Tuesday June 2 was a mix of sun and cloud with a high of 24C. There were a few brief rain showers mixed in, including a 10 minute pour-down in the late afternoon after which the sun came out.
Our destination was the Luxembourg Museum to see the Leonora Carrington exhibit. She was a surrealist painter with a singular imagination. We had already seen photos of her in the Lee Miller exhibit and I knew a bit of her story and had come across a few of her works. This was a deep dive into her work and her absolutely fascinating history.
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| Poster for the exhibit on the railings of the Luxembourg Gardens |
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| Another poster near the entrance to the Museum |
There was a very striking picture of Leonora Carrington taken by Lee Miller in 1939 at Saint-Martin-d'Ardèche, France. Leonora (1917- 2011) was born in Lancashire, England. Her father was a wealthy textile manufacturer. She was exposed to fairy tales that she heard from her Irish mother, and cultivated an affinity for the fantastical and as well as crafting alternative worlds. After repeated expulsions from Catholic schools, she embarked on her Grand Tour through Italy in her early teens. She attended an Academy of Art in Florence. Though immersed in Italian art history, her creations at just fifteen, consisted of the Sisters of the Moon series and other watercolours that echoed the imagery of her childhood far more than Tuscan influence. She created an alternative cosmology dominated by women and populated by fantastic creatures that coexist with human beings.
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| Lee Miller, Leonora Carrington, 1939, Saint-Martin-d'Ardèche, France-- the calm before the storm of WWII |
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| Unknown photographer, Leonora in 1921 feeding her dolls |
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Animals of a Different Planet, c. 1927-- Leonora already had a penchant for creating
an alternate world at age nine. |
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| Sisters of the Moon, Diana, 1932 |
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| The Fiddler, 1933 |
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| Sisters of the Moon, Fantasia, 1933 |
In 1936, Carrington saw the work of German Surrealist Max Ernst (1891-1976) at the International Surrealist Exhibition in London. She met him at a party in 1937. They bonded and returned together to Paris, where Ernst separated from his wife.
In the prologue he wrote for one of Carrington's stories, Max Ernst described Leonora as the "Bride of the Wind". Against the wishes of her father, the couple found refuge in Paris and then in 1938 settled in the isolated village of Saint-Martin-d'Ardèche in southern Fance. There they created a house- a "total work of art" that integrated daily life, painting, sculpture and literature. Carrington exercised her imagination on the doors and windows, while Ernst adorned the exterior with various creatures. Carrington was perfectly bilingual and wrote- in French- her first literary works in this house.
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Doors of an armoire at Saint-Marin-d'Ardèche. Mythical horses--
they were the alter ego of the artist and stood for freedom. |
This period ended with the start of WWII. Ernst, who was born in Germany, was arrested as an "enemy alien" and their paths diverged. Carrington was devastated and fled to Spain in 1940. She was the victim of a gang rape by Spanish soldiers in Madrid and then was interned in a sanatorium in Santander, Spain where she endured a harsh regime- living between lucidity and madness. She was treated with shock therapy and barbituates.
Max Ernst, Spanish Physician,1940---The figure on the left is Carrington fleeing the psychiatric hospital in Santander. The title refers to the Doctor who subjected her to inhumane treatments.
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| Garden Bedroom, 1941. This was painted in New York. lt was based on a nightmare she had in Saint-Martin-d'Ardèche. Ernst was on the horse. |
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La Joie de patinage, 1941
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Leonora's parents had decided to send her to a sanatorium in South Africa. En route, she escaped in Portugal and went to the Mexican diplomatic mission to find Renato Leduc, a poet and a Mexican diplomat. They had been introduced by a mutual acquaintance, Pablo Picasso. Leduc agreed to a marriage of convenience with Carrington so that she would be accorded the immunity given to a diplomat's wife. In 1941, they found refuge in New York City where she rejoined the exiled Surrealist community. In 1942, Carrington settled in Mexico, the country that would become her lifelong home, where she joined a vibrant community of European exiles. She took Mexican nationality in 1942 and she and Luduc divorced in 1943. In the meantime, Ernst had married Peggy Guggenheim in 1941 (their marriage ended a few years later). However, Ernst and Carrington never resumed their relationship.
In 1944, Leonora met Chiki Weisz (1911-2007), a Hungarian photographer, assistant to Robert Capa and a Holocaust survivor. They married and had two children born in 1946 and 1947. Chiki died in 2007. Leonora died at the age of 94 in Mexico.
In the second half of the 1940s, her painting underwent a transformation. In 1948, she had her first solo exhibition at the Pierre Matisse Gallery in New York, which highlighted the complexity and dreamlike power of her work.
Carrington was interested in historical and mythological figures from diverse cultures. André Breton described Leonora as "an enchanteress with a velvety, mocking gaze". She had an interest and fascination with occultism. In the mid 1940s, she began experimenting with the medieval technique of egg tempura. She also had an interest in cooking. Lots of alchemical experiments.
Carrington was also a founding member of the women's liberation movement in Mexico during the 1970s.
Interspersed throughout the exhibit were a number of paintings and photographs of Leonora.
