Film Friday: Two screenshots form Marie Antoinette (1938)

Introducing Film Friday: a day for sharing movie stills, production art, film analysis and anything film related!

 Marie Antoinette (1938)

Marie Antoinette (1938)

Book Thursday: The cover for the second book in the 'Marie-Antoinette et ses soeurs' series by Anne-Marie Desplat-Duc

Book Thursday: a day for anything and everything books; reviews, highlights, and more.

Marie-Antoinette et ses soeurs (Marie Antoinette and her sisters) is a new French children's novel series from author Anne-Marie Desplat-Duc. The first book was released in February and this second book is set to be released at the beginning of May. The cover was recently put on Amazon--isn't it adorable? The series will follow the adventures of a young Marie Antoinette in her home country of Austria.

 

Book 2 can be preordered from Amazon.fr.

Music Monday: Versailles by Nadia Bouluanger

Music Monday: a day for contemporary music, soundtracks and other tunes related to Marie Antoinette.

For this Music Monday, I'd like to share a piece from Nadia Boulanger, a notable composer, conductor and teacher who taught some of the most prominent composers of the 20th century. Her students included Louise Talma, Elaine Bearer, Virgil Thomson, Roy Harris, Philip Glass--just to name a few.

'Versailles' was composed by Boulanger in 1906. She set her composition the text 'O Versailles,' a poem by Albert Samain. The performer in this particular recording is Nicole Cabell, with Lucy Mauro on the piano.

The original French text for Albert Samain's O Versailles can be read here.

What They Said Saturday: "Fatigued by the splendors of art, I turn to nature..."

'What They Said' Saturday: a day for quotations of all kinds, including excerpts from letters written by Marie Antoinette and her contemporaries, memoirs, non-fiction, novels and everything in between.

image: the hameau de la reine in August 1967/credit: Daniel Villafruela/CC BY-SA 3.0, no modifications

The recent restoration work done on the hameau de la Reine has sparked new focus on the charming, picturesque hamlet that Marie Antoinette cultivated during her final years at Versailles. But it is not only modern visitors who are charmed by its roaming trails and carefully planned foliage.

Nikolay Karamzin, a visitor who was able to tour the hameau de la reine during those last waning years of the French monarchy, wrote touchingly of the estate:

"I advance and I see hills, fields, meadows, herds, a grotto. Fatigued by the splendors of art, I turn to nature; I find myself, my heart, my imagination; I breathe, inhaling the perfumed air of the evening, gazing at the setting sun … I would like to stop it in its course, in order to remain longer at Trianon."

The Chemise Portrait in 'Le Versailles secret de Marie-Antoinette'

Among the more memorable visuals from the recent docudrama Le Versailles secret de Marie-Antoinette (2018), which was released to coincide with the re-opening of the newly restored Queen's House at the Petit Trianon, was this homage to the most well-known (and infamous) portrait of Marie Antoinette 'en gaulle.' Or, as it has become known today, the the 'Chemise Portrait.'

image: a side-by-side look at the chemise portrait and a still from Le Versailles Secret de Marie-Antoinette

The public display of this portrait caused a stir. One critic wrote of the portrait:

"Many people have found it offensive to see these august persons revealed to the public wearing clothes reserved for the privacy of the palace."

The contemporary criticism against the portrait 'en gaulle' was not just that the Queen was wearing these casual fashions at all (as critics hotly  remarked that she had been painted in her chemise, as in undergarments) but also that she dared to show herself wearing one in a public portrait display that was meant to be reserved for royal portraits which clearly signified the wearer's status through sumptuous clothing and other royal regalia. The unassuming portrait bears no markers of "queen" and indeed, if we did not know who the sitter was, it could be any one of the well-to-do women from this era who donned the soft white gowns that are today irrecoverably linked with Marie Antoinette through their name alone: chemise a la reine.

Inspired Tuesday: Marie Antoinette Salt and Pepper Shaker

Inspired Tuesday: a day to share anything and everything inspired by Marie Antoinette and her world.

 image credit: Amazon

Marie Antoinette has inspired an endless list of odds-and-ends and if you've browsed ebay for Marie Antoinette goodies in the last 10 years, you've probably already seen this intriguing salt and pepper shaker set from 180 Degrees. One shaker is the "head" and the other shaker is the bust. The two shakers are attached through magnetic strips in the neckline, which lets you easily pop Marie Antoinette's head on and off when you want to give your food a boost of flavor. It's hardly the most macabre variation on Marie Antoinette losing her head--that honor might go to the action figure with 'head popping' action--but if left alone it does make a pretty little figurine.

If you're so inclined, it's on sale on Amazon for 50% off!

Music Monday: Electro Music at Versailles (Coming to a Hall of Mirrors Near You!)

Introducing Music Monday: a day for contemporary music, soundtracks and other tunes related to Marie Antoinette.

If you haven't already heard: the Chateau de Versailles is hosting an electro music party!  Yes, a legitimate, bonfide, techno-filled electro rave in collaboration with Ed Banger Records. (Click here to find out more, if you're so inclined.) 

The event, being officially called Versailles Electro, will feature performances from popular electro artists and DJs such as Breakbot, Irfane, Myd and Busy P.  I won't pretend that I have any experience with the electro scene, but there's no time better than the present to dive in! So I've compiled a few videos from two of the announced artists so that we can all get a sneak peek at what's coming to Versailles this summer.

Breakbot feat. Irfane (Devotion)

Myd (Superdiscoteca)

Film Friday: Two stills from L'Autrichienne (1990)

Film Friday: a day for sharing movie stills, production art, film analysis and anything film related!

 L'Autrichienne (1990)

  L'Autrichienne (1990)

Book Thursday: Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette Bookends

Book Thursday: a day for anything and everything books; reviews, highlights, and more.

What is the professional way to say "*grabby hands*"? Because that's all I can think of when I see this gorgeous antique silverplated bookends based on portraits of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Despite some wear and tear--they are over 100 years old, after all--they are still stunning to look at. They would look wonderful on top of a bookshelf! Now where's my spare change...

[credit: winter-garden/ebay]

Inspired Tuesday: Marie Antoinette Inspired Half-Doll

Inspired Tuesday: a day to share anything and everything inspired by Marie Antoinette and her world.

[image credit: marc_shona_lorrin/ebay]

This antique Marie Antoinette inspired half doll was made by A.W. Fr. Kister and  was likely produced sometime in the early to mid 1900s. Half dolls owe their name to the fact that they were sold as a "half" of a person, usually a woman; half dolls were designed to be attached to various objects that a fashionable lady might have in her boudoir, ranging from pin cushions to powder boxes or even makeup brushes. This particular half doll is an excellent example of a higher quality piece from a German company, hence the higher auction result compared to less detailed (and more messily painted!) half dolls that are sold on eBay.