Susan Mannion (GSD) was awarded a Print Network Ireland/Centre Culturel Irlandais Residency for March 2025 in Paris.
“My phone map app has a snow of green dots for places to visit in Paris, dots representing museums, galleries, paper shops, markets and of course food and café recommendations. The research and subsequent marking with green dots on the map was started as soon as I received the email with the terrific news that I had been awarded a month long stay at the Centre Culturel Irlandais Paris (CCI) in conjunction with Print Network Ireland. I had applied for the month of March 2025, a period that I thought would be not too hot or cold and that there would be no mosquitoes. I was glad that I did book March for the residency as there were some incredible exhibitions open at this time, plus Paris Fashion week was occurring and, of course, St Patrick’s Day celebrations.
The Centre Culturel Irlandais is in a great location in the Latin Quarter of Paris within easy access to all the museums and galleries and a direct train journey from Charles de Gaulle airport. I was particularly interested in the wood engraving and printmaking collections in the museums and galleries and each day I would plot a course to see a specific collection or exhibition. Most of the collections were easily accessible, no queuing and tickets could be bought at the door. For example, the incredible Apocalypse exhibition at the French National Library, with 300 exhibits on loan from the Pompidou Centre, Musée d’Orsay, British Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum and others displaying works from the medieval period to present day and included works by Albrecht Dürer, Kandinsky and 11th century manuscripts of the Books of Revelation as well as sculpture and film.
The larger museums and galleries did require some planning before the visit to make sure they took my Visual Artists Ireland card for free access and which entrance to go to in order to avoid the queues. By the fourth visit to the Louvre I had worked out that there was a separate entrance for card holders and I breezed past the long lines of visitors. The Louvre is amazing, very large, but tiring with all the crowds and walking involved, but I really enjoyed the collections and the Louvre Couture exhibition set against the architecture splendour of the Richelieu wing of the museum, specifically in the Department of Decorative Arts. I was lucky enough to catch the Cimabue display, a real gem.
Róisín Pierce held her amazing fashion show at the Irish Embassy during Paris Fashion Week and the resident artists at CCI were invited. Quite a unique and very enjoyable event as was the St Partick’s celebrations at the Irish Embassy later in the week again with an invitation extended to the artists at CCI. The Centre became the location for several St Patrick’s celebrations events, including a family day, as well as the normal programming calendar which included Leonard Barry with Andy Morrow (fiddle), Seamie O’Dowd (guitar, bouzouki, vocals), Kaitlin Cullen-Verhauz (cello, vocals), Tom Climent art exhibition in the gallery and there were film screenings at a nearby cinema. The Centre is alive with activity as cultural events are organised year round.
I visited Notre Dame several times to fully appreciate the restoration and conservation work carried out by all the crafts people and artists, an amazing experience to witness the change in the building. I had studied medieval architecture as my main subject in archaeology and I felt that by being in the newly restored Notre Dame Cathedral was the closest I was ever going to get to being in a practically ‘new’ medieval building, a very special experience. The Musée de Cluny, which specialises in collections from the medieval period, was another favourite of mine to visit and was very close to CCI. The gardens and architecture in Paris are incredible and I loved the Jardin des Plantes and the Jardins du Luxembourg which are a short walk from CCI. The Jardins des Plantes has several interesting museums in the grounds as well as glass houses and formal gardens.
Paris Print Fair was on while I was at CCI and I had the opportunity to meet gallery owners and artists and see prints from the earliest periods up to the present day from around the world. Woodcut, wood engraving and Japanese printmaking forms were well represented in the collections on display and I spent a glorious few hours studying the prints marvelling at the skill and techniques employed.
Paris has many art supply shops including Sennelier, Charvin, Charbonnel as well as department stores with art/craft sections such as BHV Marais. I love paper and stationary and spent many hours walking to stationary shops and paper supply shops to hunt out new paper and inks. I was averaging about 17km each day as I went to see galleries and museums, necessary to work off the creative calories from the patisseries and cafes. I would recommend Calligrane and MiSAKi iiNUMA for Japanese paper and unusual paper products. I visited several markets including Marche aux Puces de la Porte de Vanves and Saint Ouen Flea Market and found wood engraving blocks from the 1940’s and paper from legal documents from 1700’s. There is a print materials shop near the CCI called the Joop Stoop where I was able to buy supplies to undertake some printmaking during my residency. I was given a studio in the grounds of CCI so that I could undertake some printmaking while I was staying at CCI. Although there was no press in the studio assigned to me, I was able to make some hand burnished prints and undertake sketches for future printmaking projects.
A month goes too fast, the weather was kind, not too hot or cold and I was only bitten by a mosquito on my last night, a timely hint to go home. I am grateful for the opportunity to have met so many talented artists during my stay at CCI. Thank you to the Print Network Ireland and the Centre Culturel Irlandais for the residency award. Thank you to Nora Hickey M’Sichili, Director, and the staff at the Centre Culturel Irlandais Paris for making my stay such a memorable and enjoyable experience.”
