Henry Ossawa Tanner at the Musée d’Orsay

Henry Ossawa Tanner
1907 Photographer: Frederick Gutekunst
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia is planning the first-ever retrospective of African-American artist Henry O. Tanner’s work, an event that will be held in 2012. Tanner lived in France from 1893 to 1937 and achieved considerable renown as a painter. The French government purchased three of his works (The Resurrection of Lazarus, Christ and His Disciples on the Road to Bethany, and The Pilgrims of Emmaus), which are now on reserve at the Musée d’Orsay. The museum will loan the paintings to the Academy for the show in Pennsylvania and is hosting a two-day event on November 9-10 in Paris in honor of the occasion.

The Resurrection of Lazarus
Henry Ossawa Tanner
1896 Oil on canvas
On November 9, 2011, Professor Richard Powell of Duke University will speak on the "Valorization, Effacement & Rupture in the History of Black American Art in France." The lecture will be held in the auditorium of the museum (Level -2) at 6:30 PM. No reservations are necessary. The presentation will be delivered in English with simultaneous translation into French. A recital by pianist Sodi Braide will follow.

Sodi Braide
Photo by the Van Cliburn Foundation
On the following day, curator Anna Marley of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts will moderate a series of lectures on the question of the representation of African-American artists in Europe – from Tanner to Basquiat. For the first half of the conference, presentations will be held in the Musée d’Orsay auditorium. Renee Ater (University of Maryland), Anne Lafont (Institute National d’Histoire d’Art, Paris), and Marc Simpson (Williams College, Massachusetts) will speak beginning at 9:30 AM. The second half will take place at the National Institute of Art History, beginning at 3 PM. Sarah Wilson (Courtauld Institute, London), Elvan Zabunyan, (University of Rennes 2) and Huey Copeland (Northwestern University, Chicago) will present here.

This is a long overdue event that art and history lovers won’t want to miss!

For information about the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts exposition, click here.

Musée d’Orsay
62 rue de Lille
75007 Paris
Telephone: 01 40 49 48 14
Metro : Solférino (Line 12)

Institut National d’Histoire d’Art (INHA)
Galerie Colbert
6 rue des Petits Champs
2 rue Vivienne
75002 Paris
Telephone: 01 47 03 89 00
Metro: Palais Royal/Musée du Louvre (Line 1), Bourse (Line 3), Pyramides (Lines 7 and 14)

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Art and Food Pairing™: Galerie Philippe Lawson and Godjo Restaurant

In the 5th arrondissement, lying on rue des Carmes just north of boulevard Saint Germain, a small gallery called Galerie Philippe Lawson has devoted its space to “contemporary art of southern countries” (paintings and sculptures created by artists from Africa and the African Diaspora). . The gallery’s Web site indicates that Mr. Lawson places particular emphasis on works from the South Pacific, Africa, Asia Pacific, South America, and the Caribbean.

Galerie Philippe Lawson
© Discover Paris!
I visited the gallery in early October and was pleased to see many works by Ernest Dükü, a Côte d’Ivoirian artist with whom I have been acquainted for many years.

Ernest Dükü at Galerie Philippe Lawson
© Discover Paris!

More Ernest Dükü works
© Discover Paris!
The gallery’s last exposition was held in May-June 2009, when oeuvre by artists Georges Ouanounou (Casablanca) and Catherine Colin (Paris) were featured.

Paintings by Georges Ouanounou
© Discover Paris
I have not been able to interview Mr. Lawson, despite my efforts to reach him several times. According to his Web site, he is bicultural (France and Togo) and splits his time between Paris, Lome, and Barcelona. His assistant runs the gallery. It is open weekdays from 2:30 PM until 6:00 PM and by appointment.

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We can show you the best of the city’s pastry and chocolate shops, arrange a private wine hop, organize a dinner in an authentic Parisian home prepared by a private chef, help you plan your Paris picnic…

To learn more, visit our gourmet itinerary page at www.discoverparis.net/gourmet.html or send a message to info[at]discoverparis[dot]net. Click here to access our free Paris Insights restaurant reviews!

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Not five minutes away by foot is a small Ethiopian restaurant named Godjo It is one of a handful of Ethiopian restaurants in Paris.

Godjo Restaurant
© Discover Paris!
The restaurant is open every day from noon until 2:00 AM, except for Monday lunch. It has limited seating, so it is advisable to call to reserve a table.

As with most Afro-Caribbean restaurants, portions are copious!

I ordered Ater Azifa (purée of chickpeas) as a starter and Key Wot (spicy chicken) as a main dish. My husband Tom ordered Ye Feseg, which consisted of portions of four traditional Ethiopian dishes: ground beef, sliced beef, chicken, chopped lentils, and stewed string beans. Accompaniments consisted of two hardboiled eggs, lettuce and tomato salad, and white cheese (similar to cottage cheese). All were served on a single metal platter lined with spongy injera and cradled in a colorful basket. More injera (Ethiopian flatbread) was served on a small plate that barely fit onto our tiny table. Tom ordered an Ethiopian beer – St. George Beer – to accompany his meal, and I ordered spice tea, which was heavily flavored with cloves.

