Ricardo Bloch takes us back to the intimate world of a working class neighborhood in Denver, Colorado 1978. Another time, another America. Children model cowboy outfits, sell lemonade, take their dolls out for a stroll. Bloch, a Harvard Phd. in biochemistry, dropped out of high-end science to pursue photography and art. He moved to Paris in 1996 and has since built up an impressive resumé. Happy Days includes nearly 40 exquisite black and white photographs, and opens on 22 May, from 18h to 22h. Through 7 June. School Gallery, 81 rue du Temple 75003 Paris. Tél: 01 42 71 78 20.

In a nutshell, it is a festival of vegetarian and vegan pride and participants aim to do the following: 1) demonstrate against the inhumane treatment of animals; 2) show pride of vegetarianism and veganism; 3) denounce vegephobia; 4) defending their rights to express their opinions; 5) to act in behalf of animals - that do not have rights.

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I received information lately from Alicia Beesley of New Life In France, a great resource for those of you thinking of making the move.

Be warned, they say that “30% of British expats that return to the UK within four years of moving to France why they have come back, the majority will say the language or the bureaucracy. It is well known that the French love official documentation, red tape and paperwork - there are huge numbers of people employed as civil servants, in post offices, banks and offices. Many of these employees could be considered ‘jobs worths’ - they can be inflexible and rather irritating in their instance to do everything exactly by the book.”

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There are American writers who write about Paris. There are Parisian writers who write about America. There are writers who have simply been inspired by Paris. The list of award-winning authors falling into all these categories is long and impressive.

So it is wild — almost unfathomable to me — to imagine having dinner with about ten of them in one night. But in less than two weeks, on May 27th, that’s just what I’m going to do.

At its annual fundraiser, the American Library in Paris invites a renowned author to speak. This year, the all-hailed Prince of Paris, none other than Adam Gopnik, author of Paris to the Moon, will return to Paris to be the featured guest speaker. But the organizers of the Gala came up with a ‘novel’ spin on the always sparkling event: this year they have also invited a group of literary luminaries to create an unprecedented event in recent Paris literary history. It is a Francophile bibliophile’s dream come true.

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“Traces du Sacré” is the mega, multi-disciplinary exhibition that opened on May 7th at the Pompidou Center. Curated by Jean de Loisy and Angela Lampe, this grand endeavor brings together more than 350 works of art by nearly 200 artists beginning from the 19th century up to present day and as diverse as Casper David Friedrich, Hilma Auf de Klimt, Malevich, William Burroughs, Barnett Newman, Mounir Fatmi and Maurizo Cattelan. The exhibition is arranged thematically under such subtitles as “Apocalypses,” “Nostalgia of the Infinite,” “Doors of Perception,” and “Resonances of the Archaic.”

Throughout the ages there have always been connections/influences between art, religion, spirituality, philosophy, but this became less and less so throughout the 20th century as the world modernized and globalized. As the press release states, “The goal of the exhibition is thus to explore the significance of the survival of such questioning throughout the twentieth century, and to show that it continues to fuel the invention of contemporary artistic forms, and as such represents an essential key to the understanding of modern art.
” The one easy critique to make is that the curators took liberty with the subject matter, stretching interpretations to include work that doesn’t really fit into the context, the most obvious of which, in my opinion was the inclusion of the Hans Namuth films of Pollack doing his drip paintings. But it is a rich and intriguing exhibition and be sure to allow yourself a good couple of hours to make it through.

Monday night, I happened to be in Amphitheatre Richelieu of the Sorbonne. This was very exciting for me as I just watched footage of both the police and the students “taking over” the Sorbonne in 1968. That night, the room was “occupied” by the jazz ensemble Belmondo and their special guest Milton Nascimento. This was held as part of the Jazz Festival in Saint-Germain-des-Pres which continues until May 23rd. There are so many choices of groups and venues, it can make a head spin.

Nascimento is a Brazilian singer/songwriter who had a vocal sound I had never heard before in my somewhat limited experience with Brazilian music. He entered with extremely high pitched vocal tones accompanying the horns, cello, piano and drums. The only thing I can liken his voice to is the high pitched calls in the songs of some Native American tribes. It was unusual and interesting. It was a mellow concert overall with great music and unbelievable vocals.

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Here it is May 2008, 40 years after the student uprisings and labor movements in France. 1968 was a historic year throughout the world and here in France, it is referred to as Mai 68, as that is when most of the action happened. Everywhere is signs to commemorate this; the Figaro has put out a special edition, 1968 Révolutions: Paris Rome Prague États Unis Vietnam; Rolling Stone has a collector’s edition, 68 Les Révolutions: Rock Art Cinéma Literature. There is a photo exhibit appropriately near the Sorbonne showing scenes of burned cars, and students heaving bricks. There are debates and discussions taking place. There are also a number of films in town that portray or document the happenings.

One such film is Mai 68 by Lawaetz and Kanapa showing at the Filmothèque du Quartier Latin. (It is showing tonight at 18:20 in French). It is a three hour documentary which chronicles the events as they unfolded in the Spring of 1968. I caught the film Sunday night in an effort to have a better understanding of what went on 40 years ago. Here’s my interpretation of what went on.

You’re looking at one of the largest real estate programs in Paris at the moment. It always fascinates me to see that even in 2008, in one of the smallest capitals of the world (yes, Paris’s area is small) you can still find 500 acres (200 hectares) available. In 2010 what you’re looking at will be turned into offices, housing, industrial facilities and public space! All this in the 19th arrondissement, which is inside Paris.

My mom and dad have been renting an apartment around the corner from the Louvre for the past 2 months. My mom called my brother before a shopping trip. “What’s French for bleach? I need some bleach.” My brother, who knows even less French than I, said, “I don’t know, try babel fish.” Two hours later, in Monoprix, my mother was asking a befuddled employee, “Ou est le babel fish?”

Spellbinding.

That’s the best word I can use to describe the Monumenta 2008 Richard Serra Promenade exhibit at the Grand Palais.

Monumenta is a three-year series of art exhibitions where the Grand Palais invites a major international artist to display his work. The organizers promote it as a challenge, since the artist has to fill the largest existing ironwork and glass structure in the world, a Belle Epoque-style palace built in 1900, measuring a whopping 162,000 square feet.

I went last Friday night at about 10PM with Diane and some friends. It was a beautiful clear, balmy spring night. Once I walked into the exhibit, I was awestruck. It was almost devoid of people and the silence of the vast space struck me. Five tall metal, slightly curved, walls towered over me and I was filled with peace and solitude, much like the experience of being in a sacred religious temple. I walked around for about an hour, viewing from it from every angle I could, and each place I stood was a unique opportunity to marvel this masterpiece.

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