While the crowds were wandering throughout the collections at the Syndicat National des Antiquaires at the Grand Palais,  I was taken in  by the grandeur of its beautiful structure. As extraordinary, as the art itself, this Parisian landmark was built for the Paris World’s Fair, in late 19th Century and for the time was a marvel of engineering.  The Grand Palais has a “glass house” feel,  made of steel and vitrines which soar above your head, as you walk from its corners to its center, a grand dome showcases the changing skies overhead. While the Eiffel Tower, built in the same period has an architectural simplicity to it, the Palais is sheer elegance, flourishes and decoration that obscures its engineering functions.  21st Century man may have surpassed the technology of this architectural structure but we have not exceeded the sheer wonder or spirit of the design and its relationship to the human experience. At dusk the lights glow inside the building and you can see it for miles, like a jewel in the night.  To enjoy a space or building for the sheer beauty of its form, function, and design is a distinctly Parisian experience.  Gothic, almost Cathedral like in its conception the Grand Palais forces your eyes to look upward.

The Grand Palais is a celebration of ARTIFICE at its essence:  Pure design, pure form, decorative moments that almost overtake you with their exuberance.  

ARTIFICE, at its best.