Paris 360 - Hardcover

Paris 360 is the fourth in a series of large-scale photographic records of the great cities of the world, following New York, Venice, and Rome.  Each of these cities has unique appeal, Paris personifying sophisticated glamour in an unspoiled  and manageable city space.  The wide boulevards, well-tended gardens, and landmark buildings are not crowded by skyscrapers, and a continuing commitment to public works and interesting architectural projects creates an ever-changing civic personality.

The large format and pull-out panoramas of Paris 360 allowed the photographer Attilio Boccazzi-Varotto a series of broad canvases on which to capture the essence of this wonderful city.  Using his rotating camera, Boccazzi-Varotto took panoramic pictures of Paris's neighborhoods, great buildings, squares, and streets.  A list of the photographs' subjects reads like a must-see tour of Paris:  the Louvre, the palace Vendome, Le Marais, the Opera, the Hotel de Ville, Les Halles, the Pompidou Center, the place des Vosges, and more.  Some of the photographs have been taken from an unusual perspective to provide a fresh view of a familiar scene, like a street in Montmartre or the Eiffel Tower.  The time of the pictures is varied: The sparkling freshness of I.M. Pei's pyramids at the Louvre and the basilica of Sacre Coeur are shown by night, the Seine by the Ile de la Cite at twilight.  Each photograph is accompanied by an explanatory caption that identifies the landmarks pictured and gives some of their historical and artistic context.

Paris remains one of the most popular European destinations for American visitors, and this volume, an extravagant treasure, is a perfect memento to remember it by.