A Wonderful World Edition 1
Photographed + documented by Emma Herr
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4. CHURCHES OF FRANCE
5. STUDENT OF VAL DE SEINE
6. A STUDENT OF LIFE
GIVERNY, FRANCE
8. EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND
10. STRASBOURG, FRANCE
MUSEUM OF PARIS
9. THE EMERALD ISLAND
MOVING IN!
7. TRIP TO MARSEILLES, FRANCE
Moving in Playing tourist and getting adjusted!
“There are no bad experiences, just learning opportunities” was my mindset as myself and eight other KU students moved across the world to finish our Masters in Architecture!
This program, through the University of Kansas partnered with ENSA Val de Seine in Paris France was established by Steve Padget and students who wanted to experience architecture in this international city. The partnership involves one semester of study at Paris Val de Seine where we are enrolled in a studio course and an elective taught by Pierre Engel and Dorthie Sipp, two professors and well known professionals.
My short stint of Duo Lingo did not prepare me for the dramatic adjustment of being emerged in a new culture with a different language. The first two weeks of our stay we spent in an intensive French course, 10 classes for 6 hours each. It was an awesome way to jump in an learn but definitely worked a different muscle in my brain that I haven’t been using recently. I am now competent in basic phrases and continue learning through a podcast and eves dropping on the metro. We have been told that any effort is a good
effort and practice is progress so I try to stay hopeful!
As we arrived in Paris we did not know where we were living, who our roommates were going to be or what our day to day will look like. We each made our way to the travel agency office where, for the first time, all of the KU students were together. It felt like such a magical thing that we had all made it safely to this beautiful city and ready to embark on this adventure together. We were given a brief introduction, handed our room keys and sent to our apartments. All five of the girls are living in an apartment in the 15th arr. and the boys all together in the 16th arr. It is a real blessing to all be in the same home as we are all on the same team, figuring it all out together. It has also been fun to explore our neighborhood. The more popular arrondissements include the 1st-5th surrounding the Seine. We are about a 30 minute metro ride from these iconic hot spots but also get to experience the residential neighborhood of the 15th. It has a variety of city parks, the Sunday farmers market and flea markets, and unique restaurants. I have finally found my go to baguette and pain au chocolate!
An amazing amount of our time within the first couple weeks were spent getting to know the city. We walked miles and miles each day discovering different spots throughout each arrondesemont. Before we arrived, we each had naturally created a list of places we wanted see, food we wanted to try, or things to do. We struck a good balance of planning some days and spontaneously exploring others as we discovered the city together.
One night a few of us went to Bullion Republique, a French Bistro, where I tried escargot and oysters both for the first time! The escargot was delicious! I am glad I tried the oysters. I also ordered steak frits, amazing!
Wegot to catch the tail end of the 2024 Olympics and it felt like the whole city had dressed up just for our arrival. The rings on the Eiffel Tower, the U.S. embassy, the stadiums throughout the city, it was all magical. We got to attend the quarter and semi finals of the Para-olymics ping-pong! There was incredible talent showed that day and the support and excitement in the stadium literally brought me to tears. It was inspiring to see the pride that each athlete had in where they were from and who they represented. That level of determination, passion and hard work is always amazing to see come to fruition on any stage let along a global one.
Paris design week happened throughout the city from September 5th - 14th. It was beautiful to see modern, innovative and creative design complement such a historic environment. It felt like an Easter egg hunt as we walked throughout Paris finding the different exhibitions. Many of them were interactive, taking a new perspective of putting the human at the center of design. Below from left to right is featured “Squeeze” by Paul Cocksedge, “Village Passage”, Bibliotheque Historique de la Ville, and “Manifesto House” by MUJI.
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Giverny, FR
Meeting Monet
Our trip to Giverny, FR was just out of a story book. It was a very short train ride to the Vernon and then a bus ride up the hill to Ginervy to Monet’s land and homes. We first walked through the gardens, which did inspire me to paint or draw, although it was raining so we just took in the views.
We then walked through the Monet’s home which had an abundance of his work and told the beautiful story him and his family and their life on the estate.
I was astonished by the amount of art Monet collected and it was my first reminder of this trip that in order to be an artist we must know art and love art. Monet had an amazing fascination with Japanese art and culture. He was extremely mindful of his perception of nature and was encapsulated by prints of Mount Fuji, which were displayed around his home. It was an inspiring reminder that great artists draw inspiration from many places.
LOUIVITTON FOUNDATION MUSEUM BY FRANK GERRY
Museums of Paris
Knowing artists to become one!
The museums of Paris have probably been my favorite part of this adventure thus far! The buildings are iconic (such as the Foundation Louis Vitton by Frank Gehry) but the artist are inspiring. Musee l’Orangerie with Monet’s Waterlilies was curated by Monet to foster the perfect viewing experience. Additionally, it has an exhibit in the basement of a variety of artists who were all involved with each other in a very tight knit community and who were all associated with the collector Paul Guillaume.
