Changing Paris: A Tour Along the Seine

Essays by Pierre Borhan, Diane Johnson, and Thomas Mellins.

Documenting the remarkable structures and spaces of Paris, photographer Philip Trager traveled along the river Seine, eloquently juxtaposing the ancient and modern, austere and ornate, and ethereal and urbane. Among the structures and sites that Philip Trager photographs are the "Grand Projets," the new Bibliothque Nationale, Opra Bastille, Grande Arche de la Dfense, and I.M. Pei's monumental glass pyramid additions to the Louvre, as well as the Place de la Concorde, Muse d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, the Eiffel Tower, Muse d'Orsay, and the beautiful gardens and magnificent bridges of the city. Changing Paris displays Trager's profound mastery of light and unique, contemporary vision, and is a vital record of the continued transformation of Paris in the 90s. Included are insightful essays by Pierre Borhan and Diane Johnson and informative commentary by Thomas Mellins on the architectural history and significance of "the City of Light."

"These views of Paris can truly be called haunting. It is the true, sad, glorious magic of Paris along the river, in which the Louvre and Notre-Dame and even the new national library all pass from matter into light" , Vincent Scully

Philip Trager has received international critical acclaim for his photography, particularly within the genre of architectural photography. His previous books include Echoes of Silence (1972), Photographs of Architecture (1977), Philip Trager: New York (1980), The Villas of Palladio (1986), Dancers (1992), and Persephone (1996). Trager's work is included in numerous museum collections including the Bibliothque Nationale, Canadian Centre for Architecture, Center for Creative Photography, Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

Pierre Borhan has, since 1988, been the Director of the Mission du Patrimone Photographique of the French Ministry of Culture. He has written numerous books on photography.

Diane Johnson is the author of twelve books, including Le Divorce, The Shadow Knows, Persian Nights, and Terrorists and Novelists. She is a two-time finalist for both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. She resides in Paris and San Francisco.

Architectural historian Thomas Mellins co-authored several books on New York architecture, including New York 1930: Architecture and Urbanism Between the Two World Wars, a National Book Award nominee.