Week 10: La Défense

Well, no more promotional opportunities for me this week unfortunately – but a good deal of unexpected snow! Thankfully it was all melted and gone in time for this week’s shoot which was at La Défense.

La Défense de Paris

La Défense is the city’s major business area and has been built up and re-built since 1958. Although you’re unlikely to see the Paris skyline troubled by many skyscrapers, you’ll find a good few here. Alongside the tallest buildings there is also a huge shopping centre and the largest Christmas market in Paris when December rolls around. The area got its name from the statue La Défense de Paris which was erected in 1883 to commemorate the soldiers who defended Paris in the Franco-Prussian war. And that’s not the only artwork you’ll find, since La Défense also acts as an open air museum, housing around 60 statues and works of modern art including pieces by Joan Miró and Alexander Campbell. It even has a section of the Berlin Wall!

Dress (worn as top) - H&M
Skirt - Asos
Shoes - H&M
Belt - Vintage

Statue by Joan Miro

Top - Asos
Skirt - H&M
Shoes - Vanessa's Secrets
Belt - New Look

Probably the most famous statue in the area, however, is the Grande Arche. This is the enormous white cube which forms one side of the Esplanade de la Défense and completes the Axe historique – the line of monuments which stretches from the Louvre, along the Champs Élysées, through the Arc de Triomphe all the way up to La Défense. It was constructed between 1985 and 1989 and designed by two Danes: architect Johann Otto von Spreckelsen and engineer Erik Reitzel. It is supposed to be a 20th-century version of the Arc de Triomphe, but one which celebrates humanity and humanitarian ideals, rather than military victories.

 

Partly to capture the business-smart-ness of the place, and partly to mimic the look of the Arche we kept things monochrome this week. Monochrome and graphic prints – because I’ve got my finger on the fashion pulse, me. This particular shoot was also inspired by Louis Vuitton’s Spring-Summer 2013 collection. Now, I’m not normally a massive LV fan, but this season’s collection is too much fun not to love – classic prints, cheery colours, 60s styling, yes please! I love how much room was left for playing about within the uniformity of it. So, to pay homage I decided to copy LV’s decision to send their catwalk models out in pairs wearing co-ordinated, but not identical, outfits. Stripes for me, houndstooth for joy of a roommate. Also went vaguely 60s with the make-up but couldn’t quite manage beehive hairdos. Turns out neither of us have enough hair.

NOT MY PHOTO -
thesmartgirlsfashionguide.com

NOT MY PHOTO
sugar-and-spice.com

It must be said that the decision to do this shoot à deux did prove problematic when trying to get pictures of us both... After a few times of trying to set the timer, balance the camera on top of an out-of-order turnstile, and then run into position whilst wearing stiletto heels (all to the great amusement of two nearby security guards) it seemed to make more sense to utilise the passers-by. No doubt they thought we were the world’s most co-ordinated – and inappropriately-dressed – tourists.

It’s a funny place, La Défense, it feels like a movie set – the shiny skyscrapers seem totally at odds with the famously nineteenth-century style of the city. Walking around the Esplanade, you could well be anywhere were it not for the Grande Arche, which has become another of Paris’s most famous monuments. In a way it is nice though, to remember that Paris is a capital city like any other – one in which people live and work, wear suits and sit in offices – rather than a mere icon from the silver screen, or another synonym for romance. It reminds you that Paris is rich and colourful and varied, and not merely “beautiful” or “historic”.

Still, fear not, if you’re lucky I might take you back to “beautiful”, “historic” Paris next week but until then, please do follow me on twitter for more exciting updates on Parisian life! Have a great week!