The past two days have been largely consumed with thwarted attempts to see modern sites. In particular, IRCAM and Maison de Verre (built by Charueau in 1932) proved to be difficult to contact and visit since both sites limit public access. IRCAM only opens to public visits several times a week with guided tours, due to the need to maintain a level of privacy for the musicians and administrators involved with the institute. Maison de Verre, on the other hand, is best described as a semi-private home, whose new owners decided to preserve its integrity and spirit by also reducing the amount of onsite visits. When I called Maison de Verre and no one answered the phone, I decided to métro (yes, it is a verb now) to it’s location on the left bank only to find that the site is hidden by a large, antique façade sheltering the home from curious pedestrians. International modern travelers should note that many modern sites are still private residences or administrative buildings, making it for them difficult to function as proper museums. This has been somewhat of a problem for me during my trip, often being told that cameras are not allowed inside or that I will have to wait an hour, a day or even a week to visit because the site is closed for meetings, church services, undisclosed reasons, etc.



I did manage, however, to visit Atelier Brancusi, the reconstructed studio of Constantin Brancusi, who as I said in a previous blog entry, donated his property to the French government upon his death in 1957. The building was designed by Renzo Piano (one of the architects who designed the Pompidou Museum) and sits in the Place Georges Pompidou adjacent to the museum, so it is a must see when visiting this center for modern art. Modern enthusiasts will be happy to know that the Atelier Brancusi is free to visit, offering sun bathers, musicians and roaming tourists who congregate in the square a great opportunity to see some of Brancusi’s most celebrated works. I personally found the miniature museum fascinating because it reveals the painstaking detail with which Brancusi placed his sculptures and tools around his studio. To me, the sculptures and array of materials (wood, marble, iron and bronze) synthesize into a single, architectural form that seems almost as if they were the walls and ceiling. While each work is great by itself, the unified amalgamation of objects had a greater effect on me.


I also visited “Paris Plages” – a section on the right bank of the Seine where, since 2002, the French government sets up of five kilometers of beach-like activities during the summer. In 2006, four million people visited the site, enjoying boardwalks, beaches, rock climbing, lounge chairs, water activities, rollerblading, dance studios, cafés and miniature amusement parks. This year, it is just the same. It was a strange feeling to be in the middle of urban Paris and see hundreds of sunbathers along the Seine and children building sand castles modeled after Notre Dame (though it is quite fun none the less). I even saw one man become so inspired by the lively atmosphere that he jumped into the Seine, then quickly scurried up the riverbank wall and vomited all over himself. The Seine is rather polluted, I guess.


-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern