Harp Column Blogs: Carl SwansonArchive

OK, Here's Paris, the sequal. Or PARIS, PART DEUX. About 10 years ago I read some Sunday travel section article about Paris and things to see, and one of the things mentioned was the Museum of Plans-relief, which is housed in the Military Museum at the Invalides. I'd never heard of it, so on my next trip to Paris I went there and had the surprise of my life.

Back in the 1600's the technology had not yet been developed to make maps showing the land contours and other geographical features, so the only thing they could do was to make a scale model. The result was the Plan-relief, or scale model of entire cities, ports, fortifications, etc. The first ones were made in the reign of Louis XIV, around 1690, and continued until about 1835. Some of the models are quite small(4 feet square) and show a fort, or Mont St. Michel, etc. The largest ones are about 15 feet square and show entire cities. The plan-relief of whole cities shows not only the city, but also all of the surrounding countryside. On a model that is 15 feet on a side, the city is around 3 feet in diameter in the center of the model, so you can see that a lot of countryside is shown too. Every building in the city, including all churches, monastaries, ramparts, are made to scale and painted to look like the building, and all trees are made out of wire and silk thread. The surrounding landscape is painted to show fields, streams, rivers, etc. The astounding result is that you can see a scale model of a city that was made in 1690 and see exactly what it looked like at that time.

I discovered on this trip that the Museum of Beaux Arts in Lille has 15 of these models on display, all representing cities in northern France, Belgium, and Holland. Maastrikt is one of the cities shown. I was headed to Lille anyway, so I stopped in to see the models. They're unbelievable. Looking at one of these models is like flying over the actual city in a small plane. The buildings are about 1/2 inch tall, so you see the scale. I recommend to anybody that they make an effort to visit this museum at the Invalides, and if possible, take the train to Lille to see the other models. It's well worth the trip.

Well I got back last night and I feel like ruminating about my (wonderful) trip to Paris. Absolutely none of this blog will have anything to do with the harp(well, actually one little bit), so if you're looking for harp stuff from me here, it's not going to happen. But we are artists, and people with lives, and so some of this might interest you if you love art or are headed to Paris.

I've been back to Paris since living there more times than I could possibly count. I keep going back in part because I love the city, it feels like I'm going home, I still have friends there that I love to hang out with, and I speak the language, which is real important to me when traveling. I want to tell you here about some off-the-beaten-track jewels I discovered this time.

In recent years I've developed an interest in prowling cemeteries(maybe it's my advanced age). I love finding the graves of famous people, and Paris is a great place for doing this. This time, I decided to try to locate some famous harp people, namely Tournier, Hasselmans, and Renie. I didn't find Hasselmans or Renie, but I did find Tournier. He's buried in the cemetary at Passy, which is just across the street from the overlook at Trocadero with the glorious view of the Eiffel Tower. For those of you who share my morbid fascination, his grave is in Division 10, 6 south, 1 East. You can get a map from the Concierge of the cemetery. This same cemetery contains the graves of Debussy and Faure, as well as Jacques Ibert.

I visited a small museum that I had never seen before. It's in the 8th arrondisement and borders on the Parc Monceau. It's called the Nissim de Camondo museum. It's a jewel and has a poignant story. This was the private residence of a very wealthy banker of Turkish-Jewish extraction. The second generation owner of the fortune moved to Paris from Istanbul in the 1890's and began collecting 18th century French furniture and artwork, about which he was passionate. Around 1905 he had a residence built based on the petit Trianon to house him and his collection. His only son Nissim was killed in the first world war in the service of France. Unconsolable after that, the father became a recluse and in the early 30's gave the house and all it's contents to the state of France, and named the museum to honor his son. He died in 1935. His only other child, a daughter, was sent, with her husband and two children to Auchwitz where they were all murdered by the Germans. The family is now extinct. The museum is a spectacular collection of 18th century decorative arts and contains several busts by Houdon(absolutely my favorite sculptor. Look him up) and several portraits by Elizabeth Vigee LeBrun(one of the greatest of 18th century portrait painters and the greatest female painter ever). The house is still set up the way it was lived in. It recently underwent a massive restoration and is in gorgeous condition. The whole visit though is veiled with sadness for the fate of the family.

But you don't have to visit museums to see great art in Paris. I love sculpture, and masterpieces of this art form can be found all over the city. On the median strip of Boulevard Raspail, right near the Metro Raspail is Rodin's monumental bronze of Balzac. On the front facade of the Paris Opera(the Salle Garnier, not the Bastille) is a marble masterpiece by Carpeaux called La Danse. It has 4 or 5 full size figures dancing and cavorting on one small pedestal, and it takes my breath away every time I see it. The roof of the Grand Palais has two large bronzes, each one representing 4 horses pulling a Roman chariot. The horses look like they are leaping out into space. They're just extraordinary. The friend I stay with lives near Place de la Republique, and there is a large monument there. The bronze figure on top of the pedestal is a bit like the statue of liberty and frankly is kind of ponderous. But at the base of the monument are two marble statues of robed women, larger than life, that are out of this world. They're each seated, with one hand on a knee and the other thrusting a flag or banner in the air. They each look like they are about to spring to their feet. Every time I come out of the Metro there, I stop and look at them. I suspect that they too are by Carpeaux. In Pere La Chaise cemetary there is a life size bronze nude(male) on someones grave. No mention of why it is there, nothing else written on the grave. The statue is wonderful. That's just a small sampling of the art you can see for free in Paris.

I'm going to continue this in another blog. It's Thanksgiving today and I've got other things to do now. Bye!

Just thought I'd let you know I'm off to France tomorrow night(Thursday, Nov. 9). I'll be back on the 22nd. It's just a vacation, and a veg-out one at that. No particular plans. Just visit friends in Paris and Ghent Belgium. Visit some of my favorite haunts, namely Versailles, the Louvre, the Musee des plan-reliefs(bet you've never heard of that one!), perhaps see an opera at the Bastille, and maybe a few day trips to Rhimes to see the gorgeous cathedral there, maybe Vaux-le-Viscount(one of the most gorgeous chateaus in france), and who knows what else. I may also try to track down the graves of Tournier and Renie. A friend has a farmhouse in Normandy, and I LOVE spending time there, so we'll see. Talk to you all after the 22nd. Bye!!!