giacometti and the pompidou
so, on what could well be the final sojourn into paris for a little while for me i took the time to pay a visit to the pompidou centre.thankfully no strike by the toilet cleaners on this visit (esp. as i got caught short after some excellent sushi i'd ventured on in saint germain).
nobody had told me that the pompidou centre enjoys one of the most astounding views of paris. i discovered that for myself as i floated up the glass elevator draped across the spiny exterior. the skyline's wondrous, especially if you hanker for the time when big-city architecture was all about domes and spires.
having said that, there was an excellent exhibition on the work of richard rogers - one of the architects of the pompidou. aside from his curvy environmental designs, it was funny to hear how some of the problems posed by the pompidou were solved through collective arguing!
not much collective arguing on the top floor exhibition of the work of giacometti. you could feel the solitude under which the artist generally worked. i was familiar with the stick men sculptures but wasn't quite aware of how many of them he actually created. kind of like matisse and his blue cut-outs. something to do with the modernists when they hit later life?
giacometti's paintings are lesser-known but achieve an arresting intensity, primarily due to his manipulation of perspective. globulous eyes pop out from shrunken heads sitting on inflated torsos. rough paint strokes and ghostly sombre backdrops oddly create a strong sense of humanity.
au revoir paris.
Labels: giacometti, pompidou center
