The Art, Photography and French A level students visited Paris from 13th-15th November, exploring world‑renowned galleries, iconic landmarks, and unforgettable exhibitions. From Monet’s waterlilies to Meyerowitz’s documentary photography, their reflections capture both the beauty of the city and the inspiration it sparked for their studies. Here, Oliver F and Kento H share their experiences:
Oliver
When travelling to Paris for photography, I really enjoyed visiting the different galleries and seeing Paris Photo. It gave me a new perspective of looking at images on a gallery wall in the size the artist had intended rather than viewing them on a computer. In particular it was very interesting to see Joel Meyerotiz’s work in person, as it fit in with our current topic of documentary photography.
It was also very captivating to absorb Monet’s curved waterlily paintings, in the Musee de L’Orangerie. The paintings are displayed in two oval rooms which created an immersive viewing experience while there.
I also really enjoyed the free time we had in Paris to explore it and go sightseeing. It was idyllic to see the Eiffel Tower sparkle at night, or going to see the Louvre and the Arc de Triumph.
Kento
The Paris trip was very exciting as we got to see many famous landmarks such as the Louvre and Eiffel Tower. I particularly enjoyed the Louis Vuitton foundation’s Gerard Richter exhibition. It was very powerful and there were amazing views from the building. I was particularly interested in Gerard Richter’s Baader Meinhof paintings of the left wing extremist terrorist group Red Army Faction. The paintings were really eerie. The tour guide was extremely good at explaining the story behind these images and discussing Richter’s broad range of painting styles.
We also visited the L’Orangerie to see Monet’s waterlilies. It was quite a surreal experience as we got to see these gigantic paintings installed in large oval rooms. Our guided tour explained how Monet was a significant artist in the Impressionist movement, and that when we see his work there isn’t much visible detail up close but, from further away you start to notice the details and shifting light.