Ater, Key Wot, and Ye Feseg
© Discover Paris!
As we began eating, I noticed that I did not see the purée of chickpeas that I ordered. Instead, I found a purée of lentils. Because they tasted just as good as everything else on the platter, I did not go to the trouble to point out the error.

Injera
© Discover Paris!

St. George Beer
© Discover Paris!
For dessert, Tom ordered two scoops of ice cream. He selected banana and coconut, and particularly liked the latter because it contained morsels of shredded coconut. I skipped dessert but ordered an after-dinner drink, a digestif Godjo aux épices. Made from rum, sugar, lemon, ginger, and cinnamon, it was quite flavorful and not overly strong. I was pleased that I had something sweet to end my meal!

Banana and Coconut Ice Cream
© Discover Paris!
Godjo is quite noisy when the dining room is full, but the conversations are convivial. We waited quite a while for our meal to emerge from the kitchen, but we recognized that there were a lot of customers to serve.

I’ll happily return to eat here, but will remember not to order a full-course meal so that I won’t have to leave food on my plate!

Galerie Philippe Lawson
16, rue des Carmes
75005 Paris
Tel: 01.46.33.00.90
Metro: Maubert Mutualité (Line 10)
Hours: Monday through Friday 2:30 PM – 6 PM and by appointment
Internet: www.philippelawson.com

Godjo
8, rue de l’Ecole Polytechnique
75005 Paris
Tel: 01.40.46.82.21
Metro: Maubert Mutualité (Line 10)
Hours: Open every day (except Monday lunch) from 12 noon until 2 AM
Internet: www.godjo.com

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Black Paris Profiles™: Kim Powell – Part 2

Last week, Kim Powell talked about her photography and a life-changing visit to Sri Lanka. This week, she continues to discuss her work as a photographer and also talks about Paris and the various activities that she pursues here. Part 2 of a two-part interview follows.


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Kim Powell
Photo courtesy of Kim Powell
Let’s turn our attention to the city of Paris. What is your favorite area of Paris to walk in?

When I need inspiration, I walk from the Nikki de Saint Phalle fountain (near the Centre Pompidou), past Le Forum des Halles, to Etienne Marcel (Place de la Victoire), and end at the Jardin du Palais Royal.

Tell us about the projects that the city has inspired. In particular, tell us what aspects of the city you featured and why.

Flowers:

They were my favorite subject as a child when I received my first camera at the age of seven. I never focused on the entire flower but always got close to see what was going on inside, attracted to the color and graphic details. Though I now occasionally view a flower as a whole, for the most part my style has not changed . . . always macro. It is a peaceful experience and one that brings me back to the comfort of home.

My favorite gardens are: Jardin des Plantes, Tuileries, Bagatelle, Palais Royal, and Albert Khan. Photos from this project (Secret Garden) have been included in both solo and group exhibitions.

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Black Paris Profiles™ is now available on Kindle.  Only excerpts are available on this blog.

To get your copy of Black Paris Profiles™, click HERE.

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Entrée to Black Paris!™ is a Discover Paris! blog.

Black Paris Profiles™: Kim Powell – Part 1

A while back, I published a Facebook posting about a photo shoot that I had with Kim Powell. We wended our way from the Luxembourg Garden to the Odéon area via Saint-Sulpice Church, and had a great time along the way. In the posting, I indicated that Kim is working on a book project that I am thrilled to be a part of, and that more details about the project were soon to come. Just keep reading, and you’ll find them below! You’ll also find out a lot more about this beautiful, talented woman who calls both Paris and Connecticut home. Part 1 of a two-part interview follows.


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Kim Powell
Photo courtesy of Kim Powell
You are currently working on a photography book about African Americans in Paris. How did this come about?

Over the years, I have been asked to collaborate on number of projects related to African-American life in Paris: as a photographer, lecturer, and/or tour guide. I’ve had the opportunity to speak with both American and French university and high school students about my life journey and Paris. Recently I was asked by a group of French students what it felt like to be a living part of the African-American legacy. In all honesty, I hadn’t looked at my life from that perspective.

In a recent NY Times article “A Paris Farewell,” Amy M. Thomas wrote that “to some extent Paris will always belong to the Truffauts, Fitzgeralds, and Bernhardts of the world. But now some of my own history runs through its streets too.” This struck a chord with me. My history runs through these streets as well. I kept thinking: what about Henry Tanner, Josephine, Richard Wright, James Baldwin, or any of the others! I realized there were even more stories to be told. I’m not a writer or a scholar but I still wanted to share these stories in my way, which is through photography.

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Black Paris Profiles™ is now available on Kindle.  Only excerpts are available on this blog.

To get your copy of Black Paris Profiles™, click HERE.

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Entrée to Black Paris!™ is a Discover Paris! blog.