Five Things I Miss About Paris
Like everyone else, I haven’t been traveling much beyond my nearest town this past year. My yearly trip to France to paint and teach was cancelled, and I’m missing Paris.
The grey sky of an autumn day here on my hill, the chill in the air and scent of dry leaves underfoot, take me back to the Luxembourg Gardens on an October afternoon.
Susan Abbott, “Luxembourg Gardens on a Fall Morning”, 6” x 6”, watercolor
I’m thinking of long walks along quays and boulevards with a sketchbook and museum pass in my pocket.
Susan Abbott, “Louvre, Late Afternoon”, 8” x 8”, watercolor
Or lingering in a bistro over a glass of vin rouge and in a cafe over an espresso and almond croissant. Sigh.
Susan Abbott, Paris sketchbook, Pitt marker pen and watercolor
I first went to Paris when my son (now thirty) was five. I was an artist who loved French painting and who had never been to France, and I was tired of feeling bad about that. So I packed up Colin and his Legos, found a cheap hotel on Rue Gay Lussac, and together we spent two months exploring the city.
Susan Abbott, Paris sketchbook, Micron pen
In the dozens of times I’ve returned to Paris, I’ve never been back to the Army Museum, the McDonalds on the Champs-Élysées, or to the top of the Eiffel Tower, all places Colin and I went to and that were more exciting to a little boy than me.
But on that first trip I did fall in love with the things that attract everyone lucky enough to visit this most beautiful of cities, and those are the Paris places I’m missing now:
The Seine
Susan Abbott, “The Seine Towards Musee D’Orsay”, Oil on panel, 12” x 12”
The Seine is a ribbon of light that runs through the middle of Paris. The river reflects the colors of the sky, and lends its luminosity to the grey buildings that line its banks. It orients you as you move, always to your left or right, keeping you on track.
The Seine is the heart of Paris, and artists like Marquet, Jongkind, Matisse and Pissaro have painted along its banks from the beginning of plein air painting in the 1800’s to today.
Colin and I enjoyed taking “boat taxis” up and down the Seine, and that’s something I still like to do. The city from the vantage point of the water looks strange and unexpected, full of surprises.
Bridges and Quays
Susan Abbott, “The Seine, Evening” (detail), 20” x 28”, oil on linen
Bridges span the two banks of Paris, and each bridge has its own character. Some are solid stone monoliths that are firmly rooted in the founding of the city, some are over-the-top Baroque, gilded and ornate. The more modern ones with their four lanes and straight lines are more for cars than people, but they do their job of uniting the two very different sides of the city.
Quays provide access to the water. These walls and walks are both private and public. You can sit, stroll, and smooch on a quay. You can fish from a quay, sunbathe, chat, picnic and, best of all, paint.
Markets
Susan Abbott, “Saint-Pierre Market”, 6” x 6”, watercolor
Food markets, stamp markets, flea markets, flower markets, bird markets, fabric markets—it’s a pleasure to wander the "marchés" of Paris. You can find anything you want in an outdoor market here, from an antique chair, to oysters on the half-shell, to discount shoes.
I don’t buy much in markets, but it’s still great fun to wander and keep my eyes open for a little bric-a-brac for a still life, or the makings of a picnic of cheese, bread and fruit. And sketching in markets is great fun, too. The trick is to tuck into a corner out of the action, so I don’t bother the busy merchants and serious shoppers.
Parks
Susan Abbott, “Sun and Shade, Luxembourg Gardens”, 8” x 8”, watercolor
Paris parks are the outdoor rooms of the city. The are groomed and designed, clean and colorful, formal and comfortable.
You don’t play frisbee or loll on the grass in these neighborhood gardens, but you can sit on a stone bench or stylish metal chair, and eat your baguette, read your book, watch children sail their boats in a fountain, or take a nap in the sun.
Paris parks are civilized places. Even when crowded, they’re quiet enough to be alone with your thoughts.
Parisians
Parisians have a reputation for being rude, but I wouldn’t know if that’s accurate since I don’t speak French well enough to comprehend if insulted. I have found them to be helpful when I’ve been standing on a street corner staring at a map. It’s true that they are more reserved than we chatty Americans. But the French are polite, and “merci” and “s’il vous plait” are your most important vocabulary when moving around town.
What I enjoy about Parisians is looking at them. They dress with style, and move around their city with confidence. I love to draw Parisians in cafes, on the street, on the Metro and in buses. Often I can do this on the sly, but even if they notice me studying them with a pen in my hand, they don’t seem to mind. Paris has a long history of accepting the admiring gaze of artists.
Here’s an animation of my Paris sketches, I hope it brings back good memories of Paris for you, or plants the longing in your heart to make your first visit, when we can travel again..