New Year in the Artists' Paris
Discover the unknown Paris wtih Terence MaloonParis is, without doubt, one of the world’s most romantic cities and a ‘living museum’ of Western art, architecture and culture. A city for all seasons, Paris has a special charm at New Year.
With Terence Maloon, you will discover the Paris of the great artists, writers and creative minds who have both been inspired by this extraordinary city and whose lives and works have also enriched it. Immerse yourself in some of the world’s greatest art collections, explore the less discovered Paris and enjoy excursions to the countryside which inspired the Impressionists.
This itinerary is a veritable history of Western art, from ancient Roman times (the Roman baths incorporated into the Musée Cluny), the middle ages (Notre-Dame, Sainte Chapelle), the seventeenth century (Versailles, Place des Vosges), the rococo period (the Musée Jacquemart-André, some great mansions of the Marais), and to an array of modern art and architecture so innovative and influential that it changed the world.
ITINERARY
Monday 27 December 2010 Depart Sydney
Depart Sydney on overnight flights to Paris.
Tuesday 28 December Arrive Paris
Arrive Paris. Transfer to the hotel under own arrangements. Airport train, shuttle buses and taxis are readily available.
In the afternoon join Terence for an orientation walk, including a visit to the oldest art school in Paris, L’École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts. This evening join Terence and your fellow travellers for a welcome dinner. (B D)
Wednesday 29 December Paris
Begin our art exploration of Paris with a visit to the Musée d’Orsay, (our first of 2 visits) surveying the greatest collection of French 19th century art in the world. The collection includes some of the most famous paintings by Courbet, Manet, Monet, Pissarro, Degas, Cézanne, Van Gogh and other great masters.
In the afternoon embark on a walking tour of historic byways and backwaters of Paris, which takes you through the Palais Royal and the Passages, a network of quaint shopping arcades built in the early 19th century, the prototypes for the department stores and malls of modern times.
Early dinner at Chartier – a 19th century working-class restaurant whose original interior remains completely and spectacularly intact. The Boulevard Montmartre, the principal street nearby, was portrayed in Pissarro’s famous series of paintings. (BD)
Thursday 30 December Paris
In the morning return to the Musée d’Orsay for a second visit. An afternoon walking excursion will take you past the site of Nadar’s studio in the rue des Capucines (where the Impressionists held their first exhibition) as well as some of the landmarks of the Right Bank, terminating at the Place Vendôme. Stop at the Musee de l’Orangerie, home of Monet’s Waterlilies (Les Nympheas) and the exceptional modern-art collection of Paul Guillaume and Jean Walter, featuring paintings by Renoir, Cézanne, Picasso, Modigliani, and Matisse. (B)
Friday 31 December Paris
Today embark on a walking tour of the Left Bank, passing places where Matisse, Picasso, Brancusi and Gertrude Stein lived, and where Cézanne and Pissarro attended drawing classes. En route, we visit two masterpieces of Gothic architecture, Sainte-Chapelle and the cathedral of Notre Dame.
Tonight see the Opera Paris Ballet at the Palais Garnier. See three essential works from the repertoire: George Balanchine's lyrically abstract and evocative Apollon, O zozony/O composite by Trisha Brown where post modern dance conjugates with classical vocabulary and Pina Bausch’s legendary Rite of Spring with its profoundly theatrical dance.
Following the ballet enjoy a New Year’s Eve supper to welcome in 2011. (B,Supper)
Saturday 01 January 2011 Paris
After a leisurely breakfast depart the hotel on an excursion to the Forest of Fontainebleau, visiting towns where the Impressionists and their immediate precursors lived and painted. Explore the village of Moret-sur-Loing, where Sisley lived.
Remainder of the day at leisure. (B)
Sunday 02 January Paris
Day trip to the Château de Versailles, former residence of King Louis XIV, via Chatou, where Derain and Vlaminck invented the Fauve landscape, and which was also the location of Renoir’s famous painting, “The Luncheon of the Boating Party”. Brief stops will be made at Louveciennes, where Pissarro and Monet painted, and Marly, where Sisley painted. (BL)
Monday 03 January Paris
The in-depth exploration of the quarter of Le Marais will begin at the Place des Vosges, a great achievement of urban planning dating from the 17th century.
Continue to the Pompidou Centre, home of the Musée National d'Art Moderne. (BL)
Tuesday 04 January Paris
The palatial Musée Jacquemart-André was once a private residence. It is bedecked with Tiepolo frescoes, 18th century furniture galore, a collection of Italian renaissance sculpture and some superb paintings – including works by Jacques-Louis David, Van Dyck, Donatello and Botticelli.
Afternoon visit to the Musee d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris. It presents ever-changing exhibits on individual artists from all over the world or on trends in international art. The collection includes works by Chagall, Matisse, Léger, Rothko, Braque, Dufy, Picasso, Utrillo, and Modigliani. (B)
Wednesday 05 January Paris
Morning visit to the medieval collections of the Musée Cluny, some of it housed in the carapace of an ancient Roman bathhouse. Continue to the famous stretch of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, where the artistic and intellectual elite of yesteryear’s café society used to congregate.
Afternoon excursion to the Basilica of St-Denis, the earliest Gothic cathedral and the traditional burial place of French kings and queens since Merovingian times. (B)
Thursday 06 January Paris
Start with a visit the museum devoted to the great French sculptor Auguste Rodin at the Hôtel Biron featuring his most celebrated bronzes and marbles.
Afterwards, travel to Pontoise, to the district of L’Hermitage where Pissarro lived for 11 years. Visit other sites in nearby Auvers-sur-Oise which were painted by Cézanne and Van Gogh.
This evening, celebrate the conclusion of the tour with a farewell dinner at the stylish art deco restaurant, Le Boeuf sur le toit. (BD)
Friday 07 January Depart Paris
Tour arrangements conclude after breakfast. (B)
HOTEL****
Paris - Banke Hotel
