Switzerland Journal Day Seven: October 14, 2009 (Lausanne)
Our morning in Lausanne started with devastation and tragedy. After arriving too early at the Collection L’Art de Brut we decided to meander through the city and up to the cathedral that overlooks it all. On the way there I decided to check to see how much space I had on my camera and somehow pushed the wrong button and deleted everything. My soul was crushed. All of the spirit torn out of me and spit into the ether. All of those memories. All of those fantastic images I captured of Maddie journeying throughout the country. Lost. Lost. Lost. I didn’t want to go on. What was the point? Zurich, Bern, Montreux, Meringen, Thun, Luzern, and our first night in Lausanne were now dependent on however long my internal memory system could hold onto those moments. Maddie pushed me to go on. We went up to the cathedral and it was very difficult for me to work up the energy to start taking pictures again. The joy was gone. That…at least…was until we were actually able to get into the Collection L’Art de Brut and I got over myself.
When I shoot photos while traveling and come across art I like to take it out of context or try to find an aspect of the piece that maybe even the artist was intending. Essentially, I like to make my own art out of the art. I know many artists would hate that, but I don’t know them, so they can suck it. My vision of your work is likely better than your vision of your work (I kid).
Anyway, Collection L’Art de Brut is a collection of “outsider art.” The collection aims to highlight artists who were never formally trained and in many cases were accidental artists. We were pleasantly surprised to find a sizable collection in the back room of work by Chicago’s Henry Darger. Darger is best known for The Story of the Vivian Girls, in What is known as the Realms of the Unreal, of the Glandeco-Angelinnian War Storm, Caused by the Child Slave Rebellion. After his death his landlords discovered thousands of pages of a manuscript and massive drawings that accompany his story of the Vivian Girls. He has become a cult sensation inspiring musicians like Natalie Merchant and poets like John Ashbery. It was an exciting exhibit all around and a must stop for anyone who visits Lausanne. You can see my photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/calistan/tags/lacollectiondelartbrut/
We decided to make our way down to the very bottom of Lausanne that abuts Lake Geneva. Instead of walking, as we did the first day, we took the fantastic tram that runs up and down the city making stops at various levels. Our quest at the bottom of the city was to find the Roman ruins that established Lausanne as a port. The Roman ruins of Lusanne aren’t very well marked, but after an adventure through soccer fields we eventually spotted them beyond some trees. They date back to 15 BC when the Romans founded the port of Lousonna at the site of a Celtic settlement. Throughout the ruins were viewfinders and if you looked through them you could see silhouettes of what archeologists suspect the buildings that used to stand on the remaining foundations. It was a neat way to put it all in perspective. After the ruins we ate lunch on the pier and made our way back up to our hotel for an afternoon nap. I ventured out on my own for the first time to try and find us some watch batteries for our travel clock. While out I also picked myself up a new package of contact lenses. Switzerland is the birthplace of the contact lens and is also one of the few countries where you can buy contacts or glasses even if you don’t have an eye doctor’s prescription called in, all you need to know is your strength. It was a little intimidating to strike out sans Maddie, because I left my French lessons in high school, but I accomplished my mission.
Dinner was at a restaurant across from Place de la Riponne where we finally got around to having fondue in Switzerland. We had horse meat and honestly, eating Mr. Ed was delicious, he came with five dipping sauces. I wish I could remember the name of the place because I highly recommend it. After dinner, Maddie was kind enough to indulge me and journey back to Flon so I could retake some of my photos lost the night before. Once we finished that we journeyed to the balcony on the top of our hotel and listened for the Night Watch to call out from the Lausanne Cathedral. Lausanne is one of the few cities where the Night Watch is still called out. It was first established in the 1405 following a massive fire. Now, nearly every night from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m., a night watchman will call out “C’est le guet! Il a sonné dix…Il a sonné dix!” (It’s the night watch. It’s ten o’clock. It’s ten o’clock). Maddie and I listened and sipped champagne under the stars, lifting a toast to what has become our favorite city on this spinning globe.
