La Nuit Blanche is an eagerly anticipated annual cultural event which is usually held on the first Saturday in October in one of the most romantic cities of the world, the capital of France - Paris. This highly creative cultural and artistic event which has proved to be extremely popular among local Parisians and tourists alike was first instituted in 2002 by the mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoë. This event proved to be such a grand success that it inspired similar events to be held in other cities of France as well as cities located all over the globe like Rome, Montreal, Madrid, Toronto, New York, Helsinki, Tokyo, Naples, Brussels, Istanbul, Riga, Miami and Shanghai.
When and where
This year the event has been scheduled for the night of the 4th of October and it will take place from 7pm until 9 am the next morning. The event also has a theme this year which is “L’invitation au Voyage’” which when translated means “An Invitation to Travel“. In keeping with this theme, the event will be largely concentrated around the major Railway stations of Paris, through which thousands of commuters pass each day without ever stopping to take in or even notice their surroundings. The event is free and open to all and most of the event locations also have disabled access so that everyone who is in Paris on that night can participate and enjoy the 2008 La Nuit Blanche.
The main event locations
The Gare du Nord , the Gare de L’Est, the Gare de Lyon, the Gare Montparnasse ,the Gare Saint –Lazare, the outer section of the Champs-Elysees Place Clemenceau metro station are some of the main locations which have been chosen for the vent and which will see much activity during the night of La Nuit Blanche. Apart from these stations several Parisian monuments and churches will also have a part to play in this grand cultural and artistic bonanza.
The team behind the scene
The artistic direction of the 2008 La Nuit Blanche has been entrusted to Hervé Chandès who is the Managing Director of the Cartier Foundation for contemporary art and Ronald Chammah, a film producer and distributor. These two artistic directors with the active contribution of their team members have put together a program which will feature more than fifty artistic events that will be held throughout the city of Paris in honor of the 2008 La Nuit Blanche. These events will feature prominent domestic artists like Pierrick Sorin as well as international artists like renowned American video artists Tony Oursler and young Indian Bollywood director Shaad Ali. Further these artistic events will take the form of visual art installations, screenings, concerts, dance, lectures, performances and live musical and poetry recitals all of which will be showcased that night.
Some featured events of La Nuit Blanche
Shaad Ali and the “Bollywood Bawaal”
Shaad Ali comes to the 2008 La Nuit Blanche from the world of Bollywood cinema which is one of the most exciting and fascinating film industries in the world. Shaad Ali is a young Indian director who has been responsible for blockbuster hits like ‘Sathiya ‘and ‘Bunti aur Babli‘ and he now brings the vibrant and magical world of Bollywood to the Parisians when he recreates the shooting of a scene from an Indian Film at the Gare de Lyon. The main characters who will feature in this scene will be Indian actress, Aditi Rao and French Actor Louis Garrel. The shooting will take place all through the night and will feature typical Bollywood songs and dances as well.
Tony Oursler at the Gare du Nord
Internationally acclaimed American video artist will display his video installation on the façade of the Gare du Nord. He has produced this installation with the participation of forty students of the College de La Grange aux Belles especially for the 2008 La Nuit Blanche. The video images which will be projected on the façade of the Gare du Nord will show these young people singing but the video will be interspersed with sounds which have been created and added by the artist. Tony Oursler is renowned for producing works where human bodies are juxtaposed with the weirdness of everyday life and this work is just one his many examples.
Pierrick Sorin at Gare de L’East
French artist will display his talents at the Gare de L’Est where he will invite the member of the public to feature in his live installation which will consists of portraits of the public and the artist who will inject himself in these portraits in the form of a friend, a lover, a husband, a co-worker etc. The artist will then display these portraits on the façade of the Terminus to the accompaniment of live music which will be provided by musicians Don Nino and Rasim Biyikli. These are just a few of the many events planned for the night for the entire list of artists and installations do visit the official website of the festival.
The best way to experience La Nuit Blanche
Perhaps the best way to experience and enjoy this wonderful cultural exposition is to leisurely walk on the streets of Paris on that night though much of Paris’s excellent public transport system will also be working to ensure that you have easy access to all the sites.
For more information about the modes of transport available during the night of 2008 La Nuit Blanche do visit the official website of the festival. Though you have to be aware that the Metro and the night buses are bound to be crowded for the event.
If you are going to Paris specially to attend the event then perhaps it makes sense to to stay a hotel which is located in the heart of the city which will afford you relatively easy access to this avant-garde event. Neva Hotel, Alessandra Villa Hotel and the Pavillion Bercy Gare de Lyon are some of the ideally located hotels in Paris which you could perhaps choose as your base for your trip.
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This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 30th, 2008 at 9:23 pm and is filed under Europe, Fun. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
October 4th, 2008 at 10:14 pm
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October 8th, 2008 at 1:52 am
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