Nearly every tourist in Paris plans to visit the Louvre. The Louvre is seen as one of the quintessential French experiences, even though most of the art pieces it contains hail from other nations. Yet, when approaching the Louvre, tourists seem to be focused solely on the looming glass pyramid over the neatly cut treetops of the Jardin des Tuileries, completely missing the structure to their left. This imposing yet unassuming wing of the Louvre Palace houses le Musée des Arts Décoratifs, or MAD, one of the premier museums of Paris. The Musée des Arts Décoratifs is itself historical. Opening on May 29th, 1905, MAD has seen two World Wars, the end of the Cold War, and the establishment of the European Union by the time it was renovated between 1996 to 2006.
Physically attached to the Louvre, MAD houses an impressive collection of art, objects, and furniture that rival its conjoined neighbor. According to the Figaro, the Louvre holds pieces recognized as the absolute best examples of fine art in the world while MAD houses art people would have actually owned and used. That does not mean that MAD’s collections are any less artistic. Rather, they are tangibly linked to France’s history and the lives of French people. Take the Soupière made by Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot in Paris in 1819. It serves a functional purpose by holding soup before it is served, yet the beautifully crafted silver angels, swans, and ornaments turn the structural components of the Soupière into artistic design elements.
These collections are exhibited in five departments based on the time period of the objects. The first department features pieces from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance in France, where authentic bedrooms, friezes, and altarpieces are re-created using objects from the collection. This department is followed by a collection of 17th and 18th century pieces, during the Ancien Régime. Within the 17th and 18th century displays, you will notice the proliferation of porcelain and the increasing ornateness of everyday objects in themed salons. The Ancien Régime section ends with the Revolution, starting a department of 19th century pieces. Here, gold accents dazzle your eyes alongside powerful, opulent color schemes.
After entering the Republic era, the time ranges of the departments become more condensed. The first of these temporally condensed section features objects in the Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles of the early 20th century, where human-made objects seek to imitate natural forms. These styles were heavily influential in France, and many of the pieces in this exhibit hail directly from various world’s fairs in the 1920s and 1930s. The fifth and final department houses contemporary or modern pieces and seeks to explore the very limit of modern design and fabrication. Many of the pieces in these final displays seek to blend aesthetics with increased functionality. The Bibliothèque des Chaises is a great example of this. This library of chairs is a repository of our modern attempt to make the sitting experience more comfortable, yet visually pleasing.
Within these five departments, the collections are further subdivided. Textiles, jewelry, paintings, toys, furniture, graphic arts, glassware, and advertisements can be found throughout all five departments, creating very diverse and holistic exhibitions. With these diverse collections, MAD aims to be as alive as its contemporary and modern department. Through exploring the history of everyday art, MAD seeks to follow the continuous breath of French taste from the middle ages to today. By exploring MAD’s dynamic exhibitions, you might just feel a hint of this breath, pushing you to design the next object for MAD’s modern department.
References
« Departments. » Musée des Arts Décoratifs Paris : n. pag. Web. 2 March 2020. https://madparis.fr/francais/musees/musee-des-arts-decoratifs/collections/departements/
Fauteuil « Œuf 3317 » et repose-pied « 3127 ». By Arne Jacobsen – Photo by Jean Tholance, Musée des Arts Décoratifs de Paris. https://madparis.fr/francais/musees/musee-des-arts-decoratifs/collections/departements /#&gid=1&pid=70
« Les 5 musées de mode à voir à Paris » Vogue 20 Février 2020 : n. pag. Web. 2 March 2020. https://www.vogue.fr/culture/article/5-musees-de-mode-a-voir-a-paris
Prat, Véronique. « Réouverture : le musée des Arts décoratifs retrace l’histoire du goût. » Le Figaro 4 Septembre 2006 : n. pag. Web. 2 March 2020. https://www.lefigaro.fr/lefigaromagazine/2006/09/04/01006-20060904ARTWWW90415-reouverture_le_musee_des_arts_decoratifs_retrace_l_histoire_du_got.php
Soupière. By Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot – Photo by Jean Tholance, Musée des Arts Décoratifs de Paris. https://madparis.fr/francais/musees/musee-des-arts-decoratifs/collections/departements /#&gid=1&pid=39