Alternative Guide Book: Part 2

For the guided tour, we took the class to Saint Germain to show them the three famous cafés (bohemian places) artists used to hang out and work in the past. We gave them historical information and cards which helped them to explore the area and find the differences between today and the past with the cards. For the guided book, we took our idea further and decided to add two more really known bohemian places in Paris which are Montparnasse and Montmartre. Those places have the same fate with Saint Germain. Artists used to live and work in these areas but today they are full of tourists. We choosed three places for each area, made research, went there and took photos of how they are today. Then we found old photos and put them on top of the new photos with transparent paper to show the difference. We also wrote comments and fun facts about the cafés and gave them stars like Trip Advisor to add some humor to our guidebook.

Roles/ Responsibilities:

Arya: Research for Montmartre, photos, writings, design of the cover

Priscilla: Research for Montparnasse, photos, writings

Agnes: Research for Saint Germain, photos, writings, design of the cover

Catherine: Design of the book in Illustrator, editing of the photos

Poster/ Postcards:

My Research of Montmartre and Photos:

  • Le Bateau-Lavoir

 Adresse: 13 Rue Ravignan

Who:

-Max Jacob

-Maxime Maufra

-Kees van Dongen 

-Pablo Picasso

-Henri Matisse

-Otto Van Rees

-Jean Cocteau

-Pierre Mac Orlan

-Guillaume Apollinaire

-André Salmon

-Alfred Jarry

What:

-The residence and meeting place for a group of outstanding early 20th century artists, men of letters, theater people and art dealers.

-The name ‘Le Bateau-Lavoir’ was given by French poet Max Jacob.

-Maxime Maufra was the first artist to take up residence in Bateau-Lavoir in 1890.

-Pablo Picasso took up residence between 1900 and 1904.

-Picasso painted works such as ‘Boy with a Pipe’ while residing at Bateau-Lavoir.

-During World War I in 1914, artist began moving to Montparnasse.

Facts:

-In 1908, a celebration banquet for Henri Rousseau was organized in Picasso’s studio in the Bateau-Lavoir.

-One night, Amedeo Modigliani destroyed a number of his friend’s paintings while in an alcoholic rage in Bateau-Lavoir.

-It was also in Montmartre that Picasso and Georges Braque co-founded Cubism, one of the most famous and influential art movements of the 20th century.

Opinion:

-Well not much to see here but if you are a Picasso buff like me you go there and try to imagine what it must have been like in his time. 

-From the outside, it’s just a big hulking structure. Walk by if you’re in the area, asI did, but I wouldn’t make any detours to see it in hilly Montmartre.

  • La Maison Rose

Adresse: 2 Rue de l’Abreuvoir

Who:

-Pablo Picasso

-Maurice Utrillo

-Bernard Buffet

-Ramon Pichot

What/Facts:

-It was bought around 1905 by a certain Laure Germaine Gargallo, wife of the painter Ramon Pichot, and former model of Picasso.

-It is said that it was she who allegedly caused the death of the painter Casagemas, an intimate friend of Picasso, who, defeated by her beauty, committed suicide in 1901.

-This suicide brought about a deep depression for Picasso and led to his Blue Period.

Opinion:

-They just take profit of the location to make money on tourists. Don’t go !

-I have never been more disgusted with so-called ‘customer service’ in my life.

-We had high expectations but we were bitterly disappointed. Not much variety in the lunch menu, there was nothing extraordinary about the food, the drinks er ordered were low quality, and service could have been a lot better.

  • Moulin Rouge

Who:

-Van Gogh

-Renoir

-Toulouse-Lautrec

-Josephine Baker

-Frank Sinatra

-Colette

-Edith Piaf

-Mistinguett

-Jane Avril

-La Goulue

What/Facts:

-The original house burned down in 1915.

-The iconic windmill gives a glimpse into the otherworldly past of Paris, where Montmarte was once a tiny village full of windmills. 

-Paris’ first electric powered building.

-The scandal of can-can: the fact that women wore ‘pantalettes’ with an open crotch, meaning that a high kick could be unintentionally too revealing, propagating fears about prostitution.

Opinion:

-The show is grossly overpriced and certainly not worth 130 euros.

-I never write reviews but need to for this show because I don’t want anyone else to waste money.

Quote:

-“The greatest thing you will ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.” 

Printing Process and the Cover:

Final Alternative Guide Book:

 

 

Leave a Reply