29.1.08

Nissa La Bella

Jean Giletta (Levens 1856 - Nice 1933) is considered to be the first reporter-photographer of the French Riviera. His technique was to put everything in a box. He was a witness of his time and of its changes. He published many postcards.

The 3°1 wrote about the urban changes in Nice since Giletta and the arrival of the tramway this year:



There used to be a casino. It was destroyed during the second world war.



There was already a tramway in Nice, place Massena.

The restaurant "La Réserve" still exists. There used to be a boat and a balcony where people came to look at the sea.

With the arrival of the tramway, the city of Nice has changed: the first line has become an open-air museum of modern art.

You can see this street lamp next to the university of Saint Jean d'Angely. It is composed of different lamps, made of different colours, different shapes and different materials. Some look old, and the other parts look modern. It is very strange! This hybrid street lamp was made by P. Pinaud and S. Magnin.


The solar disc catches sun rays during the day. When the night falls, it shines and changes colours. It's an original concept and a beautiful invention. These colour changes remind us of the statues on Place Masséna. This piece of art was made by A. Leccia, on the Comte de Falicon building.

"Porte Fausse" is a big door between the old town and the modern one. It was redecorated by Sarkis, a Turkish artist. He used gold and marble. This passageway is very special because people can leave messages or postcards on a tray. "Porte Fausse" is an original door and we like it because it's a beautiful transition between the old town and the new town. In fact, we can say that, in Nice we can find two towns.



"The confident" : in a closed eden garden, two benches separated by a screen made of alumium rings... People can communicate and see each other through the hole, in the middle of the screen. The artist is J-M. Othoniel and his work of art is in the "Square Doyen Jean Lépine". We think it's ingenious and beautiful.


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