Art and Food Pairing™: Dorothy’s Gallery and Waly-Fay – Part 1

Currently on display at Dorothy’s Gallery is an exhibition of over 70 photographs by Haitian artist Gérald Bloncourt. Called Gérald Bloncourt: Un demi-siècle de mémoire photographique (Gérald Bloncourt: A Half-century of Photographic Memory), the show explores four themes: Celebrities, Social Engagement, Paris – Eternal and Working Class, and The Worker’s World.

Bloncourt is the son of a Guadeloupian father and a French mother. In addition to being a photographer, he is a painter and a writer of prose and poetry. He was named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2012 and was made a Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur in 2015. He is a founding member of the Centre d’Art, an organization whose mission is to support the international recognition and distribution of Haitian art.

While I have seen many exhibitions of Bloncourt’s paintings at Dorothy’s Gallery, I did not realize that he has amassed a significant body of work as a photographer. I was intrigued by the opportunity to see this exhibition, but Tom and I were disappointed to find the gallery unexpectedly closed on the day we wanted to visit. I was able to take these photos through the window.

Angela Davis at the Humanity Festival - detail
1973
© Discover Paris!

Ray Charles
May 1962
© Discover Paris!

A couple of paintings were on display in the window as well.

Hoèdic, Bretagne
2000, Aquarelle on paper
© Discover Paris!

Sabine Haïti
1989, ink on paper
© Discover Paris!
Gérald Bloncourt: Un demi-siècle de mémoire photographique will be on display through September 23, 2016. Toward the end of the run, the gallery will install a greater variety of Bloncourt's work, including additional paintings, drawings, and etchings to accompany his photographs.

During the month of August, Dorothy’s Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday from 2:30 PM to 7:30 PM.

In September, normal hours resume:

Wednesday through Saturday from 1 PM to 7 PM
Tuesday and Sunday from 4 PM to 7 PM
and by appointment

dorothy’s gallery
27, rue Keller
75011 Paris
Telephone: 01 43 57 08 51
E-mail: dorothysgallery@gmail.com
Metro: Bastille (Lines 1 and 5), Voltaire (Line 9)
Internet: http://dorothysgallery.com/art/

In Part 2 of this article (to be published next week), read about the meal that Tom and I had at the nearby West African restaurant, Waly-Fay.

Waly-Fay sign
© Discover Paris!
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Angela Davis in Paris

Angela Davis first came to Paris in 1962 during the summer prior to her sophomore year at Brandeis University. She and a friend sublet a chambre de bonne (maid's quarters) on the top floor of a building that she describes as being so close to the Eiffel Tower that "you could see the elevator rising and falling" from the tiny window of the room. On July 5th of that year, she was present at a demonstration held at Place de la Sorbonne in celebration of Algeria’s newly-won independence. She reported that the French police broke up the gathering with high power water hoses, saying that "they were as vicious as the redneck cops in Birmingham who met the Freedom Riders with their dogs and hoses."

Angela Davis during her junior year at Brandeis in the 1960s
Image from Amazon.com
For her junior year abroad in 1963-64, Davis returned to Paris and lived with a family in a building in the 16th arrondissement, very near the Arc de Triomphe. Her program was organized by Hamilton College and housed at Reid Hall, but she took classes at the Sorbonne because of her advanced level of French. In her autobiography, she remarks that she always felt as though she was in church when she was at the Sorbonne. She frequented the Théâtre de la Huchette on rue de la Huchette as part of her theater course - the only one that was organized by Hamilton.

Years later, after her prison ordeal, Davis returned to Paris. On May 16, 1975, Bernard Pivot interviewed her, Gaston Monnerville, and two other writers for his televised literary talk show, Apostrophes. (The French translation of Davis' autobiography had recently been published and Monnerville's biography had just been published as well.)

Angela Davis and Bernard Pivot on Apostrophes
Screenshot from Ina.fr video

Angela Davis on Apostrophes
Screenshot from Ina.fr video
Davis and Monnerville held opposite views on racism, which they discussed on camera before a studio audience. Click here to view the first seven minutes of the broadcast (in French).

Gaston Monnerville on Apostrophes
Screenshot from Ina.fr video
The encounter is described in Alice Kaplan's book Dreaming in French. Kaplan says that as Monnerville "talked about the universal values of the French Republic, Angela Davis looked at him with an absolute interest and curiosity, with respect."

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Homage to Angela Davis

Angela Davis
March 28, 2006
Photo by Nick Wiebe
CAPDIV (Cercle d’Action pour la Promotion de la Diversité), a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of diversity in France, is organizing a tribute to Angela Davis for Black History Month 2012. L’Université des Mondes Noirs (the University of Black Worlds), l’ACSE (Agence National pour la Cohesion Social et l’Egalité des Chances [National Agency for Social Cohesion and Equal Opportunity]), the mayor’s office of the City of Paris, and CRAN (Conseil Représentatif des Associations Noires [Representative Council of Black Associations]) are partners in the affair.

The theme of the event is “Black Women and Feminism.” The flier that promotes the tribute indicates that:

For Angela Davis, black feminism considers sexism and racism to be always intertwined. The liberation of black women will liberate everyone, given that it will mean the end of exploitation of the races, sexes, and social classes. Angela Davis wrote a book about women blues singers of the 1920s [Blues Legacies and Black Feminism, Vintage (1999)] who contributed to the creation of working class feminism.

The homage will take place on February 25, 2012, from 3:30 PM to 6:00 PM, including a cocktail at the conclusion of the event. The program consists of a half-hour jazz recital by songstress Laetitia NDiaye, the projection of a film entitled Angela Davis, Une Légende Vivante (Angela Davis, A Living Legend), and a debate on the question of black feminism. The panel for the debate includes Mme Maboula Soumahoro, specialist in African-American studies; M. Louis-Georges Tin, president of CRAN; and M. Paul Heutching, journalist.

Reservations are required. To reserve, contact CAPDIV by e-mail at contact@capdiv.org.

Les Femmes Noires et le Féminisme
Hommage à Angela Yvonne Davis
Black History Month 2012
Maison des Mines
270, rue Saint Jacques
75005 Paris
RER: Luxembourg (Line B)

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