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| Kati Horna, Portrait of Leonora Carrington, 1947--Kati Horna (1912 - 2000), was a Hungarian born Mexican photojournalist, surrealist photographer and teacher. She moved to Mexico in 1939 and was a friend of Leonora's in Mexico. |
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| Lee Miller, Sculpture by Max Ernst, Saint-Martin d'Ardèche, 1939 |
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| Lee Miller, Leonora Carrington and Max Ernst, Saint-Martin-d'Ardèche, France, 1939 |
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| Window at Saint-Martin-d'Ardèche, 1938-- Leonora painted directly on the window. |
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| Double Portrait (Self-Portrait with Max Ernst), 1938-- the picture reflects their complex creative relationship. The horse symbolises freedom and feminine power. Ernst is enveloped in plumes, a reference to his alter ego, a bird named Loplop. |
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| Ladies Run, There is a Man in the Rose Garden, 1948 |
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Kati Horna, Marriage of Leonora Carrington and Emerico "Chiki" Weisz
in the house of the Horna family, 1946 |
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Portrait of the doctor Urbano Barnés, 1946. This painting is a homage to the Spanish doctor who helped deliver her son in Mexico. Lots of symbols of birth.
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| Les Tentations de Saint Antoine, 1945. Leonora painted this a short time after she arrived in Mexico. |
Le Nécromant (Le Voyant), 1950
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| Nourrir une table, 1959 |
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| Grandmother Moorhead's Aromatic Kitchen, 1975. This scene is a homage to her Irish grandmother. |
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| Kati Horna, Leonora Carrington et une poupée, 1968 |
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| Last picture in the exhibit blown up on a wall. |
We enjoyed the exhibit, though again all the descriptions and narratives were in English. We had an audio guide in English which helped us interpret her pictures. Lots of references to mythology, occultism and dreams which spoke to the complexity of life and her art.
After the exhibit, we headed for a late lunch at Sôma Sando a Japanese Sandwich Coffee Shop. These seem to be all over Paris.
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| Sôma Sando, Japanese Sandwich Coffee Shop |
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| Inside of restaurant |
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| Our giant sando-- vegetarian with cooked cauliflower, on soft white bread. Very tasty flavours |
After more wandering in the 6e, we decided to go for a gelato (they have vegan choices too) at Grom, one of our favourite Italian gelato stores. We had just taken our ice creams outside, when it started to hail. It only lasted about 10 minutes, but it was a real pour down. Luckily, it cleared and the sun even came out for a while.
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| Yes, that is hail (the white lines are not dirt) in the photo as I calmly had my chocolate vegan gelato under the awning |
We headed back to the apartment and Chef Alain made a salmon dinner.
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Wednesday June 3 was a mainly cloudy day. We had some chill time at the apartment and then headed out to the Marais. We had to pick up Alain's Agnes b. T-shirt which had the sleeves shortened. We were able to pick it up at their Beaumarchais store which was more conveniently located.
Before we took the Métro, we went to check out a nearby restaurant that my French cousin had recommended. It was down a small alley with some incredible grafiti and street art. The 11th is a very cool arrondissement.
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| Great street art |
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| More images |
We got off at the Bastille stop near the Agnes b. store.
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The Bastille-- the clouds did clear a bit later in the afternoon
After our errand, we went for a bite to eat at Land & Monkeys, a terrific vegan bakery on Beaumarchais.
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Outside of the bakery-- we ended up sitting inside
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| Fabulous treats and breads-- we shared a sandwich and a dessert |
We wandered around the Marais, checking out stores and some small galleries. Alain stopped outside one of the many new specialty coffee shops that have sprung up since our last visit in 2024.
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| Very cool coffee shop- Daark3 |
We then meandered over to Duc des Lombards, one of our favourite Paris jazz clubs, where we had tickets to see the Kelly Green Quartet. Green is an American Steinway Artist, who plays the piano and sings. She was accompanied by a fantastic band of Elijah J. Thomas, on flute; Evan Hyde on drums, and Luca Soul Rosenfeld on bass. We didn't know her work, but she has collaborated with Christian McBride, George Coleman and others. She has a recent 2025 album Corner of My Dreams which the band was showcasing. Almost all their pieces were original, most written by her and a few by other band members.
The club is a small one and it was great to be able to sit close to the band. The club was packed for the 7:30 p.m. set.
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| The band at Duc des Lombards |
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| Telling a story about her compositions |
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| Another view of the band and club |
We find that Parisians are really into jazz. Very respectful audience. There were a few tourists, but mostly locals. We talked to Kelly Green briefly after the show. They were a tight band, and we especially liked her piano playing and the flautist was superb.
It was raining when we got out of the club. We had been thinking of eating out, but decided to just go back to the apartment and finish off the provisions we still had. We needed to finish packing as we are heading to London on the Eurostar in the late morning of Thursday June 4.
We had a wonderful experience in Paris this trip. The exhibitions were all excellent. We had no complaints with the weather--- lots of sun and blue skies--- we managed the heat wave very well. Our apartment was excellent- and we enjoyed the local farmer's market and being exposed to an area of Paris we hadn't spent much time in during previous visits. We will definitely return. There's always time for Paris.
Le Nécromant (Le Voyant), 1950
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