Oscar Wilde
September 13, 2011 to January 15, 2012

Musée d'Orsay
62 rue de Lille
Paris
+33 (0)1 40 49 48 14

Open Tuesday to Sunday 9:30 am - 6 pm
Open late Thursday til 9:45 pm
Closed Mondays

Fra Angelico and the Masters of Light

This exhibit unites a large number of masterworks from the Florentine Renaissance in the elegant demeure built by collectors Edouard André and Nelie Jacquemart in the late nineteenth century. 

Any time of year the Musée Jacquemart-André is worth the visit for Parisians and tourists alike.  The salon du musique and the jardin d'hiver with its magnificent double staircase are the highlights of the tour, and the couple's collections of paintings, sculptures and furniture from periods and places all across Europe are astounding.

This Fall the exhibit in the upper story of the mansion is dedicated to Fra Angelico, but begins with an overview of early Quattrocento painting in Tuscany.  The softness and grace of Fra Angelico's paintings fit perfectly into the atmosphere of the home of these prolific collectors, whose common passion was seeking out and displaying the world's most inspiring works of art. 

The number of museums that have participated in this venture is quite impressive.  Florence and Paris have contributed the greatest number of artworks of course, others come from Venice, Pisa, Milan, Montauban, Budapest and even the Vatican. 

Museum entrance fee is 10€ which includes the entry to the special exhibit as well as a tour with a headset of  the private apartments of Nelie Jacquemart and Edouard André.  The recorded headset tour of the special exhibit is available for 3€ and a fairly complete booklet (with a short English translation at the end) is available for only 2€. 

These guides are not necessary for the enjoyment of the exhibit - Fra Angelico's art doesn't need the explanation of scholars to be understood  - however they will be of interest to history enthousiasts and art history students.

- CSL

Fra Angelico and the Masters of the Light
Musée Jacquemart-André
158 Boulevard Haussmann

September 23, 2011 to January 16, 2012
Open every day from 10 am to 6 pm
Monday and Saturday closes at 9:30 pm

Contact : +33 (0)1 45 62 11 59
www.musee-jacquemart-andre.com
www.expofraangelico.com