News (Blog)

For the centenary of the Prix Goncourt awarded to Marcel Proust on December 10, 1919, a new selection of letters are online today and made available free to scholars and general readers alike. The Corr-Proust project at the University of Illinois-Urbana is supported by the Cultural Services of the French Embassy. http://proust.elan-numerique.fr/collection/2

YOUNG FRENCH CINEMA, a program of UniFrance and the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, aims to bring French films with no US distribution to art house cinemas, film societies, the Alliance Française network, and American universities. It offers a selection of today’s best French films and filmmakers. The program focuses specifically on rising talents from France, from high-profile independent works, to powerful documentaries and quirky discoveries. This program stands as proof that this young generation of contemporary French filmmakers is—more than ever—a genuine melting pot with a global vision and an amazing capacity to combine cultural influences. Across a wide range of subject matter, their work is innovative in both style and storytelling. Twelve films and a collection of short films will be shown December 13 & 14 at the General Film Center in Columbus. More information here: https://gatewayfilmcenter.org/featured_film_series/young-french-cinema/

French cinema at State Theatre in Ann Arbor: https://statetheatrea2.org/femmes/

Free French film festival by Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapid, Michigan: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10157365339065792&set=gm.2602562219959123&type=3&theater

The Paris based Modigliani Quartet is a regular guest of the world’s top venues and finest string quartet and chamber music series.  In 2014, the Modigliani Quartet became Artistic Directors of the Rencontres Musicales d’Evian, a festival created in 1976 by Antoine Riboud and made famous through its former legendary artistic director Mstislav Rostropovich. The joint efforts of the Evian Resort and the Modigliani Quartet achieved immediate success and the festival has now become again one of Europe’s major and most publicized Summer musical events.

“One of today’s best quartets in the world … Balance, transparency, symphonic comprehension, confident style, their performance reached a very high and inspiring level.” — Harald Eggbrecht in Süddeutsche Zeitung

DATE: November 16, 2019 @ 8:00pm
LOCATION: Southern Theatre

More details: https://www.chambermusiccolumbus.org/modigliani-quartet/

The French government is launching a new standard for keyboard layouts in France. The position of the letters (A-Z) will remain the same, but special characters like accents and punctuation marks are moving and many more are added to better support typing French and boost usability and speed. Read more here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190403165844.htm

The Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit will present the first exhibition in the Midwest and most comprehensive show to date of the French art movement Supports/Surfaces. This group of fourteen artists, along with several others who were closely affiliated, lived and worked in the south of France, producing artwork marked by an interest in materiality, a lyrical use of color and expansive ideas of what constitutes a painting. French society was undergoing social protests and upheavals in the 1960s that mirrored the civil rights and anti-war movements in the USA.  Feb 1-April 21, 2019

More information? https://mocadetroit.org/unfurled-supportssurfaces-1966-1976/

https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2018/public-parks-private-gardens

A new show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York, celebrates the grand green Gallic spaces captured by such artists as Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, Henri Matisse and others.  https://www.1stdibs.com/introspective-magazine/public-parks-private-gardens-at-the-met/

Metropolitan Museum Exhibition link: https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2018/public-parks-private-gardens

Judy Paffenberger will be presenting a travelogue of her experiences exploring and enjoying northern France at Perrysburg's Way Public Library on February 22.  Check it out:http://www.waylibrary.info/index.php/events/upcoming-programs/460-northern-france-and-wwi-wednesday-february-21-2018-at-2-00pm

Do you like to read?  Do you like contemporary literature?  Do you like to read in French?  Or do you like to read in English?  Check this out!

The Albertine Prize recognizes American readers’ favorite work of contemporary Francophone fiction while encouraging the discovery of new literary voices, translated and published in the US in the past year. The selection presents a range of stories from many diverse locations and perspectives, reminding us of the importance of looking beyond one’s own borders.

What’s the program? One book a month.
We’ll introduce you to the best of contemporary French literature, one book at a time. One book a month for five months!

Don’t speak French? Not a problem.
You don’t need to know French to enjoy these books. The Albertine Prize shortlisted titles have been published in English within the past year.

Where to begin? Right here.
All of the books are available in the US at Albertine and online at www.albertine.com. Join the conversation using the hashtag #albertineprize and vote at www.albertine.com/albertine-prize.

The best part? A Book Battle.
In the spring, we’ll host a Book Battle at Albertine Books. Five literary minds will defend their Albertine Prize favorite.

Don’t live in New York? That’s ok.
Follow us and join the conversation via Livestream, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. You won’t miss a thing!

Ready to vote? Great!
Vote anytime for the books you love. You don’t have to pick just one. You may vote once for one or more of the shortlisted titles.
Every vote counts!

At the end of all this? A party!
Yes, we get to celebrate literature! The author and translator of the award winning book will be flown to Albertine Books in New York City this summer to receive the Prize and say a few words. Cheers!

More info? http://www.albertine.com/albertine-prize-2018/