Art from old junk from Arman at the Pompidou
22nd September 2010 – 10th January 2011
If you like collections of things meant for the bin/garbage/poubelle – this is for you. The French artist Arman was one of the leading figures of post-war art. 120 of his works from the 1950s to the end of the 20th century are on show at the Pompidou Centre in Paris. He was one of the founding members of New Realism, a movement promoting new "ways of approaching the real" or as far as I can work out it means artists reused parts of the world and consumer society in their work (something we call recycling.) He basically went from using the objects as paintbrushes to using them as the painting itself. He's best known for his "accumulations" and destruction/recomposition of things (see above.)

Infidelity in Steve McCauley’s ‘Insignificant Others’
Out in English and French now

The “slow and silent fade of monogamy.” That’s the subject which drives the acclaimed author Stephen McCauley’s latest tale. He came on to the show to discuss his book while on a promo trip to Paris. One of the best and funnest books I’ve read in a while. A satire of the life of a gay man, who spends his time trying to justify his affair with a married ‘straight’ man.

Schumann at the Grand Salon in Invalides
One night only
http://vjp.i-arts.net/MAG/

On a Monday night in Paris, as the weather turns cold there probably isn’t a nicer place than les Invalides. Inside the courtyard it’s like being a million miles away from the hustle and bustle of the capital’s streets. Le musée de l'Armée has several decorative rooms including le Grand Salon. Here about a hundred people gathered to listen to the musician Michel Strauss and a group of astonishing musicians pay homage to the composer Robert Schumann two hundred years since his birth. It comes just a few weeks after they appeared at the international chamber music Festival in Giverny organized by the association Musique de Chambre en Normandie. Look out for sporadic concerts here.

Photography from Andre Kertesz at the Jeu de Paume
28th September 2010 – 6th February 2011

He was the Hungarian photographer whose work changed the course of photography - an artist often described as 'the godfather of photojournalism.' Like most of the greats his unorthodox camera angles and style meant during his lifetime his work never gained wider recognition. Kertész was one of the first artists to realise that black-and-white photography can “write” the narrative. Soon after photography gradually replaced the printed word as the most popular means of conveying unwelcome truths about the world.