Books, Books and more Books!7/28/2011 Two new publications will soon be released upon us. Anyone who is familiar with my blog will be aware of my enthusiasm for both series of books.
That said, in recent times I’ve also become a fan of the work by Stephen Clarke and in particular his “Merde” series of books. I understand by a recent e-mail that Stephen is himself halfway through the draft of the 5th book in this series following the travels and adventures of Englishman Paul West, who we first meet attempting to open an English Tea Room in Paris – begin the hilarity as he attempts to navigate his way through French bureaucracy, women and attitudes. The currently available four books are entitled:- A Year in the Merde (2005) Merde Actually (2006) Merde Happens (2008) Dial M for Merde (2009) Check them out for more details – I’m not in the habit of giving out “spoilers.” Coming In August, The sixth book by Claude Izner (Claude Izner is the pen-name of two sisters, Liliane Korb and Laurence Lefevre. Both booksellers on the banks of the Seine, they are experts on nineteenth-century Paris.) In the fantastic Victor Legris murder mysteries series will be available entitled “Strangled in Paris” Why would anyone strangle a humble seamstress with no known enemies? When newly-married bookseller Victor Legris is asked to solve the murder of Louise Fontaine in the abattoir district of La Villette, he is initially baffled by the case. But as the investigation progresses, Victor, along with his assistant and brother-in-law Joseph discovers that in belle-époque Paris young girls with no money or background are as ruthlessly preyed on as ever they were.. Coming In September The fifth book in the brilliant Oscar Wilde Murder Mysteries series will be upon us entitled “Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders.” In 1892 Arthur Conan Doyle, exhausted by his creation Sherlock Holmes, retires to the spa at Bad Homburg. But his rest cure does not go as planned. The first person he encounters is Oscar Wilde, and when the two friends make a series of macabre discoveries amongst the portmanteau of fan mail Conan Doyle has brought to answer - a severed finger, a lock of hair and finally an entire severed hand - the game is once more afoot. The trail leads to Rome, to the very heart of the Eternal City, the Vatican itself. Pope Pius IX has just died. These are uncertain times. To uncover the mystery and why the creator of Sherlock Holmes has been summoned in this way, Oscar and Conan Doyle must penetrate the innermost circle of the Catholic Church - seven men who have a very great deal to lose. Enjoy!
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A Truly Great Exhibition!7/25/2011 My expectations for "Toulouse-Lautrec and Jane Avril: Beyond the Moulin Rouge" were high and I wasn't to be disappointed.
Somewhat overwhelmed by feelings of childish excitement (which were well hidden or so I hoped!) I was, for a couple of hours transported to Montmartre, Paris in the 1890s at the height of the "Belle Epoque." (Beautiful Age). In reality I had entered Rooms 14 and 15 located on the Second Floor of the Courtauld Gallery, London. As I entered I found that I was surrounded by 'old friends' paintings such as Jane Avril Dancing (1891-2), Jane Avril Dancing (1893), Jane Avril leaving the Moulin Rouge (1892), Jane Avril in the Entrance to the Moulin Rouge (1892), At the Moulin Rouge (1892-3), Jane Avril (A portrait 1891-2) and lithographs namely Jane Avril at the Jardin de Paris (1893), Divan Japanais (1893), Jane Avril (1899) and Mademoiselle Eglantine's Troupe (1896). This isn't true of course, they couldn't pass for old friends but after several trips to Paris and having read countless books on the subject the paintings and lithographs all seemed familiar to me when in fact I was gazing at them for the very first time. How fresh and new they all seemed. Jane Avril who in the paintings is depicted in many varying poses, alone, distant, lost in thought, vulnerable, perhaps tired after her exertions on the dance floor of the Moulin Rouge, enjoying a drink and conversation at the end of an evening or more likely into the early hours of the following morning. How truly wonderful to see and inspect the work so close up to see the tone and facial features in a way that never truly reproduces in book form. I will leave it to others better qualified than I to pass judgment or make comment on the quality of Lautrec's work, his use of brushstrokes, use of colour and light, his interpretation of those he painted and indeed, his subject matter. For me though he was a master of his craft who transcended the accepted form of art by presenting to the world his most marvellous lithographs, full of colour, life and movement the purpose of which was to promote and advertise artists (of which Jane is undoubtedly one) and venues in which they performed. Being accepted as a genuine form of art is it any wonder that when they were pasted around Montmartre that in some cases they disappeared taken from places by those who craved ownership of them? It's as well I wasn't there at that time as I would have taken a few rolled them up and tucked them under my arm and exhibited them in a gallery of my own There are 7 cases on display in Room 15 all containing items which are wonderful and give a taste of the life Jane experienced before her fame grew and after her association with Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec ended following his untimely death in 1901. But my favourite beyond doubt had to be Case 4 which contains old black and white photos of Jane in varying poses that I had never seen before. She is the personification of Parisian style but with her own (as ever) input. She is photographed in performance mode and just simply modelling often gazing away from the camera to make you wonder just what it is she is contemplating. She is simply beautiful, perhaps not in the conventional way but then that works for me. Fortunately all the photographs have been reproduced in the catalogue that accompanies the exhibition and which I wouldn't be without. I left eventually and reluctantly in the knowledge that I would never see some of the works again as they make their way to their respective homes after the exhibition ends, but I feel privileged to have seen the works together under one roof perhaps, in truth, as they should be seen. A fine and fitting tribute to the relationship that existed between the artist and the dancer! What are you waiting for - go and see it! - Craig Next Stop The Courtauld!7/22/2011 On Saturday (23rd July 2011) I will be attending the Toulouse-Lautrec and Jane Avril: Beyond the Moulin Rouge exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery in London. It’s fair to say that I’m excited at viewing the exhibits on display and hopefully learning a little more about the artist and his favourite muse. I’ve already read the catalogue that accompanies the exhibition and that has added to my knowledge and would certainly recommend it as a good read even if you are not planning to attend.
Clean Up Oscar Wilde!7/7/2011 As you may or may not recall I commented last September on my return from Paris on how sad I was to observe the state of Oscar Wilde's final resting place and how year by year the defacing of the tombstone sculpted by Sir Jacob Epstein had got progressively worse.
Well some good news - In a recent Oscar Wilde Society Newsletter the following article appeared which brought me a lot of pleasure. Here is the article as it appears: The Irish Times reports that The Minister of State for Finance, Mr Hayes, visited Père Lachaise cemetery during an official visit to Paris to confirm that the Office of Public Works would provide funding for the restoration of Oscar Wilde’s grave – one of the cemetery’s most visited tombs. The memorial, a sculpture of a modernist angel designed by Sir Jacob Epstein, is covered with graffiti and parts of the stone have been knocked off. The restoration project will involve cleaning the grave and surrounding it with glass joined by four bronze pillars. The State was approached about the restoration by the Irish Cultural Centre in Paris and Merlin Holland, Wilde’s grandson. Sheila Pratschke, the director of the centre, said the project team wanted it to be as simple and as unobtrusive as possible. “It has been [Mr Holland’s] dream to have it cleaned, restored and respected,” Ms Pratschke said. “I think it will look magnificent when it’s cleaned.” Mr Hayes called the State’s involvement a small but very important gesture. “We have a responsibility to the great Irish writers, no matter where they are in the world, and we have a responsibility to their memory.” Well said all and I wish the venture well! Craig 
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