What's new on the Champs?

Dior is obviously working on some remodeling of its flagship on Avenue Montaigne (see previous posts here). They have since about a month ago opened a new big shop on the Champs-Elysées. An artificial facade, trompe l’oeil, supposed to imitate the facade on Avenue Montaigne, has been added. It’s somehow “folding”. (If you wonder... the “real” façade behind this “folding” one is still there – and is actually quite “ordinary”.)

I made a quick visit, have seldom been so welcomed (“bonjour monsieur” tens of times), but didn’t buy anything.    

I then walked down the Champs-Elysées, noticed that there are not any broken windows anymore, that “Fouquet’s” is again open, that there are the usual long waiting lines to get into the Louis Vuitton building…

…  that the new “Apple” and “Galeries Lafayette” installations are there (see previous posts here and here)…

… that the beautilful “Guerlain” shop is there… but what will happen to the former Citroën building, abandoned for more than a year? (See previous posts here and here.)…

… that one of what I referred to as “rotating showers” (see previous post) is already out of water, that the “pergola”, abandoned for years, has disappeared (What happened to it? just scrap? to be mounted elsewhere…?) and that the pavements still need to be repaired (see previous post).

It’s still probably the "world’s most beautiful avenue", but…

More news from the Champs-Elysées...

In my latest post I talked about the rather newly opened “Apple Store” on the Champs-Elysées. Even more newly opened is an additional location of the “Galeries Lafayette” department stores. I already wrote about this building a few years ago, when it was still occupied by a “Virgin Megastore” – closed in 2013, see here.

The building dates from the 1930’s and was for many years a bank. The architect was André Arfvidson, who created a number of remarkable buildings, including one I talked about in a previous post.

A smaller part of the Champs-Elysées building is occupied by a “Monoprix” store – “Monoprix” used to be part of the “Galeries Lafayette” family. If you want to see some traces of the building’s original banking activities, you must visit the “Monoprix” part of the building, where you can find the impressive vault opening, through which you could walk during the “Virgin Megastore” times … and find books to buy on the other side. Now there is a mirror and you cannot pass.

Coming back to the newly opened “Galereis Lafayette” part of the building, once again, like with the new Champs-Elysées “Apple Store” (see my preceding post), I feel that a good architectural job has been done, a good mixture of new and old. The architect is the Bjarke Ingels “BIG” group, also involved in a future “Two World Trade Center”, the new “Google” headquarters… and a lot more.

Looking at the ceilings, you can see all the pipes and cables… all white, clean … until further.

Mixing old and modern...

The yellow vests (“gilets jaunes”) have now been banned from the Champs-Elysées since a couple of weeks ago, but there are still some (actually now rather few) traces - the most spectacular will probably be the famous bar / restaurant “Fouquet’s” for a while.

There are also some positive things happening on the Champs Elysées, meaning some new installations. One example is the rather recently opened biggest “Apple” Paris store. We can imagine the financial operations behind this movement, which meant that e.g. some lawyers offices moved out, as did one of Paris’ most famous and exclusive shoe shops (moving to the other side of the street)… and which made it possible for “Apple” to move in.  

I think that the architects have done a great job, creating a completely modern “Apple” style, but keeping intact the essentials of this late Haussmannian building, including of course the central staircase. It should also be mentioned that the building now is supposed to be self-sufficient in electricity and that even the rainwater is collected – and used.

Rotating showers?

There are six fountains around the « Rond-Point des Champs-Elysées ». They have been “under renovation” for years. … and now!?!? I tried to take some nice photos, but…

Maybe we should first have a look of what has been. The fountains were created in 1863, by Adolphe Alphand, who together with Baron Haussmann was involved in the creation of the majority of the Paris parks and gardens. In the 1930’s the fountains were beautifully decorated by the famous glass designer René Lalique. Too fragile, these decorations disappeared in 1958 and were replaced by some simpler glass structures, later replaced by plastic… and finally the fountains have been “dry” for about 20 years.

