Upcoming Events in 2009

Normandy and the Normandie Memoire organization in Caen will organize numerous events surrounding the 65th anniversary of the D-Day landings of June 6 1944 and the following liberation. See www.normandiememoire.com

Reflections of the Seine of the Impressionists” forms part of the exhibition programme dedicated to modern and contemporary art organised by the Town of Rueil-Malmaison (Ile de France), at the Grognard studio. It is a collection of 80 paintings and many prints, watercolours and posters dedicated to the Seine, a source of inspiration for artists of the 19th to 20th century, which really contributed to create a different pictorial language, which formed the basis of modern painting.

The chronology of the exhibited works allows us to follow the developments in the rural landscape, which were soon to be affected by the influence of the capital in the open-air cafés, balls and bathing scene, which attracted colourful crowds, greedy for freedom and entertainment and free of all constraints. A chronology that also helps us to picture the increase in river activity on the Seine from the 1850’s onwards, with tugboats and their trains of barges going up and down the river, when regattas and canoeing parties started to become fashionable.

The exhibition is divided into three consecutive major periods: - The Forerunners of Impressionism with landscape artists including Louis Français and also Antoine Chintreuil and Charles-François Daubigny - The Impressionist Painters such as Claude Monet, Gustave Caillebotte, Berthe Morisot and Alfred Sisley etc. - The Neo-impressionists such as Paul Signac, Georges Manzana Pissarro and even Maximilien Luce.

Atelier Grognard (Grognard Studio) 6 avenue du Château de Malmaison 92500 Rueil-Malmaison
Every day from 1.30 pm until 7 pm Closed on Tuesdays
An audio-guide can be downloaded on the town hall's website
Information: www.mairie-rueilmalmaison.fr
Cultural affairs: (+33) (0)1 47 14 54 77

The Carnaval de Paris (Carnival of Paris) was for many centuries one of the most important in the world. It was an important celebration in the 16th century, replacing the Feast of Fools.

The star of the parade is a cow, named Pimprenelle, who embodies the fatted calf. With every year, the Carnival of Paris' parade grows, including more and more groups, both from Paris organizations and groups from outside the city, not to mention from other towns in France (such as Cherbourg). All participants are welcome to volunteer.

The theme of the 2009 parade is: Cosmic Carnival, Astronauts and Extraterrestrials.

12th annual Paris Carnival 2009: Sunday February 22, 2009
Time: parade starts at 3 pm Place: through the streets of Paris
Address: starts at the bottom of the rue Le Vau (20th arrondissement), arrives at the Hotel de Ville (4th arrondissement)
Metro: Porte de Bagnolet Put on your masks, the main 2009 carnivals await you in France! For more information
Official website Carnaval de Paris  

To find out more, contact us: contact@discoverfrance.com