Paris Sketchbook [Hardcover]

Mary Kelly (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 2001

Paris is seen through the eyes of artist Fabrice Moireau, with sketches in watercolor and pencil perfectly matched by an introduction by Mary A. Kelly. These residents of the world's most romantic capital city are the perfect guides to its streets, monuments, gardens and delightfully hidden corners.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

About the Author

Fabrice Moireau is a seasoned traveler who brings back from his journeys sketchbooks which are valuable cultural and ethnographic records in themselves. He is particularly interested in the world's architectural heritage and in plants and gardens. In his work, which has illustrated several publications, he seeks particularly to convey in watercolor his fascination with the subtle play of light, or the atmosphere of a street or landscape. Moireau is a graduate of the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts Appliques et des Metiers d'Art, in Paris.

Mary Kelly is the Travel Editor at the International Herald Tribune, where she launched the newspaper's popular travel section. She has lived overseas for more than 14 years in Geneva, Nice, Ouagadougou, Cairo and now Paris. She moved to Paris from Cairo where she directed the editorial side of Egypt's leading English-language magazine, Egypt Today, for over seven years.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; 1 edition (November 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312284160
• ISBN-13: 978-0312284169
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 11.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #35,523 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #13 in Books > Arts & Photography > Painting > Watercolor
  • #25 in Books > Travel > Europe > France > Paris

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love Paris in the Springtime--and in this book!, July 5, 2002

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Paris Sketchbook (Hardcover)

I love three things: Watercolors, books and Paris. Author Mary Kelly and Fabrice Moireau teamed up to make the most delicious book on Paris that I have seen yet. Yes, I exclaimed "Ooo-la-la" when I opened this to a random page, but forgive me for the cliche. This book is magnificient in every way.

I first travelled to Paris in 1976, then a number of times thereafter, lately last May 2001. Each time, I strive to capture the essence of this wonderful city, and aside from a few character sketches, I don't have much success. This book is everything I wanted to take back from Paris in addition to some wonderful memories.

The format is a longer-than-wide book with excellent paper. The text is accompanied by good-sized watercolors and pencilled notes. It looks as if you are holding the actual sketchbook. The colors are very true; I do watercolors myself and I can tell you that the pages look as if the washes were just laid down. The look is fresh and really, it is stunning.

If you love France, Paris, art, watercolors, travel, you will love this book. I treasure it.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous Illustrations, Wonderful Gift Idea, November 28, 2002

By 

"50cent-haircut" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Paris Sketchbook (Hardcover)

If you've been to Paris at all, you'll recall some of the street corners and landmarks in this sketchbook. But if you haven't been there, these elegant and intimate illustrations done by Moireau will trigger your fantasy about the wonderful city. There is a plethora of competent guide/travel books about Paris with lots of pictures and photographs, but none capture the whimsy of the place like this book does. Mary Kelly's narrative asides complement the illustrations unobtrusively. Once again, Moireau's poetic portraits of the various areas of the city are a marvel to behold; I could really see the love this artist had for the city. The book also has a nice flow to it, so as you move through the book to the end, you feel as though you've taken a nice, slow walk through the Parisian streets. A lovely book.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Paris Sketch Book, January 29, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Paris Sketchbook (Hardcover)

For anyone who has been to Paris and love the city this book is for you. The watercolured sketches are staggeringly beautiful and the text is a bonus. The texture of the book itself of heavy, faux-canvas paper has a wonderful feel and look.For what you get the price is very reasonable