Les Colonnes Morris

The ubiquitous Morris Columns are circular cast iron advertising posts that date back to the middle of the 19th century. They take their name from a Parisian printer, Gabriel Morris, who developed this advertising media and introduced them to the sidewalks of Paris, beginning in 1868. The advertising agency bore his name, so they were called Colonnes Morris. They are typically topped by a squat onion dome and a tiny spire.
As of 2006 there were 790 Morris columns in Paris, of which 18 contained telephone booths (most of these on the Champs-Élysées) and six contained Sanisette toilets! Many Morris columns rotate slowly, and the more modern ones are back-lit.
These days Morris columns are built and maintained by the JC Decaux company, which purchased Morris in 1986.
Paris does not allow billboards, so most major movie releases are advertised on a Colonne Morris, as pictured above (Thank You for Smoking, released in 2005). They also display theater, nightclub and concert announcements.

Place Dauphine

17-century pavilions stand guard over the narrow entrance to Place Dauphine.

Place Dauphine was laid out in 1609 as part of a city planning project by King Henri IV that included the adjacent Pont Neuf, the oldest surviving bridge in Paris today. The original design was a triangle of three rows of residences, which conformed to the tapering shape of the western extremity of the Île de la Cité.

Two centuries earlier several small islands adjacent to the Île de la Cité had been joined together and filled in, allowing an expansion of the island west of the Conciergerie and Royal Palace. One of these islands, the Île de Juifs, had been where Philippe IV ordered and watched Jacques de Molay burn at the stake in 1314, thus ending the illustrious history of the Knights Templar. This new tract of land became the Jardin du Roi (Garden of the King), later converted to the first botanical garden by Marie de Médicis, the second wife of Henri IV. Their son, the Dauphin (who became Louis XIII), was thus honored when they named this new square after him.


Place Dauphine is shaped like a funnel, and entry is gained through a narrow opening between two striking pavilions built of brick with limestone quoins, which face the bridge and an equestrian statue of Henri IV, the centerpiece of the Place du Pont-Neuf. Once entry is gained, Place Dauphine opens up in a triangular shape, where two angled sides flank a small grassless park. Locals often play petanque, a form of lawn bowling, under the canopy of trees.


The eastern edge of Place Dauphine was later demolished to open the square to the façade of the Palais de Justice, ruining the original intimate design. This mistake was later diminished by the planting of a double row of trees along the footprint of the line of razed buildings, thereby screening off the somewhat pompous Palais de Justice.

Few tourists penetrate Place Dauphine, which provides an oasis of calm from traffic noise and city activity, even though a small hotel and several restaurants line the perimeter. Yves Montand and Simone Signoret made Place Dauphine their lifelong home.

On the other side of the Pont Neuf sits an equestrian statue of Henri IV, who appears ready to trot into Place Dauphine. Next to the statue are steps that descend down to the needle shaped Square du Vert Galant, a grassy expanse lined with willow trees that divides the two spans of the Pont Neuf. It's often described as a pointed "tongue" that sticks out into the Seine. From this choice spot tourists can view the river from the original level of the Île de la Cité, which has risen more than 2o feet over the centuries, as new buildings and streets were built atop foundations of older ones.

This little square also pays homage to Henri IV, a notorious philanderer. Its name, Square du Vert Galant, means "randy youth." It is said that Henri fathered 70 children before an assassin stabbed him while his carriage was stuck in traffic. Henri was a wildly popular ruler, and his equestrian statue was put up just four years after his death, a remarkable tribute.

Two views of the prow-shaped Square du Vert Galant

Atelier Brancusi

A museum for the works of Brancusi, one of the most important sculptors of the 20th century, provides a moment of contemplative peace in one of the busiest public squares in Paris, facing the Centre-Pompidou.
The Romanian sculptor, Constantin Brancusi (1876-1957), arrived in Paris in 1904, and from 1916 until his death worked in a modest wooden shed in an alley in the Montparnasse quarter.


Brancusi in his beloved "shed"

Modest though it was, the studio space, lit by north light, acquired singular importance for Brancusi. He came to see his works and the spaces around them as a single harmonious entity. Brancusi arranged his sculptures so that their relationship one to another and to the room itself was balanced. In the end, it became difficult for him to envisage the sculptures outside his studio, and by 1950 Brancusi refused to exhibit his works elsewhere. The year before his death, he left the studio and its contents, including his tools, to the State of France, with the request that it be left undisturbed. Accordingly, Brancusi was made a naturalized citizen of France.


















The Kiss - 1916

Soon after Brancusi’s death, however, the studio was demolished, along with many other structures, in order to make room for the development of the controversial Tour Montparnasse; in order to carry out the wishes of Brancusi, a replica of his atelier was built opposite the north-west corner of the Centre Pompidou. Faithful to the picturesque scruffiness of the original, it was a quietly poignant place, the more so for being next to the frenetic glamor of the Centre Pompidou’s piazza. The little building was difficult to make secure, however, and was hardly advertised, open only two afternoons a week.
Architect Renzo Piano’s scheme for renovating the Centre Pompidou included building a new Atelier Brancusi on its former site. Now completed, the "new" atelier (1997) is an evocation of Brancusi’s spirit rather than an exact replica; importantly, the replacement building conforms to standards required by modern curators and security.
Observed from the huge piazza in front of the Centre Pompidou, one scarcely notices this simple stone pavilion, which spans a change in level sloping up to Rue Rambuteau. There is just a plain wall of stone blocks with a metallic shed roof. From the steps to the right side, visitors ascend toward the street, then descend another flight of stairs to the left. There is an attractive courtyard with trees to the left of the main entrance (there is no admission fee). Because the building is set below street level, it feels separate from it, and the descent forms a gradual transition from noisy street life to the quiet, contemplative areas found inside.

