Enjoy yourself, it's later than you think

Oh those fragments of songs from decades ago that stay in your head. Who was that one? Perry Como? I'll look it up later.

I've gotten used to the idea that it's ok to  spend half the day lounging around my apartment without feeling guilty.  I really can only do five or six hours, if that, gallivanting around the city. And there's pleasure to be found in the small things, like looking out the window at the iconic Paris rooftops while taking a shower. Or eating the raspberry tart that I bought the day before, even if it isn't quite as fresh as it was the previous day. 

I begin considering what to do that day by late morning. Having a tentative destination has always been my strategy. and see what happens. It hasn't always been good, but the bad experiences usually become good stories with the passing if enough time. 

So  ; I did eventually return to the Musee des arts Decoratif after discovering the loss if my wallet a day before.  And the exhibit about the beginning and growth of the Paris department stores  was wonderful. I've never been disappointed there, even when the subject isn't what I'd normally be drawn to, like sports fashion, prior to the Olympics last year. 

My goal this year was to take in a half dozen museums in a two week stay, not an unreasonable one, I thought. But I've had to revise it. I'm up to four now, with 4 more days here, and if that's it; so be it.

I want to recount my visit to the Musee des Arts Naif, an unexpected treasure. I'd never even heard of it before, and don't see it mentioned even in any of the off the beaten path sites. It was a walkable distance from my apartment;  in  the Montmartre area. But, of course I never did find it that day. But I did have a nice walk around the 18th arrondissement. 

I did find it in my second attempt a few days later, approaching from a different angle. And what a treasure! It's within an old hall of some kind, maybe a market. Art naif is I think,  interpreted in different ways by different folks, much as outsider art is in English. It can mean by self taught artists, or sometimes as what we consider folk artists. Then there is also the term art brut which factors in there somehow.

In this case the artist is Gilbert Peyre  who describes himself as an electromechanical maniac, or something like that. His works are kinetic sculptures that are bizarre enough on their own; but are only truly appreciated when electrically animated. When I was there a guide gave a tour, activating the pieces one by one. A few required audience participation. I don't know how frequent the tours are, but make sure you get to see the works in action. 

There is another exhibit at  the hall, which I actually saw first, by artist and poet Malcolm de Chazal who was from Mauritius, an African island country about which I knew nothing until now.  His paintings are bright and in some cases almost childlike, in some cases featuring a single item such as a bird. The Peyre exhibit is there until July of 2025. I am not sure about the de Chazal. 

The third museum I visited was the Pompidou, which I visited last year and might not have visited this time but for two reasons. One us that it's closing soon for several years of renovations .  Not that I expect to be back in the next couple of years. But one never knows especially if another mosaic mural workshop with Laurel and Valerie  was to be announced. But the major reason is the current Surrealism exhibit. I can't get an advance ticket for any museum or site since all my credit cards were stolen.  So I resigned myself to standing in the no ticket line.  It took an hour. It seemed that nearly all the people in line were French. I did hear a bit of German and a little British sounding English. 

The exhibit itself was packed and overwhelming. It was much like those blockbuster exhibits at home. And it was very very long,  just room after room. Several times I thought I was approaching the end and was wrong. There many paintings that were recognizable as by Dali or Magritte or Miro or de Chirico but not works I had ever seen before, and many by artists with whom I was unfamiliar.  I had originally thought I'd visit some of the permanent collection, but after an hour in line and probably two hours in  the exhibit I was exhausted.