My favorite church, Saint Eustache

This was probably my favorite church in Paris--so noble, usually few people inside, and it feels very real somehow.  Saint Eustache is near Les Halles, which is basically a big construction site, so it was hard to get a good view of the exterior.  It was built between 1532-1632 and is a great example of high gothic architecture.  According to Wikipedia, Mozart chose this location for his mother's funeral, Louis XIV had communion here, and Moliere was baptized and married amidst this stone.

I went to sketch it on one of the really HOT days in Paris hoping it would be cool inside, but I happened to get there 10 minutes before closing.  Darn.  I did make it back several days later, as I was determined to do a sketch here before leaving France.

This particular day, I walked in and discovered organ music filling the cavernous space.  It seems there was a woman giving lessons, as several students were lined up waiting for their turn on the giant organ. What a sense of power it must be to press the keys and have that glorious sound fill such a huge church!  It was magical to sit and sketch while listening to this music.

The top of this sketch is literally the pipe organ directly above my head.  The ceiling was particularly hard to draw...I wish my sketch did justice to this magnificent building.

Paris. Saint Eustache...large image so you can see the detail.