Fan-tastic!

Behind a nondescript blue door on the bustling Boulevard de Strasbourg in the 10th arrondissement, lies an unseen and (to us) unknown treasure:  Le Musée de l'Éventail (The Fan Museum).

Climbing the staircase to the third floor, we stepped back in time into a world of ivory and black lacquer, of painted silk, lace and carved wood, of mother-of-pearl, and exquisitely folded papers.

Wandering through a series of small rooms, we marvelled at the old machines that since the 1700s, formed the heart of a thriving fan industry in this part of Paris.

Boxes of materials line the walls, filled with lace, silk fabrics, frames, etc., waiting to be transformed into fans.

The current director, Anne Hoguet continues the tradition begun by her great great Grandfather, Joseph Hoguet Duroyaume, who opened his own workshop in 1872 in the l'Oise. In later years, his descendents acquired this historic atelier that, from the mid-19th century on, belonged to Ernest Kees, Félix Lepault and Désiré Debergue, all giants in this highly specialised art form.

Long before this era, though, fans were an integral part of daily life. The ancient Egyptians developed what was later called a flabellum or esmouchoir, designed to protect the Royal Kings from the pesky flies in that part of the Mediterranean. Even Tutenkamen had one, ornately carved from wood!

 The folding fan arrived in Europe from Japan and China in the 16th century, brought back by the Portuguese, and quickly adopted by the Italian and French Courts.

In the 1830s in France, beautiful masterpieces from the past two centuries once again found favor via a new technology, called "chromolithography", that allowed for a duplication of patterns.

Thus, this beautiful 18th century painting Didon reçoit les Troyens became a striking fan framed with marbled tortoiseshell.

Without doubt, the centerpiece of the Musée de l'Éventail is this stunning room, previously the salesroom for the atelier in the 19th century.

In the style of Henry II, the walls are covered with blue cloth embroidered with golden fleur-de-lys. Beautiful wooden drawers line the walls, with large tables in the centre for the actual sales. The room is listed as a Monument Historique, to be preserved for all time.

Over the fireplace, the carved figure of La Folie looks down on all this splendor. Above, the initials LD, record the owners' names: Lepault-Deberghe.

Along the window walls are lighted cases of the museum's collection of chinoiserie-patterned fans, the theme of their current exhibition.

Lots of extraordinary ivory and black lacquered examples...

...fans with glittering fiacre (mother-of-pearl)...

...this one with peacock feathers, an ivory frame and more birds and flowers painted on the white feathers...

...a pair of circular fans, layered with peacock feathers...

...and this giant tortoiseshell fan, regally displayed in a large wooden case.

At the end of the day, I kept coming back to this adorable small octagonal-shaped flat fan. The silk, hand-embroidered scene shows a hungry kingfisher perched above a pond, eyeing a small frog, who, with his front limbs raised above his head, is either saying "okay, I give up", or perhaps, in an attempt to negotiate,  "now, hold on a minute, let's talk this over"!!

Today, l'Atelier Anne Hoguet is the last producer of high quality, hand-made fans in France. They provide fans for the haute couture houses, as well as for opera, theatre and film companies. And they do a brisk business in restoring treasured fans for customers, who come from near and far to this small corner of Paris.

Out in the museum lobby, we looked over the nice selection of fans for sale, some folded, some flat, all in striking colors and patterns. Now, if we could just get some hot weather, I might go back and buy one!

À bientôt!

Made in France

May 1st, "May Day", is a big holiday here in France. This year, the day dawned grey and cold and threatening. So instead of joining the thousands of people who march from Bastille to Nation in solidarity with labor, we showed our solidarity by going out to the Porte de Versailles to the 109th annual Foire de Paris, to admire the end result of all that labor.

These posters have been lining the metro walls for some time, with different faces showing different reactions to the main theme of the fair: "Générosité, Curiosité, Innovation".  Over 620,000 people are expected to attend over the next ten days, to experience in one place "all the products and services that enhance your daily life." And most of which can proudly claim to be:

"Made in France".

A long line snaked its way to the entrance of the multi-pavilioned complex that makes up this huge exhibition space. This is where Matthew comes every year to gaze at cars at the RetroMobile show. Today, we'd be gazing at a different kind of French ingenuity.

