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10 mars 2008

“Rococo: The Continuing Curve, 1730-2008” au Cooper Hewitt, National Design Museum

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A great soup tureen welcomes visitors to “Rococo: The Continuing Curve, 1730-2008,” a dazzling exhibition at the Cooper Hewitt, National Design Museum. Made entirely of silver, it takes the form of a giant clamshell on whose fluted lid are piled the ingredients for a rich stew.

This amazing culinary showpiece was made between 1735 and 1740 by craftsmen under the direction of Juste-Aurèle Meissonier, the French designer who is considered the father of the Rococo. (Photo: Cleveland Museum of Art)

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A gourd vase by Emile Gallé of France (circa 1900)

The exuberantly decorative style emerged in Paris about 1730, spread throughout Europe and even reached the colonies of North and South America before the sobering correction of Neo-Classicism kicked in around the mid-1760s.

When it was coined in the early 19th century, Rococo was a pejorative, meaning, in effect, “old-fashioned.” For many today the Rococo conjures a superficial hedonism, sophisticated and witty but lacking spiritual depth.

So why is the Cooper-Hewitt exhibition so enthralling? Mainly because of the sheer sumptuousness of its contents. (Photo: Andrew Garn)

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“Flora Marina, Flora Exotica,” a jardinière by Émile of France (1889)

The 370 objects are mostly utilitarian and decorative: furniture, ceramic vases, jewelry, mirrors, snuffboxes and other sorts of domestic ware. The show includes works from most of the countries that the Rococo reached, from Germany to Guatemala. It takes in 19th-century revivals and pursues the spirit if not the actual style of Rococo into the 20th century and beyond. But the best and most substantial part concentrates on the 18th century. Here one finds astounding craftsmanship, spectacular material beauty and sometimes improbably fanciful imagery.

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An exquisitely made candelabrum of gilt bronze designed by Jean-Joseph de Saint-Germain around 1750 borders on surrealism. About the base of a realistically rendered tree trunk in which two life-size birds perch, little putti cavort on curving miniature balustrades, and decorative scrolls play like waves of water. Candleholders are mounted on flower blossoms at the ends of sweeping stems. Everything is in dreamy flux. (Photo: Cleveland Museum of Art)

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Elsewhere a bulging Venetian writing desk covered in gold-leafed shells, leaves, scrolls and other unidentifiable devices has floral bouquets painted on its door panels. It seems weirdly lively, as though it might start dancing and flapping its multiple lids and doors like wings. Rococo design is not deep, but it has an infectiously theatrical joie de vivre. (Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Arts) – Ken Johnson www.nytimes.com

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