Showing posts with label Nelson Mandela. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nelson Mandela. Show all posts

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Paris Honors Madiba

After the extraordinary exposition "From Prisoner to President" at the Hôtel de Ville de Paris that honored him earlier this year, Paris turned out in force to pay homage to Nelson Mandela in the wake of his passing on December 5, 2013.

After his death, the City of Paris projected an image of Mandela on the façade of City Hall on Friday, December 6th and Saturday, December 7th.


On December 10th, the official ceremony that took place in Soweto was broadcast on a giant screen at Place de la République.

From December 14th through December 17th, the Eiffel Tower displayed the inscription "NELSON MANDELA 1918 - 2013" in illuminated letters five meters tall and five spotlights shone in the colors of the South African flag. This was organized in coordination with the South Africa - France Season 2012-2013 by the l’Institut français et le National Arts Council d'Afrique du Sud, the City of Paris, and the Société d'Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE).


A grass roots initiative launched on Facebook succeeded in mobilizing hundreds of candle-carrying citizens to come to Trocadero to honor Mandela on December 15th, the day of his burial.






All the above images are from the Mairie de Paris Web site. To view more photos, visit the Google+ profile for the Mairie de Paris.

On December 16th, Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoë formally proposed to Paris City Council that that garden being built at Les Halles, in the heart of Paris, be named after Mandela. Part of the garden is to be inaugurated today.

Photo from July 2013 exposition
© Discover Paris!

Rest in peace, Madiba.

The Paris City Council voted unanimously to name Mandela an honorary citizen of Paris in May 2013.

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Thursday, July 25, 2013

Nelson Mandela: from Prisoner to President

There are only three days left (including today) to see the extraordinary exposition honoring Nelson Mandela at the Hôtel de Ville de Paris. When I wrote about it on July 4th, I reported that the exhibit ended on July 6th. I went there on the 6th and learned that it had been prolonged until July 27th. I was relieved because I did not allot nearly enough time for my visit - particularly to view the many videos that are displayed (in English with subtitles) - and saw that I needed to return.

To whet the appetites of those in Paris who still have the opportunity to see the exposition in person, I'm presenting several photos of what awaits you at Paris' City Hall. For those who are not in Paris, I hope that you'll appreciate this virtual visit!

Reproduction of Mandela's Robben Island cell
© Discover Paris!

Opening Panel
© Discover Paris!

Bead portraits of Mandela
© Discover Paris!

Model of sculpture by Marco Cianfanelli
© Discover Paris!

Side view of elements composing model of sculpture by Marco Cianfanelli
© Discover Paris!

Panel featuring Mandela and Johnny Clegg - the White Zulu (detail)
© Discover Paris!

Sketches by Reshada Crouse
© Discover Paris!

Posters of Mandela as prisoner
© Discover Paris!

Mandela and de Klerk - Nobel Prize recipients (detail)
© Discover Paris!

Mandela as statesman (detail)
© Discover Paris!

Nelson Mandela: de prisonnier à Président (from Prisoner to President)
Hôtel de Ville de Paris
75004 Paris
Free entry via the courtyard in front of the Hôtel de Ville
Monday through Saturday from 10 AM to 7 PM (last access at 6:30 PM)

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Thursday, July 4, 2013

Last Days for Two Black Paris Expos

Two special expositions are currently running in Paris and their last days are fast approaching. Those of you who are in town until July 15th are in luck - you can still see them. But you've got to act quickly!!!

Nelson Mandela: De prisonnier à Président (From Prisoner to President)
Exposition ends July 6, 2013


Image from the Hôtel de Ville Web site

Created by the Apartheid Museum of South Africa in collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the exposition examines Mandela's life through six distinct lenses:

- the man
- the comrade
- the leader
- the prisoner
- the negotiator
- the statesman

It highlights the essential role that he played in the struggle against apartheid and demonstrates how he rebuilt the nation of South Africa from the ruins of conflict by exploiting the "arms" at his disposal: militantism, love, persuasion, forgiveness, acute political sensitivity, and self deprecation. Among the exhibits are a reproduction of the sculpture by Marco Cianfanelli (which inspired the image [see above] that the Hôtel de Ville is using to promote the exposition), numerous portraits, short films, and political banners.

Hôtel de Ville de Paris
75004 Paris
Free entry via the courtyard in front of the Hôtel de Ville
Monday through Saturday from 10 AM to 7 PM (last access at 6:30 PM)


Alexis Peskine: Rising Above France
Exposition ends July 15, 2013


Image from the Be-ESPACE Gallery Web site

Franco-Russian-Afro-Brazilian artist Alexis Peskine creates incredibly powerful works of art with painted backgrounds and accents made from nails. His oeuvre is freshly, starkly, socio-political and yet is sometimes infused with wry humor. The following is a description of his technique as published by Galerie BE-Espace:

The nail takes the place of the brushstroke. A very particular artistic material, it is also a pointed metaphor: raw and uncompromising. In his portrait gallery, Peskine does not want to see just a single face: he uses nine sizes of nail that he drives in at different depths to create a sense of relief and introduce a third dimension. His works are based on graphics that use photography and Photoshop to achieve stencil-like effects. He hammers in nails, mounts them on wooden backings, and paints or varnishes them; sometimes he gilds them with gold leaf. The result is a combination of simple materials and technology, of ancestral themes and modernity, of art and craft.

Originally scheduled to close on June 21st, this show has been extended for three weeks and three days.

BE-ESPACE Gallery
57, rue Amelot
75011 Paris
Free entry
Monday to Saturday: 2:30 PM to 7:00 PM
Sunday: by appointment

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