M.-A. biopic - thumbs down?

Initial reactions to the new Marie-Antoinette biopic, airing over the festive season on BBC2.   Reviews are mostly negative, though the Guardian reviewer enjoyed it....I think I might just give this one a miss.

The French Revolution and the Islamic World

The Collector publishes an article, by Batuhan Asku, on perceptions of the French Revolution in the Islamic World. 

Pastel portraits at Sotheby's

Neil Jeffares has written an essay for Sotheby's, on collecting 18th Century pastels.  

Voltaire in wax

 The Voltaire Foundation blog has a post this month on waxwork images of Voltaire.

Les Liaisons dangereuses

The New European publishes an article by Eleanor Longman-Rood on Les Liaisons dangereuses and its cinematic interpretations.

More on Madame Du Barry

 Here are some more references for the current exhibition at Versailles "Louis XV: the Passions of a King", and the restoration work in the apartment of Madame du Barry.

Napoleon at Peace (review)

The November issue The Critic features a review article by Ruth Scurr on William Doyle's new book Napoleon at Peace: How to End a Revolution, which was published in April.

Clara the Rhinoceros in Amsterdam

 L'Enfilade publishes a review of the exhibition "Clara the Rhinoceros: Superstar of the 18th century", which is showing at the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, until 15th January 2023.

New Books Network - October & November

The latest podcasts on the New Books Network include William Doyle on Napoleon and the Peace (2022);  James Kloppenberg, on Rousseau's Social Contract and Alyssa Goldstein Sepinwall on The Abbé Grégoire and the French Revolution (2021)

Film from Puy du Fou

Further details are published of Puy du Fou's new feature film Vaincre ou Mourir, directed by Paul Mignot et Vincent Mottez, which is due for general release in France in January 2023.

Marie-Antoinette sale

On 22nd November Christie's in Paris are holding an "Exceptional Sale" which includes two pieces of fine furniture which belonged to Marie Antoinette:

"Doxxing" in Revolutionary Paris

Article by Amanda E Herbert & David N Woodworth, on a cause célèbre of 1791.  A street vendor called Rose Mainville committed suicide when her name appeared in a directory of Parisian prostitutes.

Portrait by Vigée Le Brun acquired

 The Huntingdon Library and Art Museum in San Marino, California, announces the acquisition of  Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun's portrait of the comte de Vaudreuil (1740–1817), painted in about 1784. 

Ann & Gordon Getty Collection

One of the sales of the century, the auction of the Ann & Gordon Getty Collection, takes place at Christie's, New York over the next few days.  On offer are "nearly 1,500 superlative works of decorative and fine arts", with many 18th-century pieces among them....

(Yet) more Marie-Antoinette

Upcoming: a new lavish six-part series on Marie-Antoinette written by Deborah Davis, and staring  Emilia Schüle and British actor Louis Cunningham.  

Duke of Orléans portrait restored

 The Town Hall in Orléans, Cap Cod, has put on display a newly restored painting of the Duke of Orléans, lately rescued from the basement.

Dangerous liaisons trailer

 The STARZ TV network has released a trailer for its new adaptation of Les Liaisons dangereuses, available in the UK from 7th November. 

Podcasts on New Books Network

 New Books Network hosts author-interview podcasts.  Among September's offerings are a discussion with James Engell on the Encyclopédie, Elizabeth Andrews Bondt on reading and writing,  David Avrom Bell on Rousseau and Charles Devellenes on Enlightenment Atheism.

Hilary Mantel

Today we mourn the passing of Hilary Mantel, remembered by 18th-century enthusiasts above all as author of A Place of Greater Safety.  In memory, let us find our copies, and revisit her wonderfully vivid portraits of Robespierre et al.!

"Chevalier" film premiere

 Chevalier, a biopic of the Black musician Chevalier Saint-Georges directed by Stephen Williams, premiered at the Toronto film on 11th September.

Fuseli exhibition

The exhibition Füssli: The Realm of Dreams and the Fantastic will run at the Musée Jacquemart-André in Paris, from 16th September 2022 to 23rd January 2023.

The Maison Bonchamps

The website Vendéens & Chouans reports concern over the future of the "Maison Bonchamps", 61 Rue de la Basse Meilleraie, Varade, the house where the Vendéan general Bonchamps died of his wounds, on 18th October 1793.  

An appreciation of David's "Brutus"

Mark Ledbury, Professor of Art History at the University of Sydney, introduces  one of his favourite paintings, Jacques-Louis David's 'The Lictors Bringing to Brutus the Bodies of his Dead Sons'.  Published in The Conversation on 30th August. 

Fairy tales in paper

 Here is the latest evocative video from Youtube channel of Laetitia Mieral, paper artist and 18th-century stylist from St Etienne:  

18th-century pastels at the Getty

The J.Paul Getty Museums presents an exhibition of Eighteenth-Century Pastels.  At the Getty Center in Los Angeles from 30th August 2022 to 26th February 2023.

New Madame Tussaud biopic

Andy Serkis announces plans for a new series on the life and career of Madame Tussaud

The house where David died

The Brussels Times has a short article about the house in Brussels, 7 rue Léopold, where Jacques-Louis David died in exile. 

Thoughts for Thermidor

On the anniversary of 9 Thermidor, three deputies of La France Insoumise have caused controversy by staging a tribute outside the Maison Robespierre in Arras.

Expo Louis XV at Versailles

The exhibition "Louis XV: Passions of a King" takes place at the Palace of  Versailles this Winter (18th October 2022 to 19th February 2023).

The martyrs of Compiègne

 On 17th July the Catholic Church commemorates the death of the "martyrs of Compiègne", sixteen courageous Carmelite nuns who were executed by the Revolutionary Government in 1794.

