Day: September 21, 2022
The World According to Plantu
Members of the AAPA met with the editorial cartoonist Jean Plantu, whose political cartoons have illustrated the pages of Le Monde newspaper for the last fifty years, at the Maison des Photographes in Paris. Himself accompanied by a security agent, Plantu discussed the threats to the freedom of expression faced by cartoonists, not only from authoritarian regimes or religious fanatics, but also…
Festive Summer Party
On June 20, we chose to edge slowly into post-Covid social life with a Summer Party instead of a Gala, held at the Caring Galley in rue Charlot (Paris 03), which features exhibits promoting social themes such as inclusion and diversity. Les Cuistots Migrateurs -- a catering company which employs refugees and migrants who cook and serve their native foods - provided refreshments. We felt the…
Air France-KLM CEO Travel Advisory
Air France-KLM CEO Travel Advisory And finally, in time for summer holiday travel chaos, on June 23, we met with Ben Smith, CEO of Air France-KLM, at the company's historic offices in the Air France terminal at Invalides. Smith spoke of the outlook for holiday travel, telling us that AF had hired more than 60 pilots in anticipation of an uptick in travel and warning that ticket prices would rise.…
François Henri Pinault at Kering HQ
On June 14, we were invited to meet François-Henri Pinault, Chairman and CEO of Kering, one of the world's largest luxury groups, at the company headquarters in the 17th century Laennec Hospital building in rue de Sevres. FHP, as he is called, told us about his view of the future of luxury (he's aiming at Gen Z, while holding onto older clients who appreciate luxury's history), and he emphasized…
Kiev City Ballet Châtelet Rehearsal
The men of Kiev City Ballet rehearse the original piece “Boys from Kiev” during a visit by the AAPA. Since our meeting several of the men have returned to Ukraine to join the fighting. On June 9, Ivan and Katja Kozlov, Directors of the Kiev City Ballet, invited us to attend a rehearsal at the Chatelet Theatre's Pavlova studio. The company was performing in Paris when Russia invaded Ukraine...and…