The Parisian Woman with the Floppy Hat…A Review

A life-sized street statue. Paris. I took this photograph on a cold December day.

 

It was a cold December day in Paris. We had just been to the Le Jardin du Luxembourg and were walking towards the city centre…..

…..  and there  SHE was,  sitting  at a bench  all on her own.  She had a sleeveless flimsy dress  that  had ridden up  slightly. Her legs were bare, her feet free of  shoes, toes resting on the concrete pavement in a pointed  almost ballerina fashion. It was as if she had high heeled shoes on that were invisible. There was an anklet on her right ankle. The large floppy hat that managed to  hide her face partially  at the same time providing her an escape from the passing by traffic gave her an aura of Parisian Bohemia.  Thin strands of plaited hair rested on her chest between her arms bent at the elbows which rested  on her lap culminating at  two  softly clenched fists cupping her chin and the sides of her cheeks. She looked as if  she was lost in deep thought as she allowed her face to rest in the niche formed by her hands. Her eyes were hooded or maybe even closed.

I was captivated .She seemed so real. I was almost concerned  that she was not dressed appropriately  for the chilly December day. Was she taking a short pause? A catnap? Was she in thought? If so,  what was  she was thinking about? Was she waiting for someone? A lover perhaps? Well it was Paris after all…the city of love. …

A beautiful bronze street statue. One amongst the thousands on the streets of Paris. If you are ever in Paris make sure you see it. Unfortunately I didn’t note the exact location  (searches on the internet proved fruitless) but it is  somewhere in the vicinity of Fontaine Saint-Sulpice .