Claude-Léger Sorbet, art collector

Neil Jeffares has added a new essay to his Pastels & Pastellists website:

 http://www.pastellists.com/Essays/Sorbet.pdf

Lafayette's bedchamber at Mount Vernon

The newly restored guest room at Mount Vernon, once stayed in by Lafayette, was unveiled on Bastille Day in the presence of the French Ambassador.

Johnny Depp to play Louis XV

Netflix announces it is to stream the upcoming film "La Favorite", starring Johnny Depp as Louis XV and director Maïwenn as Madame du Barry.  

Revolutionary landscape painting exhibition

The exhibition "The Revolutionary Landscape / Le paysage révolutionnaire", curated by Alain Chevalier, runs at the  Musée de la Révolution française, Vizille, from 1st July to 3rd October. 

Classical music and the French Revolution (blog post)

 Author Rebecca Dowd Geoffroy-Schwinden, considers "Classical music, privilege and the ghosts of the French Revolution". OUP blog post, dated 01.07.22.

Portrait of Marie-Antoinette on display at Versailles

The Connexion reports that Joseph-Siffred Duplessis's portrait of Marie-Antoinette, bought for the Palace of Versailles in  November 2021, is now on display.

Marie-Antoinette Salon series (video lectures)

Now available on YouTube: Three lectures delivered in in April and June to accompany the Opera Lafayette's 2022 season, which celebrates the musical legacy of Marie-Antoinette. Includes Caroline Weber on "M-A Queen of Fashion".
Marie Antoinette Salon Series — Opera Lafayette

Letting Nature in - The Wallace Collection (video)

Curatorial Assistant Félix Zorzo explores how decorative art pieces at the Wallace Collection reflect an interest in the natural world:

How to cheat, the 17th-century way

Newly released on Steam:  Card Shark, a video game based on 17th-century French card games - fiendish!

Lavoisier's laboratory (video)

RFI has posted a short video featuring Lavoisier's scientific instruments in the Musée des Arts et Métiers.  Introduced by Dr Peter Reinhardt.

Fashion exhibition at Dijon (video)

France 3 Bourgogne-Franche-Comté presents a short video showcasing the exhibition À la mode:  L'art de paraître au XVIIIe siècle, currently running in Dijon. (see post of 13th May). 

Michel Gauchet on Robespierre (review)

 The New York Review of Books (June 23rd) publishes an essay by Lynn Hunt on Michel Gauchet's  Robespierre:  the Man who Divides Us Most, which has just been published in English translation by Princeton U.P.

I, the People | Lynn Hunt | The New York Review of Books (nybooks.com)

Leo Damrosch on Casanova (podcast)

 Leon Damrosch's new biography of Casanova was published on 24th May. There are loads of reviews, but you can currently hear Leo Damrosch himself discuss the work on an Princeton Alumni Weekly podcast (31st May)

Revolutionary woman artist "in focus"

The latest in the Washington Post's series "Great Works, In Focus" features Interior of an Atelier of a Woman Painter by Marie-Victoire Lemoine, painted in 1789.

Revolution-themed video game

Newly released:  Steelrising - "French Revolution action game" from the French developers Spider.

Editing Voltaire

The University of Oxford has published reflections (and a video) from the Voltaire Foundation, following the completion of the critical edition of Voltaire's Complete Works.
50-year project reveals new insights about the evolution and influence of Voltaire's thought | University of Oxford

Andrew Graham Dixon - Lecture on David announced

On 29th June 2022:  Evening lecture by Andrew Graham Dixon, broadcast on Zoom;  Price £12.

Andrew Graham-Dixon presents The Life and Work of Jacques-Louis David at Online event tickets from TicketSource

Hubert de Givenchy - upcoming auction

Christie's has released a full list of lots for the sale of the late Hubert de Givenchy, which will take place 8-23rd June.

Exhibition - Plates from the Encyclopédie

 Les Planches de l’Encyclopédie: Sources et Polémiques, opens this month at the  Bibliothèque Mazarine, Paris, 21 May – 3 September 2022

Revolutionary letters auctioned

 Sotheby's London has published sale prices for the auction History in Manuscript: Letters and Documents from a Distinguished Collection, held on 13th April.

Fashion exhibition opens in Dijon

The exhibition À la mode: L'art de paraître au 18e siècle runs at the Musée des beaux-arts in Dijon, 13th May-22nd August. 

David exhibition catalogue (review)

The exhibition, Jacques-Louis David:  radical draftsman runa at the Metropolitan Museum of Art from  17th February to 15th May  2022. The accompanying catalogue is reviewed by Colin Bailey, NYRB, 12.05.2022. 

Works of Robespierre - volume 12

The Société des Études Robespierristes blog gives details of volume 12 of the Works of Robespierre which has just been published.

Chardin's Strawberries to remain in France

 In March, Chardin's Basket of Wild Strawberries (1761) sold at auction for a record $26.8 million.  It has now been announced that the Louvre intends to exercise its right of pre-emption. 

Robert Darnton lecture

 Liverpool University Press announces the publication as an open-access book of Robert Darnton's public lecture, Theatricality and Violence in Paris, 1788.  

Louis Gauffier exhibition at the Musée Fabre

 Le Voyage en Italie de Louis Gauffier, opens at the Musée Fabre, Montpellier, from 7th May to 4th September 2022, and in Poitiers, October 2022 to February 2023

18c skeletons discovered in Béthune

Archaeologists have excavated 13 skeletons, thought to be from the cemetery of the collegiate church of Béthune-Bruay,  demolished in the early 19th century.

From the Maison Robespierre

From La Voix du Nord, 3rd May: Hervé Leuwers and colleagues gather at the Maison Robespierre in Arras to mark the publication of Vol 12 of the Works of Robespierre.