Feeling Paris

Images of Parisian architecture graced the cover of an ACM tech journal. The title next to the images read "What Makes Paris Look Like Paris." When I first saw these images, I had a visceral response. I was affected inwardly. For an instant, I thought about where I like to stay, eat, play, work, and shop. I recalled the scents (good and bad), the sites, and the people. No further explanation is needed for those who share my affection for the City of Lights.

The article claimed that, through observing key architectural features, a computer could "observe a city and discern its visual essence." My immediate reaction was to the word essence.

Everything for which we are aware possesses essence. Paris has essence, and my response to the essence of Paris is positive - therefore, I return. Essence distinguishes something at its core—the fundamental characteristics indispensable to its true nature.

Essence defines how an individual comes to understand something, someplace, and someone - often the motivation for deeper analysis. Essence is aboutness ("the ness"). It is a reference for the brain to make decisions to approach, avoid, or ignore. What is the 'ness of the bank you visit, the airline you fly, the restaurant you frequent, the app you find indispensable, and your brand?

This article made it clear that the computer was not simply identifying the obvious landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame. It was identifying the "minutiae," the small features and patterns that might go unrecognized by the human eye. However, there is a big difference between recognizing and feeling a place. Recognizing a place does not increase the inclination for a person to return or have an emotional response (or understand its 'ness). My fondness for Paris has little to do with recognizing the features of its buildings, but rather the feelings I have when I sit on a bench in Place de Vosges and simply feel.

Place de Vosges, at first glance, is just another mixed-use square in Paris—perhaps ordinary amid the city's architectural marvels. Inspired by Georges Perec's "An Attempt at Exhausting a Place in Paris," where he captures the "infraordinary" details of Place Saint-Sulpice, I set out to do the same. By infraordinary he is referring to everything but the extraordinary.

I started by sitting on a bench and observing. Then came a fresh baguette from the local boulangerie, a rich cup of coffee, and a warm bonjour from the antique shop owner, who became a fast friend. What began as observing the mundane sharpened my focus, deepening my connection to the Place. Every trip to Paris brings me back to Place des Vosges and the simple joy of just being there. If every brand understood its essence, think of the possibilities.

Let yourself pause, observe, breathe it in, and truly feel.

For more stories and sneak previews of my upcoming book Universal Principles of Storytelling, visit - https://www.storytellingprinciples.com