These new “fountains” (or showers? - sorry) will be officially inaugurated in a couple of days, March 21, but they are already “in operation”. I use this expression because they are rotating (why?), illuminated…

You can certainly have different opinions about the aesthetic impression of these new fountains … and you may guess mine. They have been created by two brothers, Bouroullec, more specialized in furniture design? They have cost some 6 or 7 million euros (to a large part financed by sponsors) and will, as long as the mechanism still works, probably also cost a fortune in energy.  Why do our present responsible parties for culture at the Mayor’s office always want to choose something technically complicated which we have all reasons to believe – based on experience – will not last?

(At least, another controversial choice by the City... the Tulips by Jeff Koons (see previous post), will obviously - and fortunately - not be placed in front of the Paris Modern Art Museum, but probably - more or less hidden - somewhere in the gardens behind the Petit Palais, if anywhere…)

In the meantime, at the “Rond-Point” you can still admire some of the older installations.

The most beautiful avenue...

The Champs-Elysées - often referred to as the world’s most beautiful avenue. Maybe…, certainly among the most beautiful ones, obviously with some 100 million visitors per year.
Normally, most of my posts are trying to praise the beauty of Paris, but this time I must allow myself to come with some critics, something I have done very occasionally, e.g. here.

I took some photos from the lower, eastern parts, of the “Champs”, between the “Rond-Point” and “Place de la Concorde”. Here are some examples of what I found:

This “pergola”, some kind of shelter, originally built for a flower market at “Place de la République”, but rather immediately, in 1883, transferred to the Champs,* has been in this bad shape for years. How is this possible? Its “sister”, on the other side of the “Champs” is in good shape.

The pavements, visited by tens of thousands of tourists every day, are in very bad shape, and have been so for years. I saw examples of wheel-chairs and baby-buggies in difficulties…  

Where are the gardeners (doing such wonderful jobs elsewhere in Paris) and the “leaf-sweepers”? A tree should have been replanted…

Street lampions to be repaired (and a forgotten garbage bag).

When were these benches repainted last time?

The “Rond-Point” is surrounded by six fountains. They are supposed to be newly equipped (for the xth time). I saw an announcement about this maybe two years ago. The works seem to be ongoing, but obviously in a very slow pace – not a single “worker” the last times I have passed. When I see what they are supposed to look like, I have some doubts… too technical solutions very seldom work for a long time without important repairs… or abandon – many examples unfortunately to be found in Paris.

If this post could find its way to the mayor of Paris…

*/ I found detailed information about this here.
Addendum November 5:
Did Mrs Hidalgo read this post? Walking home tonight, I found that some urgent repairs had been done and also that some “leaf-sweepers” were present!

Lights and crowds

Another year and, once more, I guess I just have to – of course with pleasure - show the Christmas illuminations of the Champs-Elysées. The official inauguration had to be cancelled for security reasons, but now the lights are there… and what also is important, the crowds!

So here are some photos looking down…

… and up the avenue.

The Ferris wheel is not the only one showing the blue, white and red colours. Here are some examples: The US Embassy, the Grand Palais, “Fouquet’s”, the “Publicis”…

Other buildings are also colourful.

The lower part of the Champs-Elysées is again occupied by an ever increasing Christmas Market.

What I believe is new for this year is to find Father Christmas flying in the air, talking with the crowd, especially the children, down on the ground.

A little Swedish touch: In connection with the “COP21” (Conference of Parties), the Climate Change Conference, which is just starting, IKEA is (in cooperation with the Nicolas Hulot Foundation and the City of Paris) preparing some ecological features – a wind turbine, solar panels… and also a large number of installations where people can pedal, run and swing, all with the intention of generating 100% renewable energy to light up the Champs-Elysées. 

Yesterday, I checked if the installations were in use. With 147 heads of states expected for the conference, I had a feeling that there were more police forces than “energy producers” around. The crowds I mentioned above, seen Friday evening, will probably be seriously reduced the coming days.