Mom called last night after driving around with Eric. He is working on his 50 hours of driving time with an adult for his driver's license. She asked what J.D. and I did Friday afternoon. I said, "We went to the Art Museum and saw an exhibit on Napoleon." Mom repeated, "Oh Napoleon." And in the background I heard Eric exclaim, "I love Napoleon!" At first, this verve surprised me, I'd never heard such enthusiasm from my cousin on the topic of short dictators. Then I realized, "Oh, he's thinking of Napoleon Dynamite."
The exhibit was "Symbols of Power Napoleon and the Art of the Empire Style: 1800-1815."
If you click on the link you can see some of the objects (and hopefully hear something about them too).
Overall, there were many impressive and beautiful things. I personally loved the plates Josephine received (a 100+ piece set) of botanical art. The plates had gold edging, slender crimson rings, and detailed paintings of different species of plants. They showed the whole plant, including roots and seeds. Josephine only had the set for a year before giving it to a relative for her wedding. (Royal Re-gifting!)
The exhibit also featured paintings, jewelry, clothing, furniture, clocks, candelabras, etc. Napoleon's coronation robes were there, along with Josephine's tiny coronation slippers.
Most of all the "Empire style" referenced classical myths. The story of Psyche and Eros was quite popular. For example, during this time they invented the first full-length mirror, called the "psyche." They decorated lamps with images of Psyche, in reference to her desire to see her sleeping lover, and butterflies fluttered everywhere: on furniture, cups, and clothing. Napoleon also utilized palms and oak leaves for symbols of his victory. To emphasize her femininity, Josephine was particularly found of swans ornamenting her furniture. Additionally, I learned that the bee preceded the fleur-de-lis as a symbol of France. And finally, I saw a "breast" cup, which now gives a whole new meaning to "cup size." If you click on the link for the audio tour, you can see the golden cup, which was cast from Napoleon's sister's breast. Anyway, it was a fun way to spend a Friday afternoon, although it didn't involve any funky dancing.
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