Friday : Institut du Monde Arabe, Picasso museum, Orangerie museum.
A collection of unique works, exhibited for the first time outside the museums of Uzbekistan, can be discovered at the IMA. Several hundred pieces, and as many splendours made at the turn of the 20th century, plunge us into the history and ancestral skills of a country that is a melting pot of civilisations dating back thousands of years.
“On the Roads of Samarkand” magnifies the revival of the splendid crafts of the 19th and early 20th centuries, which are so much a part of the Uzbek identity. Textiles played a key role, as they did throughout the Islamic world; Bukhara embroidery, in particular, occupies a special place among Uzbekistan’s many art forms. It was during the Bukhara emirate (1785-1920) that gold embroidery reached its apogee and renown in terms of technique, quality and, above all, creativity. Many of the splendid and monumental creations – chapans, dresses, headdresses, saddle carpets combining colours and gold – reserved for the court and for diplomatic gifts, were made exclusively in the Emir’s private workshop and bear witness to his opulent lifestyle. Many other items can be discovered throughout the exhibition, offering a broader perspective of the society of the time, including the famous ikats and their profusion of colours, weavings that are the fruit of ancestral techniques, and the specific regional styles of the Khorezm, the Ferghana Valley and the Karakalpak region, where accumulations of jewellery extended the women’s wardrobe.
At the turn of the century, Turkestan – the territory covering the future republic of Uzbekistan – was the destination of choice for many artists from Central Asia and Russia. New art schools were created in the 1920s, including an Uzbek school headed by Alexander Volkov (1886-1957). Painters discovered this territory and found unique inspiration in the richness of the landscapes, shapes, colours and faces of Central Asia. This is how the carpets, suzanis, chapans and ikats presented in the exhibition came to be seen, with each artist following his or her own style in this quest for the exotic.
8 April 2023 marks the fiftieth anniversary of Pablo Picasso’s death, making this the year to celebrate his work and his artistic legacy in France, Spain and internationally.
This exhibition, conceived in collaboration with Sir Paul Smith, focuses on the masterpieces in the collection. The designer’s unique approach to the works invites the public to see them in a more contemporary light, underlining the continuing relevance of Picasso’s work. The worlds of the two designers also meet at times, as in their shared love of objects, costumes and mischief, bringing the works together in a resolutely inventive and spectacular way!
Sir Paul Smith is one of Britain’s leading designers, renowned for his creative spirit that combines tradition and modernity. Famous for his clothing and accessories collections, Paul Smith specialises in the inventive use of traditional craftsmanship to create modern pieces that draw inspiration from both art and everyday life.
A true designer, Paul Smith continues to innovate and inspire the world of fashion and design in the UK and internationally. With his enthusiasm for eclectic cultural references and understated combinations of pattern and colour, Paul Smith expresses a truly contemporary aesthetic and champions an open, curious and authentic approach to design.
Faith Ringgold.
An American artist involved in the struggle for civil rights and a feminist, her work links the rich heritage of the Harlem Renaissance with the current art of young black American artists. Through her re-readings of the history of modern art, she engages in a veritable plastic and critical dialogue with the Parisian art scene of the early twentieth century.
In 1930, Matisse left France for a trip to Tahiti, voluntarily marking a pause in his creative process and initiating a turning point in his work. The exhibition “Matisse. Cahiers d’art, le tournant des années 1930” looks back at this decisive decade. The exhibition looks at Matisse’s work in the 1930s through the prism of Cahiers d’art, the major avant-garde magazine founded by Christian Zervos in 1926. As a mouthpiece for international modernism and the aesthetic currents of his time, the magazine gave an account of the artist’s output throughout the inter-war period.
