John Van de Graaff

By VandeGraaff

Rue des Peupliers, Paris 13th

Late on a cloudy afternoon, this is a close-up view between two of the houses across from our rented apartment in Paris (a much broader view from last year is here, and there's also a very recent shot).

The houses on that side of the street, and behind them in the next block (visible in the links above) all are in the same style, with just three stories (which permits our wonderful panoramic view from the 4th floor). According to what we have been told, they were built (several decades ago) by French labor unions for their members and and their dependents. Thus this small part of Paris's 13th arrondissement (equidistant from the Place d'Italie and Chinatown) presents a unique architectural aspect. We love the neighborhood!

If you take the large view, you may better appreciate the textures of the various walls, as well as the chimneys silhouetted against the left background. Having recently seen a group of chimney photos by André Kertesz in his exhibition here, I've become even more conscious of them (Kertesz shot chimneys in both Paris and New York).

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