Plumes du paradis - Voyages d'un oiseau extraordinaire de Nouvelle-Guinée
Published by Musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac
- From tuesday, may 12 to sunday, november 8
- 10:30 AM-7:00 PM
- Musée du Quai Branly Jacques Chirac 37 Quai Branly, 75007 Paris, France
The Quai Branly Museum follows in this exhibition the circulation of paradise birds' feathers, from New Guinea to the painters' studios and to fashion houses. Nearly 190 pieces bring together adornments, taxidermied birds, paintings, and garments. The route examines what these objects say about those who wore them, collected them, or depicted them.
In New Guinea, the feathers are used to compose adornments. Once transported far from their natural habitat, they also become objects of study and trade. Paintings from the Northern School allow tracing another form of circulation, that of the bird's image. Placed beside specimens and illustrated books, these paintings show how perceptions are formed as the animal becomes familiar in Europe.
The shift to accessories and fashion pieces extends the inquiry. Behind the colors and shapes that fascinated collectors and designers, the exhibition brings back to the foreground the living bird and the forest habitats on which it depends.
Promoter
Venue
Musée du Quai Branly Jacques Chirac
37 Quai Branly, 75007 Paris, France