Past Events 2019

Wed | Dec 11 | 12:30 pm |Lunch| National Arts Club
Writer Elaine Sciolino 

Photo: Gabriela Sciolino Plump

In the follow-up to her bestselling book The Only Street in Paris, Elaine Sciolino, former Paris Bureau Chief of the New York Times, shared stories of her adventures along the most romantic river in the world as she discussed her beguiling new book, THE SEINE: The River That Made Paris.  Along the way, she revealed how the river that created Paris and shaped the lives of its inhabitants has touched her own life.  

Friday | Dec 6 | 5:15 | NY Historical Society
Visit and Apéro | 170 Central Park West

Curator Roberta Olson, Ph.D. provided a fascinating and engaging introduction to this exhibit.

Artist in Exile: The Visual Diary of Baroness Hyde de Neuville

Self-taught and ahead of her time, Anne Marguérite Joséphine Henriette Rouillé de Marigny, Baroness Hyde de Neuville (1771–1849) was the first woman artist in America to leave a substantial body of work.

Granted exile by Napoleon, she first made her mark in New York City and later Washington, D.C., and her art celebrates the people and scenes of the early American republic, documenting the young country’s history, culture, and diverse population. Neuville’s status as a woman and an outsider made her an astute observer of people from varied backgrounds, and her work documents such significant figures as one of the first visitors to America from China and the earliest accurate portrayals of Indigenous Americans.

What a terrific event it was. Great choice of venue and a super group of enthusiastic members.

–Debra Finerman

Wednesday|October 16| 1 pm
Lunch | National Arts Club
Pianist Tatjana Rankovich

Wednesday | September 18 | 7 pm
Dinner | National Arts Club
Speaker: Eric Mourlot

Eric Mourlot was born in 1970 in New York City while his father Jacques was running the studio on Bank Street and after two years, the family relocated back to Paris for Jacques to take over the main studio. It was here where he, as a child, began to spend his evenings learning various printing techniques with the help of artists including Marc Chagall, Alexander Calder, and Joan Miró.

Maurice Brianchon

In 2005, Galerie Mourlot relocated to its current Upper East Side location in NYC where Eric continues to provide a platform for artists to create history. Mourlot Editions is the legacy of his family’s print shop, the next chapter of the story. An avenue of expression where Eric can display both the works and histories of the artists his father and grandfather created with, as well as expose the continued relationship between printers and artists through the process and art form of lithography.

Le Baratin | 26 Greenwich Avenue

Some 25 members not summering in France or the Hamptons got together for a casual après-work drink and hors d’oeuvres, with a good number staying for dinner.

Given la bonne ambiance, we will make this a bi-monthly event next year.

Thurs | June 20th | 6:30 | NAC

HEC Private Equity Press Conference

HEC Paris held a press conference on the Impact of Diversity over Performance of Private Equity Investments, followed by a networking cocktail.

Fri | June 14th | 7:00 | NAC
Le Cocktail Français: Cabaret Français

Based in New York City, the Athena Music Foundation has presented dynamic performances of the highest artistic quality in New York and around the globe, from Dubai to Beijing.  They have built a reputation for their high-caliber performers, and uniquely thrilling and engaging style of concerts. A soirée not to be missed!

A French buffet with French wines was served at 7 prior to the performance at 8.

Sun | June 9th | 10:00−1:00 | Monte’s Trattoria, 97 MacDougal Street
French Open Finals | Roland Garros

The Paris American Club held its second Roland Garros brunch at Monte’s Trattoria.  Chef Pietro outdid himself, regaling us with truffled eggs Benedict, Bloody Marys and rosé de Provence, while we watched Nadal win the Men’s Finals on the big screen. Members competed in a tennis trivia quiz, hosted by Mathieu Legendre.

“The tennis event was great – and the brunch even more! Thank you again.”
–Michael Vaz d’Almeida

Tues | May 14 | 7 pm| NAC
Dîner with Christos Markogiannakis

The Orsay Murder Club

Welcome to the Orsay, a former train station turned into a sumptuous museum. It is from here that Christos Markogiannakis invites you to embark on a very special journey—a journey through history and mythology, crossing paths with mass murderers, stalkers, cursed families, cannibals and serial killers. Murder is present on every floor, in every corner, exposing itself through numerous masterpieces as a gruesome form of art!

