NAPOLEONIC INFLUENCE

One of the more memorable statues of Napoleon Bonaparte symbolising his impact on the world. 

The work is in le Parc de l'Amitié, a park in the city center of Reuil-Malmaison. Napoleon's first wife, Josephine, owned an extravagantly decorated château in Reuil-Maison, which today is a museum and considered to be a "destination" for history buffs fascinated by the life of Napoleon Bonaparte. 

Reuil-Malmaison is about 20 kilometers west of Paris.

©2025 P. B. Lecron

 

RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME

A light breeze swept up this peacock's tail feathers to create a very singular fanning out of its plumage.

With the rose garden in full bloom of the Parc Bagatelle as a backdrop, we felt we were at the right place at the right time to snap this photo. Bois de Bologne, Paris.

Expression

Le bon endroit au bon moment: right place, right time

©2025 P. B. Lecron

OH, FLACK IT!

More street-art photo-ops

The activity is called flacking, a creative and street-artsy way to repair cracks and shallow holes in sidewalks with mosaic tiles. The above is undoubtedly the work of a French urban artist and ceramicist known as Ememem. He has been fastidiously leaving his mark on pedestrian ways in France and Europe, but mostly in Lyon in Paris, since 2016. His cheerful works are generally welcomed so that now Ememem has the support of local cultural organisations.

The reparations seem to be in the spirit of the traditional Japanese art of kintsugi in which a broken porcelain or cermamic object is decoratively pieced back together and given new life. In the practice of kintsugi the fissures are painted with gold powder to highlight them, making esthetic what had once been broken. And so goes flacking. It's a happy event to look down at the pavement and discover that the scarred, gray asphalt beneath one's feet has been, so to speak, reinvented with a pretty, polychromatic touch. I randomly happened upon this example near the Musée de Cluny in Paris. There are so many more.

©2025 P. B. Lecron

REMEMBERING MISS.TIC

 A carefully preserved stencil created by the sensual and poetic street artist Miss.Tic. 

Her civil name was Radhia Aounallah (1956-2022).  

We happened upon this stencil in the 8th arrondissement on our way to the elegant Parc Monceau. From 1985 onward, the legendary Miss.Tic became the darling and a pioneer of Parisian graffiti street artists. Her pithy stencils grew to be some of the most sought after in the category of local urban art--on the streets and in galleries. Her career as an artist evolved from the early days of illegitimately "defacing" property to having her works sought after by businesses for commercial purposes. Even the Victoria and Albert Museum in London acquired one her pieces. It's worth mentioning for philatelic fans that the French postal service issued a series of 12 stamps bearing her auto-portraits and epigrams. Rest in peace, Miss.Tic. 

INCENSE AND SENSIBILITY

 An eye-catching 17th-century incense burner in feline form from the Parisian Musée Cernuschi's collection of bronze Japanese animals. A decorative item that was intended for domestic use which was both light-hearted and sensitive to the emotional attachment to cats. A universal sentiment.

Vocabulary

un brûle-parfum: an incense burner

joyeux, joyeuse, enjoué: light-hearted

©2025 P. B. Lecron

WAITING

En attente . . .

Waiting for a good grooming and restoration is this pair of sphinx at the Parc Bagatelle, Paris.

Vocabulary

en attente:  on hold; pending
se toiletter : to groom (oneself)

être soigné(e):  to be groomed

©2025 P. B. Lecron

LOOK THROUGH ANY WINDOW

We happened by this barn or grange in the village of Rennemoulin that had its doors wide 

open on the side opposite to this window, creating the illusion of a mirror. The bucolic village 

is one of the smallest in the department of les Yvelines, and a favorite venue for a leisurely stroll.

Rennemoulin is about 10 km west of Versailles.

©2025 P. B. Lecron

 

INDUSTRIAL TOURISM OR POSTMODERNISM?

Standing tall and forlorn

The unusual and emblematic tour-marteau or hammer tower, once used for coal extraction in 

the mining community of Folschviller in the Moselle, was erected in 1948 and stands 58 meters high.

In use until 1979, it was saved from demolition and registered as an historical monument in 1992.

A unique--and today ironizing sculptural--example of French industrial patrimony in Lorraine. 

