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My reason for going to Lyon last Saturday was to see an exhibit of graphic novel artist, HUGO PRATT, HORIZON LINES at MUSEE DES CONFLUENCE. I caught a bus across from the Halles Paul Bocuse. The driver and his pal explained I would have to change to another bus. I was escorted to the other bus, which took me to the end of a peninsula surrounded by many modern structures but no museum in sight. I had to enter a tunnel, cross some highways. Et voila!
An amazing structure said to look like a floating crystal cloud of stainless steel and glass designed by an Austrian group, Coop Himmelbleau.
Inside an equally astonishing experience to wander through
The perfect setting for the other wordly drawings of Hugo Pratt.
The display was a dramatic mixup of ethnographic objects and his blown-up cartoons.
You're immediately drawn in.
For once wall notes were in English, French and Italian. Pratt was born in Venice, spent early years in Africa and lived in London, Argentina, Brazil, Paris, Lausanne. And in general traveled the world searching for settings for his main character, adventurer/sailr/hero, CORTO MALTESE, who somewhat resembles Burt Lancaster...as well as Hugo Pratt himself.
I was first attracted to Pratt's delicate washy watercolors a few years back.
Plus he does good seagulls...
Wonderfully loose sketch sheets
What's not to love?
Painting in his Swiss studio. He died in '95 just 62 years old, but he expanded the graphic novel to new heights from 1967 with his eye for cinematography and his adventurous storylines influenced by Kipling, Stevenson, Melville.
I was so tempted to buy a big empty paintbox like Pratt's at Boesner this week.
Love his personal sketch sheets..
Yet his strong black and white graphic
Drawings with India ink are just as enticing. The exhibition is appropriately called "Horizon Lines"
After over 2 hours of immersion and inspiration, I hopped on a tram just in front. Then a short metro trip to the center of Lyon before returning home. Somehow I missed this miniature museum. Plus the silk museum. I will have to return soon. The Hugo Pratt exhibit is on through October.
On my Saturday one-day jaunt to Lyon I was lucky to have friendly neighbors. More on INSTAGRAM. Upon arrival buy a day ticket (5,80) good on bus, tram, subway.
Then walk about 10 minutes to Lyon's fabulous indoor marché on cours Lafayette. This has changed and moved since I last visited.
Full of la creme de la creme luxury food brands, better than Paris' La Grand Epicerie any day of the week. Both oatisserie SEVE and BOUILLET of RELAIS DESSERTS are there. Jambon de Bellota Bellota, many MOF fromageries.
But first a browse of the lush, perfect pastries.
Turn away if you're off sugar
Voisin of Lyon's pillowy candies in their distinctive emerald green velvety boxes.
A must-taste Lyonaise treat - gateaux and tarte aux pralines roses
There is no rose to speak of but red sugared crushed almonds top a thin buttery sable crust
Yes I ate one of the thin red glossy cookies. You used to be able to find them at boulangerie Jocteur near Invalides. Now you must go to the source in the Lyon marché.
Time for brunch
6 gillardeau oysters plus some bulot otherwise known as welks in the UK. There are many restaurants inside the marché making it an easy lunch stop.
Beautiful blue Breton lobsters at the poissoniere.
I got a sampling of miniature pastries from Seve..just a bite of each one or so. Really you're better off getting the full size individual then being so greedy. C'est de trop!
Exquisite cheeses on display.
Everything is exquisite at les halles. This is not your average French marché at all.
Many homages to recently passed away PAUL BOCUSE. He knew all the purveyors and showed up regularly for coffee every Saturday morning at 7 am. coming home on the TGV I sketched my abducted oyster shells...a souvenir of Lyon. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. If you'd like to subscribe to Parisbreakfast letters and maps please visit my Etsy shop. And please keep checking out my Instagram. Where's my next train?
This is going to be fast. I'm racing to catch a 6:57am train to Lyon. I've been catching a lot of trains this month. And eating a lot of ice cream - letter research bien sur. Painting on the train is my newest preoccupation. Eating ice cream goes way back. There are some concours/contests going on for € and train trips. My efforts are up on INSTAGRAM. PLEASE, PLEASE visit and like and heart ❤️me. No idea if it will make any difference but its worth a try. Till the end of the August. I moved to Paris thinking I would get to travel other places. I haven't. Not as much as I'd like. I'm almost certain I've already spent the prize €€€ on all these trips, but the good thing is its gotten me out of the studio. One mustn't grumble.
On the way to Reims...getting in the champagne mood.
A Monoprix nature morte! On the way to fontainebleau.
Same mandarine on the way home from Fontainebleau and visiting pastry chef FREDERIC CASSEL and his new atelier. Story to come.. I was lucky to get this drop-down table. Some trains do not have proper painting surfaces! Why?
Coming home from Saint-Malo immersed in seagulls
Ahhh...no tray table. One makes do. But did the lady across from me have to stretch her legs under my seat? Nevermind
A cookie contest from MICHEL ET AUGUSTIN. I have eaten too many of these chocolate chip cookies
In pursuit of painting the perfect cookie. You're only supposed to show yourself eating the cookie on the train to win. I'm not known for following rules
On to the August ice cream letter. Naturally the day I went to shoot (at 8:00am) a big delivery truck was blocking my view..bien sur.
I sketched the letter on the 67 bus to Pigalle last Sunday, going to meet Solli for breakfast at 8:30. Drawing on moving vehicles has become a habit.
My inspiration for the letter was the logo of LE BAC À GLACE -an old fashioned ice cream chariot.
And their divine lettering.
Et voila. Can you find Bear?
Just a little of all the ice cream i've eaten this month for research. No more ice cream maps PBers. The scale is not happy. You're supposed to LOSE weight in the Summer time bien sur.
Did you know the French consume 6.1 litres of ice cream annually? That probably equals 50 French scoops. The norwegians eat over 10 liters. And americans top the charts at 16 annually! Look. At last some nice stickon stamps with pretty pictures. I have requested all-Eiffel towers svp. They laughed at me at la Poste, bien sur. Thanks for reading Parisbreakfast. If you'd like to receive Parisbreakfast letters, maps and ice cream 🍦 in your mailbox, look in my Etsy shop. And please check out my Instagram. I still don't want Summer to end 🍦🍦🍦
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