2019

Rampuya, Tokushima

Visiting workshops in Japan

Part of the magic of our trip organised by @LeafLuberon resides in all the workshops we got to visit  Rampuya Also known as « Denim paradise », this factory not only weaves all kinds of fabric, including sublime denims, it also dyes it’s threads in traditional aidate vats.    Otani Morigama A ceramic workshop that produces beautiful […]

Kyoto postcard

Although this trip to Japan, masterly organised by @leafluberon, was very much centred on indigo, textiles and crafts, one cannot decently go through Kyoto without paying a visit to some of the admirable temples scattered throughout town Fushimi Inari-Taisha. A sanctuary for the Inari (fox) kami with a path to the top of the mountain

Aizumi-cho historical museum

Aizumi-cho historical museum

Another perl in our awesome trip organised by @leafLuberon around the indigo course at Buaisou Set in the former house of a major indigo merchant, this museum traces the history of indigo production, and use: from seed to fabric. The exquisite miniature scenes are a moving testimony or the hardship  endured by people working in

Abbaye du Thoronet

The « jewel » of Cistercian abbeys. Built between 1160 and 1230, Le Thoronet Abbey, together with Silvacane and Sénanque, is one of three Cistercian abbeys in Provence. In danger of falling into disrepair after the French Revolution, restoration work began on this masterpiece in 1841. An example for contemporary architecture. Generations of architects were inspired by the

Sur la route du Tokaido, Musee Guimet

Sur la route du Tokaido @ Musee Guimet

It seems as I haven’ really come back from Japan… keep looking for indigo everywhere! On a busy day in paris, I managed to stop at the Musee Guimet to catch an exhibition showcasing a flurry of etchings from the famed Tokaido route. The Tokaido is the east and most famous of the Gokaido routes. It started

Natalia Goncharova at Tate Modern

Natalia Goncharova @Tate modern

In the words of the Tate modern: « A leader of the Russian avant-garde, Natalia Goncharova blazed a trail with her experimental approach to art and design. Goncharova found acclaim early in her career. Aged just 32 she established herself as the leader of the Russian avant-garde with a major exhibition in Moscow in 1913. She then

les Nabis a Orsay

Le Talisman et les Nabis, Musee d’Orsay

Paul Serusier’s Talisman or Paysage au bois d’amour was the fruit of a conversation between Gauguin and Serusier and the foundation of the Nabis group, object of this temporary exhibition at the musee d »Orsay Paul Serusier, Le Talisman, 1888   Edouard Vuillard, Le liseur 1890   Maurice denis, Le christ vert, 1890   Maurice denis,

Tetes des rois de Juda

Têtes des rois de Juda @ Musee de Cluny

Following the fire at Notre Dame de Paris, the Musee de Cluny exhibited for a limited time, the heads of the Kings of Judah, discovered in 1977 at the Moreau hotel they had probably been buried there after the revolutionary iconoclastic period. They where very moving to look at, because of the remains of polychromy

Les Nabis et le decor, Musee du Luxembourg

Les Nabis et le decor @ Musee du Luxembourg

True pioneers of modern décor, Bonnard, Vuillard, Maurice Denis, Sérusier, Ranson and Vallotton defended an art relating directly to life. They created original, joyous and rhythmic works, intended to decorate contemporary interiors in reaction against the aesthetics of historical pastiche that were in vogue at the end of the 19th century.The decorative arts of the

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