VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Beginning September 18, the MFAH presents Life & Luxury: The Art of Living in Eighteenth-Century Paris, which re-imagines, through art and material culture, the lifestyle of elite 18th-century Parisians. The exhibition follows the conventional activities in the cycle of a Parisian day—dressing, writing, collecting, eating, and evening entertainment—offering a glimpse of these forgotten activities. The exhibition will be on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, following its premiere at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles.

Bringing together some 160 objects, roughly half of them loans from 26 museums and private collections around the world, the exhibition will include a wide range of paintings, sculpture, applied arts, drawings, metalwork, furniture, architectural fittings, lighting and hearth fixtures, scientific and musical instruments, clocks and watches, textiles and dress, books, and maps.

“The structure of the exhibition is inviting to viewers because it allows them to experience the day of a typical elite Parisian in the 1700s. While the everyday objects offer insight into the daily Parisian lifestyle of this particular era, they are often works of great beauty and craftsmanship,” said Edgar Peters Bowron, the MFAH Audrey Jones Beck curator of European Art. “The exhibition is a sensory-driven experience for viewers, and combines works including decorative arts, paintings, sculpture, textiles, costumes, drawings, prints and books. These objects are normally kept apart because of their sensitivity to light, but this exhibition brings the works together to convey a complete 18th-century Parisian day.”

The exhibition begins in the morning with the bedroom, then moves to daily correspondence and business affairs. The activity of collecting—particularly art—is explored in a section that evokes a private Parisian galerie. Tapestries, silver, and still-lifes consider elements of dining, and the next section focuses on two types of leisure occupations: music-making and game-playing. Life & Luxury closes with nighttime and the importance of private prayer.

Read more about this exhibition.

Pictured: Jean-Siméon Chardin, The Good Education, c. 1753, oil on canvas, the MFAH, gift in memory of George R. Brown by his wife and children.