After "Paris 1900, the spectacle of the city", the Petit Palais presents “Romantic Paris” and thus follows its evocation of the great founding periods of Paris' identity.
More than 600 works-paintings, sculptures, costumes, objets d'art and furniture plunge the visitor into the artistic, cultural and political bubbling of that time. Thanks to the immersive formula, the exhibition itinerary invites us to walk around the capital to discover the emblematic neighborhoods of the period: the Tutsi Leries, the Palais Royal, the New Athens, the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo, or the Grands Boulevards des Theatres.
The exhibition itinerary begins at dawn in the halls of the Palais des Tuileries, the royal residence and seat of political power. Thanks to exceptional loans, notably from the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, some interiors and personalities who have influenced fashion are evoked, such as the Duchess de Berry or practiced arts such as Marie d'Orléans, whose sculptural work is remarkable.
We continue with a walk to the Palais Royal. A spectacular model of the Carnavalet museum and a scenographic reconstruction make it possible to revive the specific animation of this temple of commerce and pleasures. A series of luxury objects, small bronzes and fashion accessories recall the sophistication of the arts and crafts of this era. A selection of costumes, lent by the Palais Galliera, also illustrates the "chic" Parisiennes and the dandies who make Paris the capital of fashion. The visitor then discovers a key touch of the works, which recreates the Salon as it was presented in the Louvre. Paintings and sculptures match each other and representatives of different artistic trends are presented side by side. We thus find Chassériau, Delacroix, Girodet, Ingres or Vernet and Delaroche, alongside Bosio, David d'Angers, Pradier or Préault for sculpture.
The itinerary continues with a room dedicated to the taste for the Middle Ages that we rediscover after the Revolution. It inspires the "troubadour" painters before the enthusiasm for the romantic artists. The success of Victor Hugo's famous novel, Notre-Dame de Paris (1831), revived the popular passion for the "dark ages" and the legacy of picturesque old Paris.
The exhibition therefore reminds us that this cultural effervescence is overshadowed by political instability. In July 1830, King Charles X was overthrown. In his place, Louis-Philippe is brought to power but soon becomes unpopular. The revolts are numerous, as evidenced by the famous lithograph by Honoré Daumier, The massacre of the Transnonain street (1834). A series of political caricatures by Daumier, Granville, Traviès and Roubaud reproduce the political debates and struggles of the period, while a selection of paintings and sculptures recall the battles fought in the streets of Paris in July 1830.
The revolutionary theme is also addressed through two emblematic works created in the same year: Hernani by Victor Hugo and the fantastic Symphonie by Hector Berlioz.
The period also sees the myth of the bohemian artist, in search of inspiration and recognition, misunderstood by the bourgeois public and doomed to misery. Paintings and engravings recall the life of these artists but also popular entertainments such as balls and costume parties that take place at this time.
The visitor then continues to discover New Athens, a district near Saint Lazare station, which houses many artists' studios: that of Ary Scheffer, now a museum of Romanesque life, Géricault and even for a while, that of Delacroix but also the houses of George Sand, Chopin …
Then you arrive on the Grands Boulevards, a favorite place for strolling and entertaining Parisians, where the Italian Opera House and the most famous theaters are located. We find the figures of the great "stars" such as the actress Marie Dorval, the actor Melingue, the dancers Fanny Essler and Marie Taglioni through portraits, memorabilia and projects of sets and costumes.
The journey ends with the revolution of 1848 and the disappointment of the Romantic generation with the presentation of the original manuscript of Gustave Flaubert's L'Education sentimentale.
Cover image: Eugène Lami, Scène de Carnaval, place de la Concorde, 1834. Oil on toile. Musée Carnavalet – Histoire de Paris Credit : © Musée Carnavalet / Roger-Viollet
