Fontainebleau
With freezing temps and gray skies, it was time for a weekend getaway from Paris. The last time I visited the Chateau’s near Paris was when I lived here as a student in 1984/5. Knowing it was “off” season, we decided to drive to Fontainebleau for the weekend. It’s only about 34 miles outside of Paris but once away from the hustle and bustle of the city, you feel like you are hundreds of miles away. The castle has served as a residence of French monarchs from Louis VII to Napoleon III. It was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981. Even in winter the gardens are beautiful and expansive. We toured the grand apartments and saw lots of gold, ornate objects and art.
After visiting the chateau, we drove to Moret-Loing et Orvanne for lunch.The restaurant was recommended by friends who lived in Fontainebleau years ago and it did not disappoint.This small village is very charming and has a small but famous church that Alfred Sisley (1839-1899) painted.
The detail of the stonework on these churches is mind blowing. Here are a few more shots I found to be interesting as we walked from our car to the restaurant. We didn’t dally because we had another museum to visit.
After lunch we drove to the town of Barbizon. I had heard of the Barbizon School but never really knew much about it. A visit to the museum explained it all! Since the 1840’s, artist’s from Paris were drawn to the forests of Fountainebleau. A group of landscape painter’s, namely Theodore Rousseau and Jean Francois Millet, started this “school” where one would paint from nature. The museum is small but very well curated. Half of the charm of the museum is how welcoming and unassuming it is. Original paintings hang on walls of a two story house which served as an inn for the artists. There are several rooms with drawings on the walls that were discovered while they were planning to do a bit of a renovation for the museum. Apparently, after a full day outside drawing and painting, the artists returned to the Inn to eat and rest. I guess this led to games and showing off their drawing skills - lucky us! There is a ledger from the Inn that lists hundreds of famous painters who passed through - often more than once. It’s easy to imagine the camaraderie and inspiration one would have experienced.
The BIG highlight of the weekend was visiting the Rosa Bonheur Museum on Sunday. A few years ago, I learned about Rosa Bonheur in an art history class about female artists that often get overshadowed. I was truly awed when I first saw her famous painting The Horse Fair at the Met in NY. It’s not hard to find because it’s huge - 92 in x 200in. Bonheur was born into a family of artists - her mother a musician and her father a landscape painter.Her father was also a member of a radical and progressive social group called Saint-Simonians. It was a group of intellectuals who believed in women’s equality among other things. We can understand how Rosa Bonheur preferred to live an unconventional lifestyle with such an upbringing. The museum was actually a house or “chateau” that she bought with the proceeds from the sale of her painting The Horse Fair. It was unheard of at the time for a woman to do such a thing - she broke many barriers in her lifetime. The museum is chock full of stuff - paintings, drawings, letters, taxidermy - you name it. Everything looks as if it would have looked when she lived there. I had the crazy hope that maybe she would walk in to greet us at any minute. You really feel her presence here. Below are several photographs I took - notice the permit where she had to get permission from the police in order to wear pants.
The hour and half tour was led by a young Master’s of Art History student from the Sorbonne. Her passion was palpable even though she spoke at rapid speed. My husband and I both patted ourselves on the back afterwards because we understood her lightening fast French. Or so we think…
Having just seen the recent exhibition at the Musee D’Orsay, the tour seemed that much more sweet for us. We returned to Paris Sunday evening feeling completely restored and ready for the remaining days of winter before spring arrives!!!
