Impressionist Paris - Julian More

This illustrated text is a practical and historical guide, designed for visitors around Paris. The late-19th century times that were "modern" for the Impressionists have distinct resonances today. Behind the seemingly bland bourgeois bliss a certain malaise lingered, a disillusion with the Industrial Revolution which had failed to live up to its promise of everlasting bounty. As our own century draws to a close, we are similarly quick to blame our technocratic society for our ills. Like the inhabitants of fin-de-siecle Paris, we share the same kind of escapist urge for distraction, an urge which the impressionists were instinctively in tune.;Their Paris was a stunning facade; with the beauty and charm of the parks and bridges, but in the people, too. There was instantaneous energy in the movement of Degas's "Ballet Dancers", Manet's "Suburban Oarsmen" and Renoir's "Montmartre Dancers".;More's guide to Paris aims to capture those times, and invites the reader to embark on walks which bring the 19th century to life. The walks are contemplative rambles to be taken at your own tempo, and are planned as half or full days, with plenty of stops for refreshment. Each chapter concludes with an information section suggesting especially good places with period ambience to eat, drink or stay, and provides details and opening times of local museums and tourist offices.