VINGT Paris Magazine

L'Alhambra

Text: Nick Forrester

A quiet street around the corner from the Canal Saint Martin. A few up-market restaurants, trendy shops and bobo boutiques as well as a job agency, a workers union and a few ateliers that never seem to open; here lies the Alhambra. Not much goes on on in the daytime apart from kids smoking outside the Lycée a few doors down.

The atmosphere tends to change however when there’s a show in town but this is only five to fifteen times a month, so most of the time all is quiet but the infrequent performances stand out. Primarily a music venue, but sometimes moonlighting as a theatre the Alhambra attracts everything from Jazz Manouche to Electro. Previous performers include Calvin Harris, Dick Rivers and Sophie Huriaux.

The crowd that each artist attracts is particularly conspicuous. One hot July afternoon Japanese megastar Gackt arrived in town with his band Yellow Fried Chickenz to play to a packed Alhambra audience. Throughout the afternoon this normally chic and subdued area was transformed, by way of a significant amount of pink hair dye, knee length Dock Martins and long leather jackets, into Paris’ first punk arrondissement.  

France’s Young Artists: Alive and Kicking - Portes Ouvertes 2010 Beaux-Arts

Text and image of Beaux-Arts interior by Aran Cravey

From Delacroix and David, to Monet and Renoir, the list of great artists to emerge from the ateliers of Paris’s École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts spans the length of the prestigious institution’s 350-year history.

Established under the reign of Louis XIV, the Académie de Beaux-Arts was created to train France’s young artists to become the best and brightest in all of Europe.  Over the next several hundred years it did just that, attracting the world’s most gifted creative minds with its classical training and rigorous curriculum.

However, since the latter half of the twentieth century, the art world has come to view Beaux-Arts, as well as Paris, for that matter, as nothing more than anachronisms, artistic dinosaurs concerned only with preserving the glory of their past. Judging from the work exhibited over the weekend at the École des Beaux-Arts’s student showcase, the Portes Ouvertes, France’s critics may need to reassess.

Jim Haynes' Legendary Paris Salon

Text and images Susie Hollands - from our archives, a post from back in the day, 2005 

That famous address. The one and only Jim Haynes. I stop by to pick up virgin copies of the Jim's "People to People" books. Jim and I chat about Dorothy Parker and I am reminded that I still need to read Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller (I've caught up now). Here he is with a filing cabinet of his address filo-faxes containing the names and addresses of fascinating souls from all over the globe.  Who just happened to stop by his home in Paris.  More than 100 000 of them.

It's funny to think how many times I have been at Jim's, researching topics, picking his brains, listening to tales of intrepid reporting from the Cannes Film Festival in the 70's. How often I've been at the Sunday night dinners, sometimes paying, sometimes for free (thanks Jim) when I was skint and/or involved in making food for the guests, including one fateful time - Lentil Stew for 100 people with Whitey Flagg (with whom I opened the I V Y paris gallery).

Le Centquatre – Artistic Establishment of the City of Paris

Text by Tiffany Tang
Photo by Edouard Caupeil

Developed as one of the cultural projects by the Mairie de Paris with the vision of reviving the city’s contemporary art scene, Le Centquatre – its name taken from the street number 104, Rue d'Aubervilliers - is an artistic hub for up-and-coming artists sharing creation space and synergy, under the glass ceiling of recently restored unique nineteenth century architecture. Situated in a humble neighborhood of the nineteenth arrondisement the former funeral parlour, was re-opened in October 2008 after its 100 million euro renovation. Currently led by the two directors Robert Cantarella and Frédéric Fisbach, Le Centquatre aims to provide a space where art and culture interact with the public without barriers.

