College des Bernardins, Paris

We visited this wonderful building for the first time today, for a photography exhibition (in a room at the very far end of this image, behind a bookstore--the colorful bit--view it large).

The show is by the English photographer Brian Griffin. It presents his personal experience of growing up in the mining area around Birmingham--hence its title, "The Black Country." It juxtaposes past photos and his personal accounts with his contemporary photographic recreations of people and experiences--a fascinating and original approach.

The College originated as a Cistercian abbey in the 13th century, to permit monks to travel and and study at the University of Paris, founded around 1200. Renovated in the last few years, it opened its doors in 2008 to the general public as a center of culture, art and education (under the aegis of the Catholic Church). It's on the left bank of the Seine, in the 5th arrondissement.