Tall Trees of Paris 42 Independent Artists Share Their City & Their Work

Paris, the city many consider the birthplace of modern art, is a place where contemporary artists look to the past to reinvent it. Matt Wagner chronicles 42 of these Parisian artists in The Tall Trees of Paris, the third installment in the “Tall Trees” series. Their work is shown alongside handwritten questionnaires detailing each of the artists’ favorite things about their neighborhood, painting an artistic panorama of the City of Light.

Artists include 2Shy, Alëxone, Alexandra Arango, Céline Artigau, Nicolas Barrome Forgues, Martes Bathori, Blek Le Rat, Agnes Boulloche, Broll & Prascida, Thierry Bruet, Ludovic Debeurme, Veronique Dorey, Dugudus, Elobo, Christelle Enault, Agnès Ernoult, Sébastien Féraut (Niark1), Christian Guemy (c215), HONET, Kerascoët, Koleo, Koralie, Eric Lacan (Monsieur Qui), Hubert de Lartigue, Jean Leblanc, Jean Lecointre, Lek & Sowat, Levalet, Nicolas Martin, Jean-Michel Ouvry, Tristan Pernet, Aurore Petit, Bruno Pontiroli, Francesca Protopapa (il Pistrice), Sebastien Preschoux, RERO, Jérémy Schneider, Supakitch, Sébastien Touache, TYRSA, Amandine Urruty, and Frédérique Vernillet.

"Matt Wagner’s portrait of Parisian artists is part showcase of their eclectic work, part insider’s tour of the City of Lights." The Toronto Star

"Matt Wagner (TM)s portrait of Parisian artists is part showcase of their eclectic work, part insider (TM)s tour of the City of Lights." The Toronto Star Paris, the city many consider the birthplace of modern art, is a place where contemporary artists look to the past to reinvent it. Award-winning author Matt Wagner chronicles 42 of these Parisian artists in The Tall Trees of Paris, the third installment in the oeTall Trees  series. Their work is shown alongside handwritten questionnaires detailing each of the artists (TM) favorite things about their neighborhood, painting an artistic panorama of the City of Light. This is a collection of street artists, illustrators, painters, photographers, sculptors, and mixed media artists. Far from the traditional art anthology, this book provides a view into a moment-- a snapshot and a pulse check-- on working artists in the City of Light. The book is as much a travel book as it is an art book. Wagner lets the art speak for itself, and instead asks questions about where the artists live, how they spend their time, and where they like to eat, drink, shop and play. Their responses are handwritten in a beautifully laid out bilingual English/French translation, providing the reader with a visual thread between the person and the place. The only other way to access this exclusive account would be to travel to France and spend a week with the artists themselves--which is exactly what Matt Wagner has done.

Matt Wagner, art director, owner and curator of Portland Oregon’s Hellion Gallery is the author of The Tall Trees of Tokyo and The Tall Trees of Portland. Wagner has a personal connection to the Paris: learning about the city’s rich art history sparked his passion for art early on. In traveling to Paris and selecting the artists, he found proof that the city’s contemporary art scene is as full of talent as its past once was. Wagner lives and works in Portland, Oregon and curates art exhibitions in Tokyo, San Diego, Portland, and Paris.

I am in the art world for the long game: I want to develop long and successful careers for artists I work with and have a lifetime of discovering new artists for myself. When I first started curating art galleries in Portland 10 years ago, most galleries focused on favoring local artists, and for the most part this is still a popular way to curate. This is how I learned my craft. However...

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