Life & Luxury: The Art of Living in Eighteenth-Century Paris

François Boucher, French, 1703–1770
Lady Fastening Her Garter (also known as La Toilette)
1742
Oil on canvas
Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid

Pleasure is the object, duty and the goal of all rational creatures.
                                                                                                Voltaire

            Amidst the robe à la française with gold metallic trim and François Boucher’s Lady Fastening Her Garter, the feeling of pleasure sets in. While admiring the collection that makes up the exhibit, Life & Luxury: The Art of Living in Eighteenth-Century Paris at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston (organized by the Getty Museum), the sensations can only be equated to a transportation in time. The goal of recreating the daily life of the upper class is eloquently achieved, and the audience is left with the impression of luxury in its many forms.
            Inspiration for the exhibit was found in the Nicolas Lancret paintings depicting The Four Times of Day, thus the collection is divided into rooms based on daily activities. The message being conveyed to the audience is one of making every minute of the day count, and using time wisely. Time is portrayed as the vessel to seek pleasure with, and what allows the luxurious lifestyle to flourish.

Clock movement by Jean-Romilly, French, 1714-1796
Case attributed to Charles Cressent, French, 1685-1768
Bracket by Jean-Joseph de Saint-Germain, French, 1719-1791
Clock on Bracket (Cartel sur une console)
c. 1758
Gilt bronze, enameled metal; glass
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

            The exhibition is made up of various eighteenth-century pieces; including paintings, clothing, furniture, books, toiletries, and sculptures. All of these pieces are needed to fully convey to the audience the lifestyle of the upper class, and this is done successfully. The rooms that make up the exhibit include the bedroom in the morning, the man at home, scientific pursuits, food, fashion and culture; and the evening activities of gaming, going out, and night time prayer. The rooms are painted with reference to the time of day; the morning room is painted a beige color, the day rooms are mid tones in blues and greens, and the evening room is a darker blue color. This adds to the visual stimulation of the artifacts, and helps with sensory perception for the atmosphere.
            The exhibit’s layout flows nicely, with only a few hiccups. There are two exits from the exhibit; the visitor either has to back track through the entire exhibit or enter in the middle of the museum’s permanent collection. Although it is enjoyable to get one last look at the rooms (and highly recommended for this type of exhibit) by going backwards, it is a distracting feature in the layout. The other design flaw is found in the evening room. To get the accurate story of gaming, going out, and then evening prayer, the proper view is clockwise. If a visitor goes in the opposite direction, the story first reads as if religion is the only aspect of nightlife.
            Artifacts are displayed in accordance to their proper room, and it shows that every piece was chosen to serve a purpose. In the entrance of each new room or theme there is an artfully carved placard; which shows the time of day being displayed, a quote from an eighteenth-century philosopher or person of standing, and a general background on the purpose the room would serve in daily life. It is unfortunate to note that the majority of visitors did not even glance over these pieces, as they truly set the mood for the room. Each individual piece also has a placard, all with the typical facts seen (piece title, creator, approximate date, and origin), but most also have a morsel of information on the functionality of the object. The placards that corresponded to clothing and some of the furniture were so low to the ground that the visitor has to bend over significantly to view it. The curators could have alleviated this by placing them on little pedestals, ensuring the audience is at ease in their viewing. Although the museum offers a guided tour of the exhibit, the times are sporadic enough that the self-guided route is the most reasonable.
            There is a semi-interactive aspect to the exhibit in the form of using cell phones to hear more information. Some of the placards had a phone number with a # key to use to hear museum curators or historians speak more on the object. This can serve as a marketing tool for the museum to gauge interaction of visitors and help to base future programs on the interest of their audience; and also give added education to visitors who are on a self-guided tour. Although the cell phone tour provides a role, it is worth noting that it comes at a small cost to visitors. Photography in the exhibit is prohibited and when a cell phone is pulled out, the security staff tends to closely walk by to ensure no rules are being broken. The general public tends to be a little leery about being around such expensive pieces anyway, so the feeling of the security staff can be enough to deter visitors from bringing out their phones at all. Arguably, this is a great shame as the audio works with the entire exhibit to help create the world of eighteenth-century Paris.  

Jean-François Oeben, French, 1721-1783
Mechanical Reading, Writing, and Toilette Table
c. 1750
Oak veneered with kingwood, amaranth, bloodwood, holly, and various stained exotic woods; drawers of juniper; iron mechanism; silk; gilt-bronze mounts
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

            The Art of Living in Eighteenth-Century Paris excels in conveying its story. Without a doubt, the craftsmanship and detail that goes into creating an exhibit can be seen. The concept and execution of it is truthfully world-class. The general public can certainly gain a wider understanding of the luxurious lifestyle during this time period, and the aficionados of eighteen-century history will be hard-pressed not to tear up at seeing such a fine collection in one exhibit. The catalog of the exhibit includes essays by historians and art historians, and is just as finely organized as the exhibition. Although the flow of the exhibit and the placement of some placards were not always to the best advantage, the overall story was masterfully portrayed.
            The exhibit is sponsored by Linn Energy and private donors, but aside from their names being prominently displayed in the introduction room, no corporate bias can be seen. It might be argued that the exhibit is pushing an elitist agenda; however, the entire point of this collection is to show a luxurious lifestyle from another time. It is true that the lower class is only mentioned a few times on placards, and solely as servants assisting the upper class. This does not mean the curators or museum is trying to say only the wealthy are worth studying. It simply means that it is the focus of this particular exhibit. The exhibit makes no qualms about its topic; it is about life and luxury. It is not portraying this history as the only history. Our society revolves around disposable goods and mass produced everything, so it is a refreshing turn to look at an entire culture of finely crafted and loved pieces; even if the escape is only for a few hours.

This exhibit runs through December 11, 2011 at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston.            

Jean-François de Troy, French, 1679-1752
Before the Ball
1735
Oil on canvas
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles