I got to live in Paris for a whole year (!) whilst studying and working in the city, experiencing the way France values art, architecture, and culture. Daily life involved cycling to work along the bike lanes along the Seine or getting to know the different arrondissements and the neighbourhoods that I lived in, each feeling like distinct villages within the city. And summer starts when the streets are pedestrianised for half of the year to allow for bars and restaurants to open up onto the street! An amazing city to live in!
Alana Scott, account executive
Last year I had the absolute delight of sampling some of the 1,000km of new bike lanes added to Paris over the last five years by the local authorities under the enlightened leadership of Mayor Anne Hidalgo.
Even though I commute by bike in London, riding in a different city can be somewhat daunting, but, over a long, very cold February weekend, I boarded a Lime bike and sped with ease along Hausmann’s wide boulevards between exhibitions, restaurants and bars, accompanied by a genuine cross section of Parisian society: students, commuters, tourists, athletes and perhaps most delightfully a set of nursery-school-bound twins who called out ‘bonjour’ to me every time we hit a red light.
Charlotte Goodhart, senior digital editor
We work with the international architecture practice Coldefy, which has offices in Lille, Shanghai and, of course, Paris. Founded by Thomas Coldefy and Isabel Van Haute in 2006, the agency creates balanced environmental, urban and social compositions, taking a sustainable and innovative approach to urban regeneration. Coldefy’s most recent work includes representing the country on the world stage through its design of the France Pavilion at the Osaka World Expo 2025.
The practice places a strong emphasis on the connection between art and architecture and has collaborated with Galerie Baudoin Lebon on an exhibition in its Paris office titled ‘Space Between’, showcasing works from the Parisian artist Elissa Marchal. The artist plays with illusion and the spatial invasion of colour, virtually inserting herself into Coldefy’s architectural projects. The exhibition runs until 13 September.
I love the city’s ever-changing cultural offer, from old masters to contemporary art, design to architecture – there’s something for everyone. Institutions both large and small have always worked with the world’s best practices – think Jean Nouvel, OMA, Tadao Ando, Frank Gehry, Renzo Piano, and Lacaton + Vassal – to re-imagine how architecture can engage with both people and art. And of course, Paris itself is a perfect, ever-changing backdrop to artful public amenities, from Hector Guimard’s supremely elegant Art Nouveau Métro entrances to the iconic Luxembourg outdoor chairs.
Peter Smisek, content editor