Thursday, November 13, 2008

Parisian Expatriates

I read Hemingway's, The Unmoveable Feast, many years ago. So long ago I can't remember if it was before or after I traveled to Paris the first time, in 1970. I was so intrigued by the book that I found Orwell's, Down and Out in Paris and London, and read it as well. From those readings, I learned about other expatriates that lived in Paris: Henry Miller, Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Joyce, Picasso. A few summers ago, I read many of Hemingway's major novels including: A Farewell to Arms, The Sun Also Rises, The Old Man and Sea, For Whom the Bells Toll, and many of his short stories as well. In college I encountered Picasso for the first time, and Fitzgerald and Pound. I have read Joyce's Portrait of a Young Man and have tried to read Ulyssess more than a few times.

What I come away with is a fascination with these people as artists, thinkers, and writers; but I also come away with a deep desire to know Paris better: her "rues," her cafes, her parks, her museum, her metro and her people. Maybe someday....

10 comments:

  1. Fabulous sketches! Such beautiful details.

    BTW, your missing 5:00 pm and 7:00 pm posts showed up in my inbox around 3:00 am. Sometimes Yahoo chews on them awhile before letting them through.

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  2. These are wonderful drawings. I reread Moveable Feast this week for my book group and in the process found a blog that you might really enjoy. Just google Hemingways Paris and you should find the blog of the same name - lots and lots of wonderful photos from the info in Moveable Feast.

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  3. These are excellent, Jim. I love the whole spread. Great portraits.

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  4. A fabulous spread...just wonderful! :)

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  5. Thanks you guys for your feedback. It is appreciated!

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