Illustrious families have succeeded each other at the Franquenot Chateau, an imposing yet understated residence in the département of La Manche. A new chapter begins with the sale of its contents.
Claude-Siméon Passemant’s astronomical clock has been entirely taken apart, studied and restored for an autumn exhibition at Versailles featuring Louis XV’s interests and passions.
This clock made in China in the 18th century to please the Qianlong emperor not only gives the time—it comes alive from top to bottom to pay tribute to the sovereign.
The next two sales of autographs from the Aristophil Collection include a few items that have never come up for auction before, but also a collection of historic objects and some treasures, paintings and drawings.
There are painters who evince little liking for feminine charms—as roundly demonstrated by the fine Rigaud retrospective at the Château de Versailles—and those who beautify their models. And princesses de sang royal (princesses of royal blood) were placed in the top rank of Olympian goddesses by Jean-Marc Nattier.
The Franco-German research program that focuses on the art market networks in Vichy France was established under the direction of Inès Rotermund-Reynard and Elisabeth Futwängler. It is now available online at the INHA website.
This marble bust from the Antonine period is so lifelike it looks as though the young man is about to speak to us. His slightly idealized features bring the legendary Antinous, the beloved favorite of the Roman emperor Hadrian, to mind.
Martin-Guillaume Biennais (1764-1843) promoted French imperial propaganda, notably through his “Napoléonides” series. Several previously unknown pieces will be revealed at the sale of a group of works hailing from the artist’s descendants.
In the late Middle Ages, tapestry production, whose origins lay in the East and classical antiquity, was one of the most prominent crafts in Western Europe. Numerous widely-scattered workshops in France already foreshadowed the royal factories of the future.
When wigs came into fashion under Louis XIII, it was for an obvious reason: to hide the royal baldness!
Ernst van de Wetering’s death at 83 is one piece of sad news in a summer that unfortunately had many.
The auction of André Becker’s carriage collection is a major event in a highly specialized market.
This final sale features a hundred paintings, objet d’art, photographs, books and furniture from the Parisian home of Prince Felix and his wife Irina.
A new edited volume from Getty Publications examines a unique archive of visual material and ephemera related to the French colonial project.
The 19th-century German scientist, who coined the word “ecology,” is one of the heroes of Laura Bossi’s exhibition “Origins of the World” at the Musée D’Orsay in Paris, awaiting its reopening since December. We look at the role his Art Forms in Nature plays in the decorative arts, from Art Nouveau to design today.
The 19th-century German scientist, who coined the word “ecology,” is one of the heroes of Laura Bossi’s exhibition “Origins of the World” at the Musée D’Orsay in Paris, awaiting its reopening since December. We look at the role his Art Forms in Nature plays in the decorative arts, from Art Nouveau to design today.
From the Tuileries to Versailles, Napoleon Bonaparte sought a palace worthy of his imperial aspirations. But he would never see his most ambitious palatial project through to completion.
The origins of the Walters Art Museum date back to 1931, when Henry Walters bequeathed to the city of Baltimore an extensive art collection started by his father, William T. Walters. Today, the museum is reckoning with its founders’ white-supremacist legacy.
Hailed as the first museum of modern art in the U.S., the Société Anonyme was founded by artists Katherine S. Dreier, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray. Its collection offers a unique record of modernist innovation and experimentation.
After struggling to exist as artists, women painters of the turn of the 19th century have begun to set records. This is not revenge, but well-deserved recognition.
The forced withdrawal from a January 27 Pierre Bergé sale at Drouot of two stained glass windows from the abbey church of Saint-Denis illustrates the Ministry of Culture’s high-handedness and betrays a certain amount of scorn for the history of our heritage.
A fascinating figure of the post-war Parisian art scene, Wols was a genuine myth in the 1950s-1960s. Nicknamed the “French Pollock”, he was mostly praised for his abstract oil paintings.
Lace is an intricate, openwork fabric without weft or warp featuring a wide range of techniques and motifs. Linen, cotton, silk, gold and silver thread are used to make this luxurious product, which is all the more amazing considering how complex the process is.
When a company starts accumulating decades of existence, it earns its DNA, its brand image, either within the public’s general knowledge or within specific markets. When customers and prospects see a company’s name regularly, it becomes part of the psychological landscape, thus upping the chances your company will be considered, next time an opportunity comes around. But is that all it amounts to?
