Expo « Révéler le féminin. Mode et Apparences au XVIIIe siècle »

Musée Cognacq-Jay

Presented at the musée Cognacq-Jay in collaboration with the Palais Galliera, the exhibition “Révéler le féminin. Mode et Apparences au XVIIIe siècle” offers an immersion into the fascinating world of femininities in the Age of Enlightenment. Portraits, gallant scenes and historic textile pieces engage in dialogue to explore the diversity of representations of femininity as they unfold in the staging of the 18th century. The exhibition highlights the rise of a French style whose elegance then captivated the courts and aristocracy of Europe, revealing a history of costume both grounded in material reality and nourished by the imagination. At the heart of this era, France established itself as the essential stage of refinement and prestige. Artists such as Maurice Quentin de La Tour, Jean-Marc Nattier, Adélaïde Labille-Guiard, and Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun excelled at conveying the brilliance of fabrics as well as the depth of souls, granting their sitters an aura of grace and power. The exhibition’s itinerary, which showcases these masterful works, is enriched by portraits marked by a new psychological dimension, where intimacy and naturalness take on a central place, under English influence. In parallel, the pastorals of François Boucher and the fêtes galantes of Antoine Watteau shape an idealized and poetic femininity. Finally, contemporary photographs by Steven Meisel, Esther Ségal, and Valérie Belin, along with a Chanel creation by Karl Lagerfeld, suggest, as a counterpoint, a reflection on the persistence of codes and the legacy of the 18th century in fashion today, between social demands and the imaginary of beauty.

Source: Paris Open Data ↗