Photo by M. Denancé

Brancusi’s studio now consists of a wood-framed structure divided into four interconnecting spaces with plain white walls lit by north-facing skylights. The studio itself is isolated from human traffic by glass walls, which visitors circumnavigate around the perimeter. The sculptures and various objects like Brancusi’s time-worn tools are arranged as he would have wished. There is also a small gallery for Brancusi’s photographs.
Open 2-6 pm daily, except Tuesday; free admission!
Place Georges Pompidou (rue Saint-Martin)
Métro: Rambuteau (walk south on Rue Beaubourg, then right on Rue Rambuteau; museum is on the left just before the corner of Rue Saint-Martin.

Permanent Parisians: Montmartre Cemetery

The Cimetière de Montmartre (formerly called Cimetière du Nord) was a favorite of composer Hector Berlioz, who remarked, “My favorite walk, especially when it is raining, when it is pouring rain, is through Montmartre cemetery, which is near where I live. I often go there, and I have many friends there.”

Well, he never left the neighborhood, because he is buried beneath an elegant black granite tombstone in section 20 of this remarkable cemetery. In the late 1820s Berlioz became obsessed with an English actress who performed at the Odéon Theatre. Although they had never met, Berlioz stalked her, sent dozens of passionate love letters and attended performance after performance in which she starred. This actress, Harriet Smithson, was the inspiration for Symphonie Fantastique, perhaps his best known composition. They eventually married, but just six years later Berlioz took up with Marie Recio, who became his long-time mistress. Today’s visitors who come to pay homage to Berlioz might be astonished to find that things are rather cozy in the Berlioz grave, which contains the bodies of Hector, Harriet and Marie. The names of both women are literally etched in stone, side-by-side on the right vertical surface of the tombstone. Trust me on this.
There are graves of other musicians of note: Jacques Offenbach (born Jakob, a Jewish German cellist who changed his name to Jacques when he moved to Paris to delight the city with his can-can music, still performed nightly at the Moulin Rouge just down the street), Léo Delibes (composer of operas and ballet music), Charles-Valentin Alkan (composer tragically killed when a bookcase fell on him), Adolphe Adam (composer of “O Holy Night”), Nadia Boulanger (influential music teacher of scores of American composers - and her sister Lili, as well). Not to mention Adolphe Sax (Belgian by birth), who invented the saxophone.


Bust of Offenbach

But wait, there’s more!
Stuffed into these crowded 28 acres are painters Edgar Degas, Fragonard, Greuze and Delaroche; writers Émile Zola (who was later moved to the Panthéon, but his family grave and original resting place remains here), Henri Murger (see separate post: La Bohème), Alexandre Dumas, fils (see separate post), Heinrich Heine, Stendhal (The Red and the Black) and Gautier; celebrated courtesan Marie Duplessis (née Alphonsine Plessis, mistress of Alexandre Dumas, fils, and the inspiration for La Traviata – see separate post); Juliette Récamier (who gave her name to the récamier sofa of which she was fond); Foucault (demonstrator of the earth’s rotation with his pendulum) and physicist Ampère, after whom the amp (unit of electrical current) is named; Russian dancer Nijinsky; Poulbot (caricaturist and illustrator); and film maker François Truffaut (Jules and Jim).
Not to overlook Dalida, Miss Egypt 1954, who went on to become sort of a Parisian Cher. She became an actress and singer with an almost mythical cult following, especially among gay men during her later disco period; they adorn her grave with flowers to this day. She committed suicide in 1987, as did her first husband and two of her lovers.


So there you have it, all crammed into the melting pot that is Montmartre Cemetery.
Métro: Blanche (entry at Rue Rachel, just beyond the Moulin Rouge nightclub)

Ralph Lauren's Paris Restaurant

The restaurant on the ground floor of Ralph Lauren’s flagship store on Blvd. Saint Germain is all the rage in Paris. The menu is all American, and Mr. Lauren flies in his beef from his own ranch in Colorado. The cheeseburger, offered at 27€, is the hot menu item at present, but customers complain about the sub-standard fries (made from frozen potatoes). Popular offerings are steaks, Maryland crab cakes, Maine lobsters and shrimp cocktails. In true American fashion, patrons may depart with leftovers in doggie bags (Parisian restaurants do not allow this – ever). The restaurant’s staff is trained in the U.S.

Interior seating is centered around an enormous walk-in stone fireplace surrounded by raised panel wainscoting. An intimate bar serves classic cocktails, including Mint Juleps, Whiskey Sours, and frozen Margaritas. The 48-seat interior restaurant is housed in the former stables of the structure, and extensive seating is available in a magnificent courtyard, around which rises the 17th century hôtel particulier, which underwent four years of restoration. Ralph Lauren Paris holds five floors of Mr. Lauren’s retail offerings, as well. Each boutique is stunningly and lavishly decorated, as one would expect.















Ralph’s is open noon-2:30p (lunch) and 7:00p-11:00p (dinner)
Brunch on Sunday 11:30a-3:30p.
Reservations: 01 44 77 76 00
173 Boulevard Saint-Germain (Paris 6) at SW corner of Rue des Saints-Pères
Métro: Saint-Germain-des-Prés