Paris - Objet trouvé

Sophisticated and enchanting, artful and eclectic, Paris is a city filled with high-class glamour and old-world charm, combining to create a unique style of interiors. From a heritage rich in the decorative arts, Parisians have an acute appreciation of objets and the ways in which they can enrich life. They have also a fondness for nostalgic items, from personal treasures discovered in the famous Paris flea markets, to pricey curios found in local antiquaires. For Herbert Ypma's investigation of contemporary decorative trends in Paris, René and Barbara Stoeltie have photographed some of its most remarkable and sumptuous interiors, from their own home with its plaster reliefs and objects modelled on Pompeiian originals, to the catacomb beneath the Palais Royal occupied by Denise Orsoni, who has almost single-handedly revived a taste for 1940s Parisian objects and designs. The author identifies the historical fashions that continue to affect French decor today, and the challenge to Parisian grandeur by the witty use of found objects.