It is astonishing to see how these incredible artists learned from one another. They each found their unique style while still learning from each others uniqueness. It has inspired me to view my class mates, especially those on this trip, with this perspective. Each of us are so unique but united in our desire to learn from the world, meet new perspectives and adapt to new environments. It has been beautiful to witness how we each go about this and I have already learned so much from each of them.
MUSEUM OF RODIN
MUSEUM OF RODIN
MUSEE D’ORSAY
MUSEE D’ORSAY
YVES LAURENT MUSEUM
PARIS MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
MUSEE DE O’LORANGERIE
Finding some peace in the city.
4 Churches of France
SACRE COEUR
EGLISE SAINT LAMBERT DE VAUGIRARD
EGLISE SAINT LOUIS
EGLISE SAINT JOEANNE D’ARC
SACRE COEUR
ABBATIALE SAINT OUEN
Student of Val de Seine
Reading the textbooks.
Below is the school that we are attending this semester. We are enrolled in two courses that can both be compared to studio course taught at the University of Kansas. The first is our project where we have a lot of autonomy to choose our site, program and intent. The second has a focus on structural design where we are asked to design an addition on top of L’Hôtel Industriel Berlier designed by Dominique Perrault. Both the projects are very different proposals than we would be given at KU and the feedback we receive is challenging the way I approach architecture design, the questions I ask and the definition of architecture.
Through these courses as well as the French course, we have met many of the other international students studying at Val de Seine as well as students from France. It is amazing to learn about where they are from, the stories they have to share as well as their approache to architecture and design.
Student of Life
Seeing the textbook in real life!
LE LOUVRE
VILLA SAVOYE
Trip to Marsille
A hike of a lifetime!
Marsille was the first trip that the KU group took together here. We hopped on the train and headed to the one most southern tip of France. Our only goal was to find the beach! The city of Marsille is a beautiful port city with a stunning Basilica of Notre Dame on the highest most point over looking the entire city. (The photo below is of the floor of the church that had beautiful tile work and I thought the joinery of the kneeler and pew was very interesting!) It is also home to Stade Vélodrome where the Summer 2024 Olympics played football, and Unité d’Habitation de Marseille by Le Corbusier.
One of the girls found a hike that we could take down to the ocean, according to Trail Mapper, it was an average difficulty hike and about a mile and a half. We took the bus to a university of Marsille which has a trail that would connect us to Parc national des Calanquesand bring us to the ocean. We were prepared for a small commute and a leisurely walk to the ocean. Little did we know that between the University and the Mediterranean Sea was Mont Puget. The trail off of the University campus started us at the top of this mountain and we followed a tour group with a very kind guide down two
miles to the swimming spots. It was stunning! The bluest waters I have every seen and a collection of small pebble beaches at the base of the mountain. The water was perfectly cold after our intense hike and we ate our lunch, read our books late into the afternoon.
Below is featured the Basilique Notre-Dame de la Garde, a passage way we found while wondering around the city a view of the port and the sketch I completed on the train ride home!
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Edinburgh Scotland
Exploring a Gothic city
Edinburgh was another wonderful weekend adventure. We started out by having the best fish and chips ever! Before venturing into almost every gift store along the Royal Mile.
I loved learning about the history of Scotland and their battles for independence. This was brought to life on a tour of Edinburgh Castle. The Castle is home to the crown jewels but also tells the story of the great blood shed that was necessary to keep them. The castle feels more like a bunker than a beautiful crown on the hill.
We also hiked to the peak of Aurthur’s Seat where you can see over the entire city and even out into the ocean. A gentleman that we met at the top was telling us about the two small islands just off the coast. They are man made islands that are formed to look like battle ships for the purpose of deceiving enemies in WWII.
I was most impressed here by the detail in the Gothic buildings and the preservation of these spaces. They are not only tourist sites but also active communities still using the spaces today.
The Emerald Island
Family time!
My mom and grandmother came to Ireland to visit my brother Max who is studying in Cork this semester! I joined them for the majority of their stay and it was not only so refreshing to see familiar faces but also so much fun! We drove around the Ring of Kerry, stood at the edge of the cliffs of Mohr and fed a banana peel to some alpacas (with the approval of the park ranger)! We also got to tour the Aran Islands which were so charming and our guide was so personable and engaging. He gave a great picture of what life growing up on the Islands was like.
EGLISE SAINT MAURICE
Strasbourg, FR
Studio research fun!
My partner, Vincent Yogasara, and I chose to work in Strasbourg France for our studio project. We researched many cities in France, specifically their education field. We thought that Strasbourg was particularly interesting as it is a very international city. Strasbourg is home to the European Union Parliament as well as many international consulates. It is also one of the fastest growing populations in France with a particularly young population. As we navigate our studies abroad we are particularly interested in what growing up in the European education system is like. During my trip to Strasbourg, I toured five school to narrow down a location to improve upon and understand the combination between the historic inner city oriented around the river and the modern city sprawl.
This was my first solo travel trip! I stayed in the most helpful hostel and made a few friends along the way!
