ImagesBrighton pictures of the week 23-8-2004

IMAGESBRIGHTON photography by david gray
	S I G N S O F P A R I S
	P I C T U R E S O F T H E W E E K 2 3 - 8 - 2 0 0 4

It's back to the French capital for this week's picture set, which is about the streets of Paris. The visual identity of any big city is substantially determined by its signs and Paris is a particularly strong performer in this respect. There is much evidence of that abiding feature of French life, the desire to regulate almost every conceivable public activity. Grass must not be walked on, walls must not be defaced and, quite understandably, shit must not be dumped. This attempt at control, however, does not stop the streets being full of vivid flyposters and graffiti. These contemporary signs contrast with the fine decorative traditions of the Metro and the commemorative plaques that are found all over the city. Many of those plaques remember the men and women who died during the liberation of Paris, which was sixty years ago this week.

A taxi waiting outside the Gare d'Austerlitz (image 2523-75)

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