Wandering the St. Germain neighborhood in Paris, I get lost. Somehow I stumble upon a street with colorful hanging lampshades. Standing there, in the middle of the street, I am mesmerized. Not just by the fantastic colors and patterns, but by the seemingly randomness of their placement.
Why? Why are these here? Did somebody just decide one day to string these things up? Are they part of a festival? Are they promoting a performance?
Turns out, none of the above. When I got home, I looked them up. Of course, Google is your friend and by just tapping in “lampshades hanging in the streets of Paris” you get your answer. These lampshades are part of the “Linen Lux” in Paris which promotes the new textile designs for the fabric industry.
Had I been smarter, I probably could’ve figured that our myself as there were several fabric and interior design stores on the block where the lampshades were dangling. But, on the other hand, I kinda enjoyed the bliss of my ignorance and imagining some solitary artist hanging the lampshades himself as an artistic statement.
About the Author
Brent Petersen is the Editor-in-Chief of Destination Eat Drink. He currently resides in Setubal, Portugal. Brent has written the novel “Truffle Hunt” (Eckhartz Press) and the short story collection “That Bird.” He’s also written dozens of foodie travel guides to cities around the world on Destination Eat Drink, including in-depth eating and drinking guides to Lisbon, Porto, Sintra, Monsaraz, and Evora in Portugal. Brent’s podcast, also called Destination Eat Drink, is available on all major podcasting platforms and is distributed by the Radio Misfits Podcast Network.
