Canadian-American Frank Gehry has had a wonderful week in Paris with his Louis Vuitton Foundation inaugurated on Monday while the George Pompidou Center is giving his work a major career retrospective. Paris continues to enthrall with her capacity to preserve the old and integrate new architecture.
"The harmonious combination of history and modernity in Paris is truly unique. Other cities, notably many Italian cities, are also steeped in history and have incredible contemporary art and design scenes. But the old and the new tend to remain very separate. In contrast, Paris has learned to integrate the two. It negotiates the fine line between its rich history and cutting-edge design in fascinating ways. Many other European cities struggle with this awkwardly and often unsuccessfully." Michael Hermann interview in This Paris Life
7 comments:
C'est un très beau bâtiment que j'ai envie de visiter.
When reading an interview with Michael Herrman I found it interesting that there is a difference between the US and France in terms of the types of materials and construction techniques that was a challenge for Michael at first.Because I would assume that the U.S. and France are both very progressive in its material and construction. Because as well as France, the U.S. is very productive and creative when it comes to the architecture. So in my opinion they both would of been on the same construction level.
Reading Michael Herman's interview, he mentioned that the French has a natural tendency to for customization than here in the US. I recall when I was in France in 2012, the building and houses all had a unique individual style, which was nice to see. Unlike here in the US, the housing developments have a certain number of plans and the houses were very quiet similar in style and texture to each other, which makes the housing community very standardized looking. One thing that he mentioned was interesting was that during vacations and holidays, manufacturing companies shut down. Unlike here in the US, I think home builder's work usual slow down during the rainy season and when the housing economy is not doing well. They don't shut down for vacations and holidays.
I am fascinated and astound at how France is into preservation of their historical building and architecture. It is amazing work. Reading Michael Herman`s interviews, he is a world renowned artist with experience from all over the world. Plus, the resources, inspiration, and time he had in France gave him optimal results. This is why great work comes out of France because they have the sincerity for art that dates back in history. I also find that the interior building laws have changed similar to the change here for insulation. Thus, this gives residents the opportunity to expand more space. It is interesting how simple laws and regulations can change art as well.
It is amazing to know that France has a unique and diverse style of buildings and architecture. The developments continue to grow and visitors enjoy seeing these experiences. After reading Michael Herman's interviews, it is astounding to see how long he has been in the architectural designing industry. Being able to start at a very young age like 10 is impressive. It is an honor to win a prize from being talented at what you do. Planning and preserving buildings are not easy at all. It takes patience and creativity to build something for the world to be impressed about.
After clicking on the link, “Love is here to stay!” I was shocked to see that it was a song. The song, sung by Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron, is from the movie An American in Paris. Back in 1951, the movie characters Jerry (Gene Kelly) and Lise (Leslie Caron) perform a romantic number/scene on the Seine river in France. The lyrics of the song are as follows:
“It's very clear, our love is here to stay
Not for a year but ever and a day
The radio and the telephone and the movies that we know
May just be passing fancies and in time may go
But oh, my dear, our love is here to stay
Together we're going a long, long way
In time the Rockies may crumble, Gibraltar may tumble
They're only made of clay
But our love is here to stay
In time the Rockies may crumble, Gibraltar may tumble
They're only made of clay
But our love is here to stay” (Source: Google Lyrics)
These lyrics infer that Paris’ “love is here to stay”; thus, the famous city’s past, history, art, culture, etc. is important to them. The lyrics mention that as time passes, important fancies may be forgotten. Moreover, as time goes on, things fade. However, Paris does not want their fancies to ever be forgotten, as they are loved and cherished.
This ties in nicely to Michael Hermann’s interview in “This Paris Life”. Michael Hermann is an award winning architect who has designed and created many features and projects in Paris, France. Hermann respects the sensitivity Paris has for its preservation of history. As he innovates his contemporary projects, techniques and technologies, Hermann ensures to combine, yet also keep separate, his new work with the older and more antique fancies of Paris. Paris, France is widely known for its beautiful perseverance of history as well as it’s weaving of new treasures into its’ architect, art, and culture.
A Canadian-American in Paris
While reading the interview done to Michael Herrman, I discovered many things. Before reading it I hadn't realized that architecture methods and supplies used by the united states and France differed. I believe on a personal level that this also depends on the geography of the county. according to the interviewee, many houses in France have oak beams and limestone walls, which is not typical in us. we usually have a very modern home and even mansion, and we rarely see old homes in urban settings. Both neighborhoods that Michael Herrman mention in his interview were La Place de la Madeleine area The Marais neighborhood, which intrigued me. Many of these homes are unique and old since not many homes are modernized. Its mentioned that there are areas in France where there are Italian style cities while others are built with contemporary art and history. Overall I believe there are differences between the US and France in many ways which include the architecture.
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