Point Ephémère on Canal St Martin

Text and image by Will Best

If you allow yourself to meander down the Canal St Martin, you’ll stumble upon the industrial outer body of artistic haven Point Ephémère.  Once a factory, Point Ephémère now buzzes to a bohemian vibe thanks to the foresight and community based initiative from Usines Ephémère, the non-profit organisation overseeing the goings-on. The space includes 5 music studios, one dance studio, a fabric workshop, a multimedia platform and four visual art studios for artistic residence activities.  Professional and amateur artists, dancers, musicians or even large installation specialists are invited to apply for in-house residencies of up to six months, where hard to acquire materials and specialist tools are at hand to render the careful process of developing an oeuvre. 

Jean-Michel Frank at Fondation Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent

Text by Christopher Holt

The little-known Fondation Pierre Bergé - Yves Saint Laurent was created to preserve the 40-year legacy of YSL’s iconic couture house, which closed in 2002. The most recent show highlights the work of interior designer Jean-Michel Frank.

The exhibition consists of five separate furniture sets with pieces from the early 1920s to late 1930s. Three of these sets are featured in a single room and stand out for their sleek, minimal styling and striking use of materials such as of shagreen (sting ray leather), intricate straw marquetry and mica tiling. He used rich leather upholstery from Hermés, creating an affect that is both modest yet luxurious. Although his work clearly echoes the art-deco aesthetic of the period, it transcends the era through it's understated simplicity, appearing just as modern and relevant today.

Groundzero: The Best Independent Record Store In Paris

Will Hutchins writing for I V Y paris

If you’ve failed in your bid to find that Senegalese 1969-1972 funk rarities compilation you’ve been searching for in your local Fnac, or the Virgin Megastore on the Champs Elysées didn’t have a vinyl copy of the new Au Revoir Simone album in stock, then you’ll have better luck at 23 rue Saint Marthe in Belleville.

This hidden treasure of a record store has a superb stash of independent music on vinyl and cd from around the world to get the taste buds of any discerning pop music fan watering.

Catering for the album loving anorak, Groundzero don’t bother with stocking the classics and instead just keep it to a well chosen selection of the latest and most interesting indie, reggae, soul, funk, African, hip-hop, jazz, blues and electro releases and re-editions. From compilations of West African music in 1920’s Britain to the latest SoMe designed Ed Banger picture disc single the shop keeps their collection intriguingly diverse but always high quality. 

Les soirées Rayon Frais

Rayon Frais is a place where film, video and sound installation come alive. This Friday, November 13th, 2008, come see and hear disco by Eva Peel, electropop by Sportsday Megaphone (featured below), and rock disco by JD Twitch.

Elysée Biarritz
22, 24 rue Quentin Brochan
Paris 75008

L'inauguration du CENT QUATRE

The 104, or Cent Quatre, is one of Paris' major cultural projects promoting art and creativity. Located in the 19th arrondissement, this new establishment will offer residencies, exhibitions, and festivals as well as a restaurant and several shops.

Their grand opening will be taking place this Saturday, October 11th, 2008.

For the occasion, this new dynamic arts center will introduce a full day of artwork coming from all angles: architecture and visual art with Berger & Berger's "Une île paradisiaque est un spectacle artificiel," landscape design by Atelier Le Balto, video installations by Alain Bernardini and Melik Ohanian... and more.

The night will continue on with trip-hop, pop décalée, and electro DJs Tricky, Epplay/Takahashi, and FNNNN.

Don't miss out on the fun - all of Paris will be there, or at least the cool people.

Une Douche ou Un Bain?

Unsure of whether I was going to get clean or dirty on the dance floor, I slipped into Les Bains Douches club on Saturday night.

A venue with a history -- Bains Douches was originally a municipal bathhouse turned bar, notably a home for Parisian new wave.

Andy Warhol would come to see the Dead Kennedys and Psychedelic Furs perform. Not to mention, Joy Division recorded an album of the same name, right here in 1979.

At the present day, Bains Douches has taken on a sound system (the club is the first to be equipped with Funktion-one, the same sound and installation concept you'd find at the Space in Ibiza).