In this post I’m sharing looks at parts of facades and walls in Paris. They caught my eye for various reasons: the way the light was hitting, the pattern of shadows, or the curious combinations of elements or lines. Sometimes the interest was in the texture of the materials, or the way stains had built up over time on an aging surface. Most of these images show just small portions of a building. The photographs separate the elements of interest from the larger building or scene – for an appreciation of the lines or textures or materials in their own right.
Many buildings in Paris were built or faced with a local stone, Lutetian limestone. Its warm grey color creates an overall character to the older parts of the city that is reflected throughout these photos. The image above shows solid stone blocks of the material in a buttress at the rear of the 13th century Saint-Chapelle, on the Île de la Cité not far from Notre-Dame Cathedral. In more recent buildings the limestone is a facing material. The continuity of the stone over time is part of what makes Paris such a beautiful city.
A variety of elements come together here: bands of facade stone, the entry arch detail and canopy, the white metal shutters in the window, and signs for the hotel.
The formality of the sculpted stone medallions over shadowy barred windows is complemented by the neatly spaced row of motorcycles and scooters. A few orange plates add a bit of color to the scene.
In this interior courtyard two angled plastered masonry flues join together in an inverted V. The texture of the stone wall, the white window trims, and the creamy plaster of the flues and walls form a monochromatic composition. The sun casts precise little shadows from the metal bars to the left of the flues.
Here we peek beyond the ragged edge of a deconstructed stone facade into a stone-flanked alley that forms a Mondrian-like composition: red-trimmed stacked construction trailers, square-framed windows, and a tall ribbed aluminum panel.
Narrow concrete lanes dive down into a parking garage between curved white walls. The grooved pavement and the shallow gutters that run down the middle of the lanes add interesting lines and angles.
A curb in an S-curve runs through another almost-monochromatic scene.
A curved glass window with somewhat forlorn white curtains and a cat sits in an otherwise austere facade trimmed in dark cornice lines and moldings.
An Art Deco entrance door and lamp are set in a plaster facade showing stains and discoloration from aging. A drip line from the lower edge of the window lines up perfectly with the lamp. A course of wires is stapled to the facade.
A crown of security spikes projecting from the roof of this building casts long shadows onto the limestone walls.
From this angle you can see how short the security spikes are compared to the length of the shadows. The shadows of the spikes flanking the barred window are perfectly symmetrical – good timing!
An otherwise centuries-old street scene has been brought up to date with a red do-not-enter sign and a green trash bag.
Someone gave up two window views to make room for this light-hearted sculpture of a figure, who has found just enough of a ledge for a scrunched-up seat.
The wall is made of brick, covered with a plaster that has been lined to make it look like stone. A piece of metal that was embedded in the wall has started to rust, resulting in leaking and spalling of the plaster. A long white drip stain hangs below the window on the left.
A bridge abutment in the Seine with precisely engineered angles and blocks forms a canvas for stains of varying tones.
A plastered wall in the Passy district looks a little drab and sad on a wet afternoon.
A closer view of a corner of the facade looks like it could be a painting, with its gradations of stained greys and whites, the uneven lines of the window ledge, and the dingy metal shutters.
A composition of textures: a ridged concrete driveway down to a garage, the speckled tones of a stone facade, and white limestone blocks at the wall’s edge. The electric boxes and the splash of white paint add interesting details.
A stone wall and a shed in a corner of the gardens of the Musée Rodin.
A woman walks along base of the Labrouste building of the Sainte-Geneviève Library. Her figure makes the large scale of the building evident – it encloses a cavernous reading room. Each course of large stones at the base steps back slightly from the one below it.
