The beautiful things in life...

What a day! Where to begin? This morning Kami and I set out to fill our Saturday with the sights of Lille. We began at the tourist office to get maps and set out on foot. First, we headed to “Vieux Lille” or “Old Lille”. The little roads and houses date back centuries and some are even marked. One house I passed had 1604 carved above the door! There was an accordion player in the street, which set the mood for our old French outing. What shocked us was that each time we turned a corner we ran into a massive cathedral or an ancient structure. Example number one, we stopped at a corner to get our cameras out and at the end of the street stood Notre Dame de Treille! It is technically considered as basilica, not a cathedral. However the strange part is that three of the facades are dark, ancient, stone (see picture) and the front side has been restored in modern fashion! It’s an absolutely hideous gray plastic-looking front with modern writing. (Compare picture) The inside was closed for restoration, but the cellars were open and inside them, a religious affiliation keeps a shop where they sell products made by the nuns and monks themselves! The nuns knit aprons, dip candles, and the monks paint dishes and carve crucifixes; then they sell them right there in the basement of the basilica to help support their monasteries and convents. I could tell each item was made with delicate care. Next, we found the “Wall Street” of Lille-the old stock exchange is there, along with several very old buildings that have now turned into expensive shops and businesses. The street is called “Rue de la Monnaie” and is in the background of the picture I’m in. Next to that, I posted a picture of Kami since I keep mentioning her and because we have been doing our sightseeing together. Well, we continued wandering around until we became lost and I had to ask someone for directions which somewhat peeves me to do when I feel like an independent explorer haha.
Moving along we turned a corner and bam! The most beautiful white building stood at the end of the street. I just had to see what it was so we walked toward it; it was so clean it shone. The name of it was Sainte Marie Madeleine and as we walked in the door, we stood in awe at what was in front of us. Expecting to find a dark chapel with candles and an alter at the front, we instead stood in a round chapel with three walls filled from floor to ceiling with metal trash! Confused, I asked the man next to the door what it was, and he laughed and said this was here for the Europe XXL exhibition. Most of the Eastern block countries have brought something to the exposition, and he continued to explain that this was one of Russia’s contributions. The artist, Subodh Gupta, welded metal buckets, spoons, plates, anything silver he could find, together to create these mountains. It was so bizarre I couldn’t help but just stare. Other portions of the exhibit included things like an entire village made of aluminum foil, and replicas of birthing houses, which for centuries were used in Russia to deliver babies of women who were unmarried and ashamed of their pregnancies. Finally, the last thing I did today was visit the Palais des Beaux Arts, the museum of fine arts, which is housed in the Lille Palace. I must admit that this was my very favorite thing I have done or seen since I arrived! The museum is absolutely incredible and oh how I love art of all eras, styles, and artists! This morning I got online and researched out what works are housed in this museum and which are the most worth seeing and I found some very famous artists including Monet, Manet, and Rodin. However, many more originals are kept there than I could have imagined! But first, upon entering the museum, there is an enormous colored glass chandelier! Then, in the first room there are several sculptures, and the first is a portrayal of Adam by Auguste Rodin. I visited his museum in Paris, only having heard of The Thinker, and found that he had many others that were absolutely incredible. This looks like several of his others and is just as impressive. Adam’s head is tilted strangely but the details in his tendons and muscles in his feet and hands are quite lifelike. Rodin etched his name into Adam’s foot. The next statue I’d wanted to see is called The Kiss by Gustav Crauk. It portrays a mother and her little boy and his arms are wrapped around her while he kisses her cheek. It’s a tender pose and his little angel wings poke out through the back while she sits gracefully. It was such a sweet statue, it’s no wonder it’s one of the favorites of visitors to the museum. I then came to a statue of a young boy who reminded me of Peter Pan or one of the lost boys from Neverland. He had a fairylike figure and wings; his stance looked like he’d just stubbed his toe. I read the plaque and the title was “L’amour piqué” “Stung by Love”. The little arrow in his foot represents love and he has just been shot. I loved nearly every piece, but a few more of my favorites included a statue of the Pharaoh’s daughter reaching into the Nile to grab Moses’ basket cradle, a painting by Monet of the London parliament buildings at sunrise, and the Rubens paintings. I had studied Rubens in art classes before and learned he was reputed for his “undulating” and fleshy women and men, often painted on a diagonal. So to see the figures in real life, on canvases well over twelve feet wide was remarkable.
One of the paintings said its medium was oil on wood so I looked at it from a side view and due to the fact that it was painted in the 1500’s over 500 years of wear certainly showed. The wood was warped and the back was worn thin in places it appeared to have been propped up before.
In the final display gallery of religious art I found a couple of paintings that impressed me. One, titled La Nativité or The Nativity painted by Phillipe de Champaigne depicted the manger scene with an elderly Joseph and a beautiful Mary. In the upper foreground there

are about a dozen curly headed little angels peeking down from the heavens. I had to smile upon seeing that the Christ child was wrapped so tightly, “swaddling clothes” doesn’t even begin to describe it. It was a truly touching portrait and I’d be interested to see more of Champaigne’s works.
Well, I don’t think words can adequately express how I love art and how curious I am to know about the depth of its beauty. I always wonder if every painting has a story, if the artist’s life is represented in some way in what he paints, if there are things hidden that we with our modern eyes may miss?
It’s getting late so I’d better hit the hay…tomorrow will be my first day in the Lille ward and I’m really excited to get to know the members! Bonne nuit…