Clik here to view.
Lovely Cinemas: La Pagode, 7th Arrondissement
I haven't written anything on this blog recently (though I have written on Len Lye and the Venice Biennial for NZ News UK and Docks en Seine for AngloINFO Paris), mostly as I've been really busy and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Le Corbusier's 'Cabanon' at Le Bon Marché
If you’re not already mad at the sky for being cloudy, go to the small exhibition on Le Corbusier’s beach cabin at Le Bon Marché, on until June 23rd.The furniture department at Le Bon Marché is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Babar Exhibition at the Musée des Arts Decoratifs, and the Politics of...
The Babar exhibition at the Musée des Arts Decoratifs presents a charming set of images and a lot of material to think about, though ultimately failing to look at Babar as more than a child’s...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Architecture: Ocean-Liners in Paris and Boulogne-Billancourt
This is a reworking of two of my articles on architecture for AngloINFO Paris, on Pierre Patout's 15th Arrondissement paquebot building and Georges-Henri Pingusson's treatment of the same theme in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Briefly: Valencia, Spain
I went to Valencia this weekend to see my brother who is visiting Spain during his university holidays. This is the first time I've been to Spain, and I really liked it, though I was so afraid of my...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Brief Architectural Tour of the 17th Arrondissement
These pigeons will be your guides to the delights of Paris's 17th Arrondissement.The 17th arrondissement is largely residential and often overlooked due to its lack of obvious attractions. This only...
View ArticleClik here to view.
'Promenades Indochinois' at the Musée Guimet
Many photos of South East Asia have been taken in the last 150 years, and there always seems to be an exhibition of some of them on somewhere. Nonetheless, the Musée Guimet's 'Promenades Indochinois,'...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Les Halles, Again
I, like many in Paris, am fascinated by the history of Les Halles. It feels as if there's always more to learn about the way the site's history has unravelled, mistake leading to mistake, over the last...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fireworks & Eiffel Tower, Bastille Day
I've spent much of this year looking forward to Bastille Day and, as it drew closer, the fact that I was leaving Paris just a few days later heightened my anticipation. I was especially looking forward...
View ArticleClik here to view.
An Ode to Auckland's Wynyard Quarter (on its first birthday)
I wrote my NZ News UK column this week on the projects from New Zealand that are nominated for the World Architecture Festival Awards. I really felt, though, writing the article, that it was a definite...
View ArticleClik here to view.
France in New Zealand: Pompallier Mission House
The Bay of Islands is one of New Zealand’s most historically significant places. It’s the place where Captain Cook first stepped ashore, where the Treaty of Waitangi was signed and home to the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Au Louvre, Wim Delvoye
Delvoye himself has (in a brilliantly amusing interview with Art in America) termed his current exhibition at the Louvre "Wim Delvoye for Dummies," but this lack of vocalised respect for the majority...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Nôtre Dame du Raincy
Nôtre Dame du Raincy is an quick and pleasant RER trip away from Paris. It's easy, free, and definitely the most striking building by the Perret brothers in the Paris region. Built in 1922-3, Auguste...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Paris: Palais des Glaces, 10th Arrondissement
Paris has more than its fair share of beautiful theaters. My favourites are usually those from the 1920s (with an exception made for La Pagode). The Palais des Glaces was constructed in 1924, replacing...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild & Villa Kérylos
I went today to St Jean Cap Ferrat and Beaulieu sur Mer to see the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild and the Villa Kérylos. While different enough as to avoid direct comparison, the two houses are...
View ArticleNotes on my PhD (Part 1)
My notes for my PhD currently read (direct quote):How did Europeans generally perceive Indochina in the 1920s?Opium opium opium syphilisThis is why I have not posted on this blog for the last few...
View ArticleClik here to view.
First Impressions of Nice, in Pictures & Some Words
Nice is filled with flowers, cacti, pebbles and modern art, but you can easily step off the bus and into the ruins of a Roman capital. There are ferries to Corsica and a waterfall tumbling over the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Exploratory Road Trips: the 1961 Cambridge Afro-Asian Expedition
A while ago, a series of intriguing photographs popped up on Retronaut, showing an old VW van plunging into rivers and pausing in front of mountains. The writing on the side of this van read 'Cambridge...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Guide to Aix-en-Provence, or, What I Learnt On My Research Trip
Aix-en-Provence isn't the most obvious place to go for research... unless you're studying French colonisation, in which case, like me, you'll be spending a lot of time here! Aix lives up to all the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Things I've Written Lately
I'm always kind of terrible at linking to things that I've written elsewhere, because I feel it'll read like self-promotion... but realistically if you're reading this blog it's probably a sign that...
View Article