Dolce & Gabbana is a tough act to follow,
So I went to the Pearl exhibit at L'École des Arts Joailliers.
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| Van Cleef & Arpel |
A little “Luxe, calm et volupté” never hurt anyone.
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| Tête de mouton by Jar |
The exhibit is free and on till 1 June, but you need to reserve.
My first visit to their new mansion since they moved from Place Vendôme last year to 16 bis, boulevard Montmartre, 75009.
The focus is pearls in Paris from the 1860s - 1920’s, when the prime source was coming from the Arab-Persian Gulf.
Parisian women were draping themselves in ropes of pearls like mad. Pearls were closely tied to Orientalism in painting and theater
Dresses had pearls sewn onto them. There was a mania, a frenzy for pearls.
A stunning Cartier bracelet.
An Arte Nouveau bracelet.
Did I mention Bizet’s utterly divine, The Pearl Fishers was playing 🎵 in the background (which I’m playing on repeat). I’m really liking appropriate background music that enhances an exhibit.
Snippets of 20s silent films 🎥 visit a Paris jewelry shop add to the ambience.
Beautiful pearlized shells 🐚 on display. Who hasn’t, as a kid, thought they discovered a pearl in their clam or oyster 🦪 shell😆
Still some holiday lights up on Paris streets 🥰🐻💋
Love the lights on the street! Looks cold but amazing with all the people out strolling. I love pearls and so does my 8 year old granddaughter already!
ReplyDeleteIt is Very cold here!
DeleteI loved the period illustrations you provided from the pearl exhibit, just lovely! Thank you for your continuing tours of the Parisian exhibits- a bit of culture in the depths of a very cold winter here in the Upper peninsula of Michigan... it was minus 1 degree this morning! Brrr! Flannel and turtlenecks, not pearls!
ReplyDeleteVery cold 🥶 here too
DeleteThere were many illustrations in the exhibit..they added flavor of the times
Love the pearls. Lynne
ReplyDeleteI love the elegance of pearls and I actually did find one in a clam shell many years ago.
ReplyDelete!!! Bravo Suki 👏
DeleteAnother beautiful exhibit you have shared. I have “gobs” of pearls. One can style them in so many ways.🗼❤️
ReplyDeleteThe illustrations and focaccia sandwiches are my favorite part of your email today. Always enjoy the cultural field trips you take us to. We are so lucky to have you in our online lives. Merci a hundred times over.
ReplyDeleteSOOO beautiful. In the 1960s, 70s Pan Am crews stayed at the Hyatt on Lock Rd. in Hong Kong. So many of the stewardesses bought pearl necklaces, bracelets and earrings from the shop across the street and upstairs, the owners put a sign out adding the name "Pan Am Pearls" to the shop. I had about 20 sets. In 1972, I had my wedding gown made at a tailor in HKG with ropes of pearls from the empire wasiline on down. I bought a headpiece in San Francisco with pearls that was patterned after one I saw a Vietnamese bride wear in a photo.
ReplyDeleteFabulous memory Lynne
DeleteI bought black pearl stud earrings when I worked in Hong Kong. Nothing so exciting…I’m sure I lost them quickly. Ah, the wonderful days of Pan Am…
Love pearls…timeless, elegant. That sheep’s head is amazing, but what would you do with it? Hang it on a wall? Or is it a brooch??
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing another wonderful exhibit, and another appetizing sandwich, Carol!
The lamb’s head is a small delicate brooch…meant for a shoulder not a wall ☺️
DeleteOH, CAROL, SENSATIONAL!!! LOVED IT! I LOVE PEARLS! THANKS FOR BEING SO ON THE BALL!! CARLA
ReplyDeleteI just read your Pearl post. When you showed the sandwich menu from your yummy lunch, it looked familiar.
ReplyDeleteThere’s a new place in Walnut Creek CA, where I live. It’s called Gusto Mio and serves pizza and focaccia sandwiches. Their sandwich menu is the same as your Paris place!!!
Pizza sandwiches! We don’t have that …yet!
DeleteLink ti Bizet’s THE PEARL FISHERS
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/hVR2hkGtKmw?si=r69dPVXkCXc24tau
What a nice free exhibition. I like pearls too, elegant and not as flashy as other jewels…..maybe because they come from the sea.
ReplyDeleteI get a vegetarian panini/sandwich from a similar place at the Adelaide Central Markets, way down here in Australia. I get a similar vegetarian one but sometimes I ask for provolone cheese instead of mozzarella, it’s very tasty.