Paris – Around Town : Montmartre and Pigalle (part 1)

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Painters and poets, from Picasso to
Apollinaire, put the “art” in Montmartre, and it will forever be
associated with their Bohemian lifestyles of the late 19th and early
20th centuries. There are plenty of artists around today too, painting
quick-fire portraits of tourists in the place du Tertre. The area’s name
comes from “Mount of Martyrs”, commemorating the first bishop of Paris,
St Denis, who was decapitated here by the Romans in AD 250. Parisians,
however, call it the “Butte” (knoll) as it is the highest point in the
city. Throngs of tourists climb the hill for the stupendous view from
Sacré-Coeur, crowding the main square, but you can still discover
Montmartre’s charms along the winding back streets, small squares and
terraces. Below the hill, Pigalle, once home to dance halls and
cabarets, has largely been taken over by sleazy sex shows along the
boulevard de Clichy.


The Montmartre Vineyards

It’s hard to imagine it today, but Montmartre was
once a French wine region said to match the quality of Bordeaux and
Burgundy. There were 20,000 ha (50,000 acres) of Parisian vineyards in
the mid-18th century, but today just 1,000 bottles of wine are made
annually from the remaining 2,000 vines in Montmartre, and sold for
charity.






Street art, Montmartre



Place Pigalle


Sights


  1. Sacré-Coeur




    Sacré-Coeur

  2. Espace Montmartre Salvador Dalí

    The
    Dalí works here may not be the artist’s most famous or best, but this
    museum is still a must for any fan of the Spanish Surrealist (see Salvador Dalí).
    More than 300 of his drawings and sculptures are on display amid
    high-tech light and sound effects, including Dalí’s voice, which create a
    “surreal” atmosphere. There are also bronzes of his memorable “fluid”
    clocks .




    Salvador Dalí

  3. Musée de Montmartre

    The
    museum is set in Montmartre’s finest townhouse, known as Le Manoir de
    Rose de Rosimond after the 17th-century actor who once owned it. From
    1875 it provided living quarters and studios for many artists. Using
    drawings, photographs and memorabilia, the museum presents the history
    of the Montmartre area, from its 12th-century convent days to the
    present, with an emphasis on the Bohemian lifestyle of the belle époque. There is even a re-created 19th-century bistro.

  4. Place du Tertre

    At
    130 m (430 ft), Montmartre’s old village square, whose name means
    “hillock”, is the highest point in the city. Any picturesque charm it
    might once have had is now sadly hidden under the tourist-trap veneer of
    over-priced restaurants and portrait artists hawking their services,
    although the fairy lights at night are still atmospheric. No. 21 houses
    the Old Montmartre information office, with details about the area.
    Nearby is the church of St-Pierre de Montmartre, all that remains of the
    Benedictine abbey which stood here from 1133 until the Revolution.

  5. Cimetière de Montmartre

    The
    main graveyard for the district lies beneath a busy road in an old
    gypsum quarry, though it’s more restful than first appears when you
    actually get below street level. The illustrious tombs, many with
    ornately sculpted monuments, packed tightly into this intimate space
    reflect the artistic bent of the former residents, who include composers
    Hector Berlioz and Jacques Offenbach, writers Stendhal and Alexandre
    Dumas, Russian dancer Nijinsky and the film director François Truffaut.

    • 20 ave Rachel, 75018




  6. Musée de l’Erotisme

    With
    more than 2,000 items from around the world, this museum presents all
    forms of erotic art from painting, sculpture, photos and drawings to
    objects whose sole purpose seems to be titillation. It’s all tastefully
    presented, however, reflecting the sincere interest of the three
    collectors who founded the museum in 1997 to explore the cultural
    aspects of eroticism. The displays range from spiritual objects of
    primitive cultures to whimsical artworks.

  7. Moulin Rouge

    The Moulin Rouge (“red windmill”) is the most famous of the belle époque
    dance halls which scandalized respectable citizens and attracted
    Montmartre’s artists and Bohemians. Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
    immortalized the era with his sketches and posters of dancers such as
    Jane Avril, some of which now grace the Musée d’Orsay. Cabaret is still performed here .




  8. Au Lapin Agile

    This belle époque
    restaurant and cabaret was a popular hangout for Picasso, Renoir, and
    poets Apollinaire and Paul Verlaine. It took its name from a humorous
    painting by André Gill of a rabbit (lapin) leaping over a cooking pot, called the “Lapin à Gill”. In time it became known by its current name (“nimble rabbit”).




    Au Lapin Agile

  9. Place des Abbesses

    This
    pretty square lies at the base of the Butte, between Pigalle and the
    place du Tertre. Reach it via the metro station of the same name to
    appreciate one of the few original Art Nouveau stations left in the
    city. Designed by the architect Hector Guimard, it features ornate green
    wrought-iron arches, amber lanterns and a ship shield, the symbol of
    Paris, on the roof. Along with Porte Dauphine, it is the only station to
    retain its original glass roof. A mural painted by local artists winds
    around the spiral staircase at the entrance. But don’t walk to the
    platform, take the elevator – it’s the deepest station in Paris, with
    285 steps.




  10. Moulin de la Galette

    Montmartre
    once had more than 30 windmills, used for pressing grapes and grinding
    wheat; this is one of only two still standing. During the siege of Paris
    in 1814 its owner, Pierre-Charles Debray, was crucified on its sails by
    Russian soldiers. It became a dance hall in the 19th century and
    inspired paintings by Renoir and Van Gogh. It is now a restaurant, but it can be admired from outside, and rue Lepic is worth a visit for its shops and restaurants.

    • 79 rue Lepic, 75018




    Moulin de la Galette