©2025 P. B. Lecron

 

HONORING PAEK YOUNGSU

Home sweet home

A time and space of tranquility

Time still remains to immerse oneself in a touchingly exquisite and intimate grouping 

of works of the late Paek Youngsu (1922-2018) at the Musée Cernuschi in Paris. The museum,

dedicated to Far Eastern arts, has on display paintings of the Korean contemporary artist who lived 

and worked in France from 1977 to 2011. Whether Paek Youngsu's paintings be described as intentionally naïve or Minimalist, their sheer simplicity evokes moments of comfort, vulnerability, and innocence. 

Exposed in a small, glass-enclosed space, the discreet character of the exhibit recalls the nature 

of the subject matter--the serenity of the home.

©2025 P. B. Lecron

A BURST OF YELLOW

Dent-de-lion or pissenlit, call it what you may, it's the sturdiest and brightest of spring blossoms.

Yes, blossoms, not weeds! Median strips along roads in France are often joyfully carpeted 

with them this time of year!

In the language of flowers, the dandelion symbolizes childhood innocence, family, and sharing.

 A springtime diuretic, thus the vernacular piss- en- lit, this comestible plant is loaded with nutrition. 

Vocabulary

un éclatement:  a burst, a pop, an explosion, a flash

©2025 P. B. Lecron

QUACK-QUACK, COIN-COIN

Speaking of ducks. . .

 A nasal coin-coin is the French onomatopoeic sound for the anglophone quack-quack.

Bucolique window dressing in this Versailles boulangerie-pâtisserie sets the 

tone for April weather.

Aux Pains de la Ferme, 9 rue Royale, Versailles

©2025 P. B. Lecron

HEAVEN SCENT

 Très parfumé...

Heaven Scent is the name of this pink magnolia blooming today in a local park.

How would its name translate to French? Senteur de paradis,  senteur du ciel

or even parfum du ciel?

Vocabulary

le paradis:  heaven

le ciel:  sky, also heaven

©2025 P. B. Lecron

LIKE A FLEETING THOUGHT

Comme une pensée fugace . . .

Photo taken at the Parc Bagatelle in the Bois de Bologne, Paris

©2025 P. B. Lecron

XXL STREET ART

The sky is the limit

French street artist known as STeW painted this approximately 50-meter high 

blue heron on a high-rise in the Paris Chinatown in the 13th arrondissement. 

"Le Héron Bleuté," realised in 2014, is at 8 Place de Vénétie.

Over the years the mural's original strong, deep blue tints have faded  

making it today a more delicate visual for the passer-by.

Vocabulary

délavé(e):  faded

©2025 P. B. Leron

A WAVE OF SPRING

 Resident Canada geese wade through a wave of narcissuses after an early morning rain in Paris'

bucolic Parc Bagatelle in the Bois de Bologne. Impossible to miss, the cheerful and bright narcissus is a

favorite symbol of the end of winter.

Vocabulary

immanquable:  unmissable, impossible to miss

Boost your language skills!

Get cosy with a children's bedtime story that my French daughter wrote, Le Lapin à la recherche du Printemps. Reading children's stories in a foreign language is an excellent way to boost linguistic skills because they are easy to understand, and like this one, fully illustrated. A mysterious and late snowfall leads Papa Lapin on an adventure full of ups and downs to save springtime. Available in French or English on worldwide Amazon sites. Click here to discover!

Below, an illustration from Le Lapin à la recherche du Printemps, by Marianne Lecron, illustrated by P. B. Lecron. All rights reserved.

©2025 P. B. Lecron

PRINTEMPS!

 ©2025 P. B. Lecron

BOLD AND ELEGANT

 

The bold and simple forms of these terra cotta standing horses exemplify the earthy elegance 

of the Chinese later Han Dynasty (I-III centuries). They are displayed in permanence at the 

Musée Guimet in Paris, the most important collection of Asian arts in Europe. 

Plan to spend an entire day!

Vocabulary

un cheval debout:  a standing horse

©2025 P. B. Lecron

TOO CUTE!

 Trognon!

Trognon is familiar French and a combination of trop which means "too" and mignon which means

"cute." Trognon, however, is also the word for the core or what is left of a comestible, as for example an apple core.

©2025 P. B. Lecron

AHOY!

 Ohé ! Ohé !

From a distance, this recent but already iconic sculpture looked so real that I thought he was alive!

The bronze sailor or marin is the work of Anne Smith, who is not only a talented sculptor, but

also the third female artist ever to been named as a Peintre Officiel de la Marine.

The statue is located in Belz, and looks across to the nearby 

fishing village on the Île de Saint-Cado in the Baie de Quiberon, Bretagane.

Expression

Ohé! Ohé! :  Ahoy! Ahoy

©2025 P. B. Lecron