Applying the principles of criminology and art history, The Orsay Murder Club investigates and interprets a choice of some 30 works of art through a “criminartistic” lens. Created by prestigious artists such as Moreau, Cézanne, Carpeaux and Rodin, they all have a thing in common: they represent murder.

Each work will be treated as a crime scene and will lead to a fascinating investigation inspired by the principles of legal and forensic experts. Into what category does the murder fall? What are the factual and historical issues? Who are the victims? What portrait can be drawn of the perpetrator(s)? What is their profile, their background, their motive? Reaching our final destination—the truth—will depend on the often unexpected answers found to these questions.

Wed | April 10th | 1:00 | National Arts Club
Lunch w/Luke Barr
View video excerpt here.

Author Luke Barr discussed his new book Ritz  & Escoffier, in which he tells a tale replete with scandal and opulence.  In his book, Barr – author of the New York Times bestseller Provence, 1970 –  transports readers to turn-of-the-century London and Paris to discover how celebrated hotelier César Ritz and famed French chef Auguste Escoffier – the chef who invented the modern restaurant kitchen –  joined forces at London’s Savoy Hotel.  There they created the modern luxury hotel and restaurant, where British high society and Americans – and both men and women – mixed, signaling a new social order and the rise of the middle class.  Per The Economist, “When you eat a Peach Melba, or drink a Grand Marnier, you have these men to thank; they coined the names, then popularized the concoctions. Ritz himself became not merely a byword for luxury but the actual word for it.”

Wed | April 3rd |7–9 | Bagatelle
April in Paris |Fête

Almost 50 members, a good mix of junior and seniors, joined in the festivities as we celebrated the third anniversary of the Junior Member Launch, held in 2016 at Hotel Chantelle and last year at the Rendez -vous au consulat.

April in Paris, took us to the famed Meatpacking French night spot, Bagatelle. Julian, the DJ, and the staff provided an upbeat vibe and let us pretend to be in Paris for the evening.

We were also pleased to welcome members of our partner organization, the Swiss Ski Club.

Tues | March 12th | 6:30 | National Arts Club
Cocktail Français, Soirée parisienne, Reynaldo Hahn

What better way to welcome spring than with a Parisian Soirée Musicale with music of the very gifted Reynaldo Hahn. Patricia Forelle will bring a re-creation of a typical Fin de siècle French salon with chansons, music, and other delightful entertainment.

Reynaldo Hahn was a French-naturalized Venezuelan, best known as a composer. A child prodigy, Reynaldo made his début at the salon of the eccentric Princess Mathilde, Napoléon’s niece, accompanying himself on the piano as he sang arias by Jacques Offenbach. As a conductor, Hahn specialized in Mozart, conducting the initial performances of the Salzburg Festival when the festival was revived after World War I. He then served as general manager of the Cannes Casino opera house in the 1920s and 30s. For many years he was the influential music critic of the leading Paris daily, Le Figaro.

Patricia Forelle, is a New York-based costume designer, social historian and member of the Paris American Club since 1998. She has been twice nominated for period costumes of the Brooklyn Ballet by the New York City Dance Awards. Her costumes have also been featured in Opera Lafayette productions.

Tues | March 5th | 1:00 | NAC
Mardi Gras Lunch w/John Moran

Prof. John Moran of NYU’s French department will be joining us to discuss how the French language got to Louisiana, how it has survived there, and how people are helping it to flourish there today. He’ll talk about his and his students’ fieldwork in Louisiana and about the various governmental and non-governmental efforts to promote French in Louisiana today. You’ll also get to hear how French is spoken in Louisiana. Plus we’ll be featuring a Louisiana-themed menu. So what better way to celebrate Mardi Gras than with the Paris American Club?

Wednesday, Feb 27th, 7:00 pm
Château Village, 1 Minetta Street, Apt 2E
New Member Reception

(For members who joined in 2018/19)

Tues | Feb 12th  | NAC
Cocktail dînatoire & Soirée musicale with Jacques Schwartz-Bart, Jazz Saxophonist with piano accompaniment

Friday–Sunday, Feb 1–3, 2019
Ski Weekend in Vermont

We were very excited to partner again with the Swiss Ski Club of New York to offer members and their friends the opportunity to ski in Vermont. The private lodge features 40 beds, sauna, fireplace, kitchen, bar…

Tuesday | Jan 15th | NAC
1:00 Lunch, Galette des Rois
Speaker: Frédérique Bedos
Followed by Annual Business Meeting

Calendar of Meetings 2019