14 April 2023 to 27 August 2023
TEMPORARY
EXHIBITION
Sarah Bernhardt
And the woman created the star
https://www.petitpalais.paris.fr/en/expositions/sarah-bernhardt
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Avenue
Winston-Churchill 75008 Paris
Tel : 01 53
43 40 00
Plein tarif
: 15 euros
Tarif
réduit : 13 euros
Free : - 18
ans
Tuesday to
Sunday, from 10am to 6pm
Fridays and
Saturdays until 8pm
Sarah
Bernhardt, (1844-1923), was an emblematic figure who spanned the 19th and 20th
centuries. The “Divine Sarah”, who was an artist as well as an actress, takes centre
stage at the Petit Palais in an exceptional exhibition to mark the centenary of
her death. The museum holds important collections of works linked to the
actress, including the spectacular portrait of her that was painted in 1876 by
her friend Georges Clairin and donated by her son Maurice
With over four hundred works, the exhibition
traces the life and theatrical career of this “sacred monster”, as Jean Cocteau
dubbed her. A legendary performer of the greatest roles from Racine,
Shakespeare, Edmond Rostand and Alexandre Dumas fils, among others, Sarah
Bernhardt went from triumph to triumph in theatres all over the world.
The
exhibition evokes her greatest roles through the costumes she wore on stage,
photographs, paintings, posters and other memorabilia. Her “golden voice” and
her tall, slender figure – unusual in those days – held the public in thrall,
as well as the artistic and literary world, who simply venerated her. She was
the friend of painters such as Gustave Doré, Georges Clairin, Louise Abbéma,
and Alphonse Mucha, but also of writers like Victor Hugo, Victorien Sardou and
Sacha Guitry, as well as musicians and composers like Reynaldo Hahn. She was an
artist herself, and an entire section of the exhibition focuses on this
lesser-known aspect of her life.
Photographs,
paintings and even a film reveal the private side of her art, but also the
publicity she sought for her work as an artist. A number of objects that
belonged to her also illustrate Sarah Bernhardt’s personal life and her taste
for eccentricity: her various homes, her lavish, eclectic interiors and her
wardrobe. Sarah Bernhardt can be regarded as a genuine star before her time,
constantly on the look-out for new trends and using her image for her own
publicity. The frenzy of popular emotion that greeted her death in 1923, at the
age of 79, anticipated the cult following of the great film stars of the 20th
century.
Head curator: Annick Lemoine, director of the
Petit Palais
Curators:
Cécilie Champy, Director of the Musée Zadkine, Stéphanie Cantarutti, curator
for 19th century paintings at the Petit Palais
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