Along the way to the first pavilion, we passed this exotic mermaid someone had painted on the sidewalk. We hoped it was waterproof as the skies were threatening!

As we entered the "Furnishings and Home Decoration pavilion" we realized we were stepping into a very French world of style: acres of space showcasing the very latest in taste and fashion, from these high-end very expensive glittering rooms...

...to some astonishingly impractical dead-white leather couches, pouffes and pillows...

...to some equally white leather couches with added bizarre sections of bright turquoise and sober gray suede leather.

In an adjacent section were room after room of incredibly garish paintings and prints, this one seeming to extoll all the worst attributes of the USA!

We fairly shuddered at the sight of this "faux" Eugène Boudin painting, especially after just seeing the real thing in a wonderful show at the Jacquemart-André Museum!

Luckily, before we got too despondent at all this terrible taste, we came to one of the things we love best about France: very clever design (think Citroën cars!). Here's a nice set of bookshelves...

...but, wait a minute, what's that behind these shelves...

...yes, a full-sized bed!

...ready for nicely ironed French sheets and a warm duvet!

And if you have kids who like bunk beds, you can slide them up and down the side railings to create more space in a small bedroom during the day.

 Moving into the next pavilion, housing all things "kitchen", we were greeted by this friendly mascot, although we could not figure out what he/she was promoting.

 The American influence was very evident here, every kitchen a big open plan space where you cook and you eat. Our new next door neighbors in our building had the same idea in their flat. They took down walls and created a huge living/dining/cooking space.

But if you're not sure what you want, the Foire de Paris is just the place to come and consult with experts, who will be happy to draw up designs for you.

All the kitchens on display were of the most modern design -- except for this woodsy setting, which would fit right into my house in Inverness!

What I loved most of all were all the eye-popping colors that would brighten up any space, whether a stove...

...or the ever-cheerful line of products from the trusty folks at Bodum.

 Moving right along, we found ourselves in the Appliances Section, which was like the Shopping Network on steroids!

 With just a couple of twists of this gadget, the entire inner part of the pineapple came out...sliced in perfect, even slices!

What Matthew's late Uncle Ben would have called "a pip of a rig"!

 I think this fellow must have sold almost all his boxes of "Le Coupe Ananas", because wherever we went, we saw people carrying one, two, sometimes three boxes!

 But that was nothing compared to the array of other miracles we came across, like this sewing machine that is embroidering, all by itself...

...or this tiny robot vacuum cleaner that sucked up shiny copper centime coins...

...or this fancy steam iron with wires and controls that make your shirts and trousers look like they've just come back from the cleaners!

 The sales pitches were pretty intense, but this young woman finally gave up trying to persuade Matthew to try the all-new "cigarette électronique"!

"Mais, Madame, je suis Americain, nous ne fumons pas" he explained.

 By the time we reached the booth selling massage chairs, I was ready to sink right into one and take a nap! But they were already occupied by would-be customers, trying out all the controls (and looking a bit like those scenes from "Wall-E" where the humans are in the space ships orbiting earth!).

 In a playful dig at French innovation, we came across a big Japanese booth in one pavilion, slyly demonstrating their own sense of style. No, this is not an anti-germ face mask. It is a mask with an opening for the lips so you can apply your lipstick without fear of smudging in a fast moving subway, or bullet train!

And this clever helmet allows your braids to swing free and clear as you ride along!

 By the time we saw this, I was ready to ride along home myself, perhaps on one of these new folding electric bikes, today's version of the old, trusty "VéloSoleX" from years gone by.

Foire de Paris is a bit like going to a State Fair in America, a lot of fun, but way too much to see in one day. There was much to laugh at, but also much to admire in the inventiveness and style of French design. You really can't take it all in. I haven't even mentioned the musical side-shows, the acres of food stands from around the world and the wines and gastronomical products. I did see some of these because, in fact, I went back the next day. Amongst all the tasteful (and tasteless) furnshings on display in the Home Decoration section, we actually had spotted an armoire for our bedroom. And at the discounted prices they were offering during the fair, it was worth the return trip!

Back home, my little posy of Muguet du Bois (Lily of the Valley) was another nice reminder of May Day traditions. It is a symbol of spring, friendship and good luck, especially if the sprig (le brin) has thirteen bellflowers.

À bientôt!