Sempé Exhibition at the Hotel de Ville, Paris

Last night I was so excited to see that they had finally removed the last of the large white tents that housed the art show, the brocante/antique show, and the sex show.  It had been up since early November.  All around Paris Christmas lights and decorations are going up, and I thought that they were finally coming to the Bastille.

Until I went out this morning and saw this........

Apparently a carnival is coming to the the Bastille......

The weather has been cold and wet, not a great environment for wandering, so this morning I decided to do one of the things on my list that was out of the weather.

I walked down to the Hotel de Ville to see an exhibition of Sempé.

Jean-Jacques Sempé, a cartoonist and artist, started his career in 1950 while he was stationed in the Paris area doing his military duty.  He roamed the Paris neighborhoods on foot, scooter and bike sketching everyday life in the city.  He was able to get his drawings and paintings published in local magazines, and later in U.S. publications.

He mocked current events, which he observed from a distance, gently making fun of the crowds on the metro, the traffic, the demonstrations, the headlines at the newspaper stands and the motorbike riders in their helmets. (Borrowed from the exhibition brochure.)

Sempé is probably best known in the United States for his covers on The New Yorker. His first cover was in 1979, but there were many more and they were all displayed in the exhibit. The photo below shows one of his pieces that was a cover on The New Yorker.

He collaborated on several books including a series titled, Little Nicholas.  I actually bought one of the Little Nicholas books for my "little" Nicholas several years ago.

There are several things I really liked about the exhibit.  First, of course, was the work exhibited.  I love the simple drawings and watercolors.  And I really liked that they only let a certain number of people into the exhibit at any given time. Although I had to stand outside in the cold for about 10 minutes before I was admitted, once inside there was plenty of room to move around and get close to all of the drawings and paintings.  Last, but not least, I really liked that it was FREE!

Outside the Hotel de Ville, they are constructing the holiday ice rink.  It's free too!  You only have to pay to rent skates if you need them.