Friday, February 03, 2012

Paris fashion museum


If there is one last "industry" where the French still have a pretty good position, it's la mode (fashion). No wonder then, that we hold on to it as much as we can... I already mentioned the Institut Français de la Mode, a school that is more a business school dedicated to fashion than an actual designer school), and here is the fashion museum. It's called the Galliera (after the name of the Italian Duchess who once owned the place - a stunning palace surrounded by a 17600 sq meter garden in the heart of the 16th arrondissement!) and it owns no less than 90 000 fashion pieces (from dresses to gloves, fans, umbrellas...). I've never visited it - and I won't before another year and a half for it's currently closed, but the outside is already something!

16 comments:

  1. how beautiful is that blue sky as a back drop, just picture perfect!

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  2. Beautiful! I wonder if that's why some malls are called Gallerias. Anyone know?

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  3. According to Merriam Webster:

    gal•le•ria
    noun \ˌga-lə-ˈrē-ə\

    a roofed and usually glass-enclosed promenade or court (as at a mall)
    Origin of GALLERIA
    Italian, gallery, from Medieval Latin galeria
    First Known Use: circa 1901

    gal·lery
    noun \ˈga-lə-rē, ˈgal-rē\
    1a : a roofed promenade : colonnade
    b : corridor 1
    2a : an outdoor balcony
    b Southern & Midland : porch, veranda c : a platform at the quarters or stern of a ship

    Nope, Signora Galliera was not the eponymous etymological source. Try saying that three times fast after a glass of Cabernet Franc. Or Chianti, for that matter.

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  4. I visited there years ago. I think they had a Greta Garbo exhibit at the time. It was amazing.

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  5. With the sky so blue and the grass so green, it's hard to believe it's winter.

    "The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk" is coming to San Francisco in March. The show will be at the DeYoung fine art museum until August 19, 2012. I'm really looking forward to it.

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  6. Great shot, I like the effect the fence gives.
    What a beautiful building. I haven't been there. In fact I haven't been very much in the 16th, I think it's the only arrondissement I haven't explored yet.

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  7. Great photo Eric, but the French have lots of industries! In transportation alone, they have developed their own high-speed rail network that is the envy of the world, and the RER is pretty cool too. Also, there is Airbus that is nearly beating Boeing in making airliners, and Dassault that makes fighters for the l'Armee de l'Air, as well as lots of business jets.
    France is doing great! (in aviation and transport anyway, not too sure about the rest!)

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  8. Eric, you're such a tease...the sky looks beautiful but I bet it's coooooold...

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  9. This is a really interesting photo. Such a contrast between the beautiful old building and the fashion images with the use of such a striking pink. The bars of the gate actually make it even more interesting, and rather than obstructing the view, it kind of gives the impression that the building is unobtainable. And a great day to capture this photo, not a cloud in the sky. Thanks :)

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  10. Luv this! A calendar photo for next year:)??

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  11. Never did get to the Alexander McQueen exhibit at the Met because the line was always miles long. This looks fabulous—something to look forward to for sure!

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  12. Beautiful. The sky, the grass, and, of course, the building. I have always enjoy beautiful clothes and this would be somewhere I would like to visit. (Although sometimes the runway fashions don't translate well to the everyday, and those make me laugh.)

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  13. I pass this place quite frequently as I'm often in the area, but was never quite sure what it was. Maybe I'll drop in one day!

    @Anonymous...I'm not quite sure that it's a question of the industry, but more the loss of market share. One must not rest on one's laurels...

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  14. I've gone here many times when I was in Paris! The exhibitions are just wonderful---the Sylvie Vartan was my favorite. I'm disappointed that its been closed for so long---I'm worried that it is really a financial problem. Sigh...

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