Une visite au Musée des Arts Décoratifs, A visit to The Decorative Arts Museum

"Nurture in France the culture of the Arts which pursue the realisation of the beautiful in the useful"

I visited the Museum of Decorative Arts last week. It is located in a specific aisle of the Louvre Museum, on rue de Rivoli. It is a small sized museum which has re-opened in 2006 entirely refurbished, after a 10 year closure.I have always been fascinated by the way people lived centuries ago and what their interiors looked like and this museum answered many of my questions. 6 000 objects from the middle ages to the present day are displayed in a chronological presentation, and some in reproductions of bedrooms from the ancient times. It makes this museum really easy to visit and entertaining even for young children. Important : Use the right click of your mouse to read each photo's legend !

Désolée pour mes lecteurs francophones, cette visite du Musée des Arts Décoratifs se fera en anglais uniquement. Ceci dit, je vous recommende fortement ce musée, très instructif et ludique, grâce à de nombreuses mises en scène d'intérieurs du Moyen-âge à nos jours.Si, comme moi, vous êtes fasciné(e) par la Déco Intérieure, les Arts de la Table et la Marquetterie, vous serez au paradis !

Middle Ages-Renaissance (12th to 16th centuries)

Religion was predominant in the Middle ages. Altarpieces (decorated panels placed on an altar) played a key role in liturgy. Style in decoration was quite simple, even for the richest ones. At least it was the case in the 13th century : pomp and luxury developped a century later, manifested in textile wall hangings, cushions, carpets and tapestries. The medieval chest was an indispensable furniture in all homes.

17th and 18th centuries

In the 17th century, there was a close tie between architectural forms and interior decoration. For instance, some fronts of cabinets were like a miniature palace facade. Also, a new technique derived from the Italian Renaissance called "marquetry" developped then. Two  personalities marked this Art of Marquetry : Pierre Gole and André-Charles Boulle, both with Dutch origins. The 18th century was the century of "sweetness of living" and the decorative style became very pompous and "chargé" (rich) with the intensive use of bronze, gold and mirrors for furnitures and China for dishware and "bibelots".

 

19th century

The Revolution profoundly changed mentalities : light-hearted decoration disappeared, the straight lines of Antiquity were more than ever the order of the day.

 

Art Nouveau-Art Déco (from 1900 to 1937)

Artists no longer looked to the past for inspiration. Art Nouveau was a congregation of people exploring diverse path in their plan to revolutionise the living space. The Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1900 marked the triumph of these new aspirations, illustrated by the radical break with conventional forms. After the war, Art Nouveau "died" and was replaced by "Art Déco". Paris was discovering Jazz, Tango, high speed cars, and Cubism. Furnitures were curved, "to the point of indecency" (according to a designer who himself admitted it !). But some years later, they became rectangular and square-shaped , symbolizing "angular modernity". Exotic style was also very "trendy".

 

20th century

An extraordinary diversity of genres and tendencies !

Practical Information :

Musée des Arts Décoratifs

107, rue de Rivoli
75001 Paris
Tél : 01 44 55 57 50
Métro : Palais Royal

Open Tuesdays to Fridays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m, Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
It is open until 9 p.m. on Thursdays.
Closed on Mondays.

Admission fee : 8 euros. Audioguide is free. You can buy a combo ticket with Museum Nissim de Camondo, an "off the beaten path" museum. Read here to know more about this great little museum.

Restaurant : "Le Saut du Loup" 107, rue de Rivoli 75001 Paris Tél. : 01 42 25 49 55, open from noon to 2 am. The food is OK, and the terrace is awesome (with a view of the gardens of the Carrousel, the Tuileries and the Eiffel Tower).

Comments

[tongue in cheek]

Thank you for the tour, I have marked it on my list of things to do in Paris, for my next visit.

[lili63]

je ne savais meme pas qu'il y avait ce resto en terrasse aux arts déco !
Merci pour la visite et l'info .

[Serge]

Anne

Mentioned your sweet and sensible treat from 'Sugar High Friday' on 'Serge the Concierge' this morning.

Bon week-end

Serge
'The French Guy from New Jersey'
Blog
http://www.sergetheconcierge.com

[luckyluc]

Quelle belle visite,merci. C'est sur ma liste pour la prochaine fois....Et aussi merci pour la mention et le lien vers le Camondo.

[$ha]

Merci pour la visite!! C'est le genre de choses que je ne penserais pas à faire naturellement, c'est un tort!