Urban Gardens

In 1828, when Paris lit the Champs Elysées with gas lamps earning the nickname La Ville-Lumière, or City of Lights, had it instead lined the street with plants, it might have become known as The City of Plants. During … Read More...

Photo by Isabel Howard: Sign on door reads “Je suis dans le jardin” (“I’m in the garden”)

With its hidden gardens and artwork you won’t find in any museum, Paris’s Butte-aux-Cailles neighborhood isn’t on the usual tourist’s radar, and it’s … Read More...

Patrick Blanc vertical garden wall behind glass at Marité et François Girbaud shop in Paris

It’s been a week of creative inspiration and as I pack it all up from Paris for my to return to New York, I will … Read More...

I spent the day yesterday infusing myself with a strong dose of design inspiration at the Paris design fair, Maison & Objet. One of the themes permeating the fair is the blend of nature and technology and I was thrilled … Read More...

No matter how many times I stroll the streets of Paris, I am always amazed by the quantity of visual inspiration I receive. From the beautiful way in which ordinary shopkeepers arrange their vitrines, or store windows, to the … Read More...

A hidden place of repose opens up to the Potager des Oiseaux.

Having savored a Salade Paysanne at the unpretentious northern Marais cafe, La Perle, I was fortified for my afternoon search of more little-known Paris gardens and whatever else … Read More...

The Jardin Nomade, in the 11th arrondissement, opens its gates to neighborhood children.

The blister that has formed on the bottom of my left foot is a souvenir of my recent two days walking around Paris visiting some of the … Read More...

I’m a “flâneur” in Paris for a few days. The French word “flâneur” doesn’t translate very well in English.  According to Wikipedia, the term comes from the verb “flâner”, which means “to stroll.”  A flâneur is a person who … Read More...

When I visited the iconic French architect Jean Novel in his Paris “atelier” (studio), I asked him about his design of the Musée du Quai Branly and of his collaboration with the eccentric botanical designer, Patrick Blanc. For the museum, … Read More...

Photo: Haupt and Binder

Updated February 2025

From the street, I would have never guessed that hidden behind centuries-old plaster walls and tall wooden doors marked 3201, I would find a magnificent narrative of Venetian history, art, and culture.

Pass … Read More...