her career in the courts of Louis XV,
where she painted his fashionable wife,
Marie Antoinette, and his children. Vigée
le Brun triumphed over the limitations
of a modest background and the usual
constraints of her gender to become
one of the most accomplished and
celebrated portraitists of eighteenthand nineteenth-century Paris.
It’s an excellent time to discover, or
rediscover, one of Paris’s hidden gems.
Now through February 14, the superb
Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature
features two extraordinary exhibitions.
In one, there are twenty canvases by
the American painter Walton Ford
(created for the exhibition) that play on
the tradition of academic zoological
painting with irony, humor, and the
artist’s singular vision. In the other,
wildlife photographer George Shiras
presents a sublime and magical world of
animal life at at night.
ARTS FESTIVALS
A hotly anticipated fall event, each
year the Festival d’Automne assembles
a world-class roster of performers
in contemporary dance, theater,
performance, art, cinema, and music
in venues in and around Paris. There’s
everything from jazz performances by
La Monte Young in the soaring SaintEustache church to the Trisha Brown
dance company performing at the
National Theatre de Chaillot. Find a
detailed calendar of events and ticketing
online.
Gathering all the top names in
contemporary art, this year’s FIAC (Foire
Internationale d’Art Contemporaine)
runs from October 21–25 at the Grand
Palais and several other venues around
town including the Tuilerie Gardens,
Place Vendôme, and the Jardin des
Plantes.
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