Galeire Emmanuel Perrotin

You’ve read the guidebooks, you’ve walked your socks off exploring the Louvre and you’ve stared at the Mona Lisa. You still remember the hours you stood in line to get into the Musee d’Orsay, and then were overwhelmed by the vast space and the never-ending art that lies therein. Then there was the Grand Palais, the Petit Palais, the Orangerie or the Jeu de Paume perhaps. Or the day you spent lost inside the Pompidou centre. Is there any more art this city can offer? There certainly is, if, like me, you get your art thrills from all things contemporary and modern.  Painting, photography, sculpture, architecture, film, it’s all here. If you explore a little, you can find it in bite size chunks that you can fit into the rest of your Parisian day, in one of the many delightful galleries that are tucked away all over the city. You never know what you might find in these galleries. The exhibitions regularly change and there is always something new and innovative to see. Over the coming months, I hope to introduce you to some of these galleries. The first is a real gem, in terms of the art inside, the location and the building itself. On the edge of the Marais in the 3eme arrondissement lies the new exhibition space for Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin on Rue de Turenne, taking over the existing space recently vacated by Cosmic Galerie. The nearest metro stop is Chemin Vert on line 2, but it is just as easy to walk from the Metro at Bastille (buses 96, 65, 20 and 29 also pass nearby). As with many of these small galleries, the first challenge is to find the place. Follow the even numbers on the right hand side of the road north along Rue de Turenne towards Republique. Eventually you will find no. 76, which leads into a courtyard away from the road. Enter the enclosed courtyard and at the end, you will see the white façade of a building filling the far side of the courtyard. The building is fronted with a small, ornate statue and a rather grand set of steps that lead up to the left and right. Take the right hand steps and you will be at the gallery door. Don’t knock, just open the door and step inside. Like most of the small galleries, it’s free!   You have entered the unpredictable world of contemporary art.  There is nothing antiquated about what you find inside a gallery like this.  It is where the art trip begins, and there is always at least a piece or two that will arouse emotions in you: inspiration, wonder, amazement, dislike, incredulity. The current show (which runs until April 2005), I was thrilled to discover includes typically quirky works by the Japanese artist Aya Takano. Gorgeous life size plastic cartoon-like figurines that you want to take home with you on the metro as well as other examples of her work. In a similar vein, perhaps you like the idea of staring at giant cartoon-like heads.  Two of these look out at the gallery visitors, one each of a boy and a girl, by another Japanese artist, “Mr.”. Other works currently on show by artists such as Peter Zimmerman, Terry Henderson, Takashi Murakami and others include paintings, line portraits, photography, video and sculpture (of sorts). Take as long as you like, five minutes or fifty. In all there are four connected rooms on the entrance level with high ceilings, newly repainted in all white. There are also two further rooms in the basement down the stairs. Don’t miss the small black arrow that points towards the double curtained door to discover the last room!  There’s no bookshop or café at Galerie Perrotin, but alongside the staircase there is a line of shelves selling a very small collection of books relevant to artists who are or who have recently showed at one of the other Emmanuel Perrotin galleries (one located in Paris at rue Louise Weiss and another in Miami, Florida). Of course, no art experience is complete without a period of cogitation and reflection. I recommend the café l’Apparement, just two minutes walk away on Rue des Coutures-St.Gervais. A cosy, intimate and chic café, in which you could easily find yourself spending an hour or so over your tilleul menthe, like I did. You are now in the heart of the commercial galleries of the Marais, so if you feel like it and have the means to invest in some art for yourself, you could investigate one of the many commercial galleries on Rue des Coutures-St.Gervais or Rue du Perche as well as the surrounding streets. Some of the art on sale here is truly modern and avant-garde with price tags to match. Alternatively, the outstanding Musée Picasso is just a stones throw from here and always worth a visit. Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin is located at 76 rue de Turenne, Metro: Chemin Vert Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 11am to 7pm. Café L’Apparement 18 rue des Coutures-St.Gervais