Friday, August 16, 2019

Imagine Van Gogh, Le Havre

Earlier in the week Lois Bender and I ran up to Le Havre for the day (a 2 hr train ride) to see the Imagine Van Gogh Immersive on till September 1 at Carée de Docks and just a short walk from the train station. We went to see the Dufy Retrospective at the Musee d'art moderne André Malraux later but that's another story. Le Havre is always a shock. Completely flattened in WWII. Industrial but with a wonderful harbor full of boats of all sizes. Of course I saw the l'Atelier  des Lumieres Van Gogh show in Paris, but something drew me to see the Le Havre version.
And I was right. It was a much more immersive experience showing 200 paintings large scale.
And I preferred the all-classical, mostly French background music .
Simply perfection.
It would have been nice to have seats like the Paris animation but then maybe people would stay all day instead of 30-40 minutes.

I sat on the floor like others and let the experience float over me. Deeply emotional.
It was good to see related images (like groupings of his sunflowers) instead of just one image repeated in varying sizes. More immersive that way.
Naturally I felt compelled to get out 'Vincent's bedroom' and paint it again and again.
Food-wise we hit it lucky. I had been dreaming of a seafood shack like Surf City, NJ etc. While traipsing over to the Dufy exhibit (everyone told us, "Oh its only a 5-10-15 minute walk"). It seemed more like 35. We stumbled on a small place sitting right next to the fish markelt, Bistrot du P'tit Port. Very unassuming to look at but when I saw the lunch formule (18,50€) included a starter of fruits de mer + moules (or fish)I was happy as a clam. Trip Advisor gives it a 47 out of 148 Le Havre restos. Top that! (Proper cherrystone clams are so damn hard to find in France. Its deeply frustrating, though they do have them in Amsterdam so all is not lost). Thanks for reading and sharing Parisbreakfast. 
Subscription Paris letters 💌, maps and watercolors are in my Etsy shop
. With love💋from Paris🐻

19 comments:

  1. OMG....I am drooling over the seafood platter....but also the all the pictures.

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  2. That would have been a dream day! I saw the Atelier exhibit and loved it, music and all. Merci, Carol!

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    1. Yes a double-header with great eats 👍🏻

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  3. I was deeply moved in Les Baux for the Picasso Lumières show last Sept.I had never exerienced anything like it and I too at times sat on stone half walls just to soak it in.I love Van Gogh and this must have been exceptional.You've made me want to paint his bedroom as you have done in the past and made me long for St-Rémy.
    Cassis has little fish shops..I love my few hrs there also many yrs ago.

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    1. Oooo the Picasso show has not been shown here yet!!

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  4. Carolyne10:06 AM

    I'm surprised you went after seeing the Paris Atelier show..

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    1. I found the Paris show a bit gloomy..too much potato-eaters brown. And I wasn't crazy about the music choices...just my opinion..I did go crazy over the Japanese woodblock animation! Stupendous

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  5. We saw the Imagine Van Gogh when it was in Paris at La Villette and I loved it - plan to see the one at Atelier next month but not expecting as much as the first one. That seafood platter looks over the top!

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    1. How di I not know this? Though I never go to Villette for some unknown reason...Tutankomen is there now...can't seem to go ;((

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  6. Kathleen10:35 PM

    Looks wonderful and it’s open until the first week of January so there’s still time.

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    1. Did they change the dates? I thought it was closing Sept 1

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  7. Looks wonderful and it’s open until the first week of January so there’s still time.

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    1. 🥐☕️🥐☕️🥐☕️🥐☕️❤️

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  8. The seafood platter. :0

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    1. I know...I think I'm catching the train to Le Havre for lunch today.
      I wish...

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  9. I was all set to say ÿour painting looks to die for." And it does. Then "The Van Gogh really looks to die for." And it does. But then I saw your dinner and now I'm in total envy heaven! All wonderful!

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    1. We hit it lucky
      Lois spotted the little bistrot

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  10. Robert5:18 AM

    What a fab day trip! Would have loved to see that Van Gogh...I too, was a wee bit disappointed in the Atelier’s Van Gogh...not enough of his art and yes, heavy on his early bleak work, imho. Hope the Le Havre one goes back to Paris (the Picasso, too!). That meal was amazing for 18.50€. YUM! Looking forward to your Dufy post.

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