IN THE ETHER

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all the colours

all the tastes

or just nougat

9 scenes from the continuous mural by Tombarel Frères along the 300 steps ascent




GRASSE INTERLUDE


Reviewed by ANDRE BEAUMONT














This unscripted visit was mostly about seeing colourful art but too short to be particularly studious.

Grasse is known for its perfumeries which I have visited previously at length.

The Notre Dame du Puy de Grasse cathedral has been, perhaps a little surprisingly for a Romanesque church built in the 13th century when the episcopal seat of the bishop of Antibes was moved to Grasse, the home to three Rubens paintings that arrived in 1972. It also has a 1855 organ that is undergoing a national organ restoration appeal. The 1738 side chapel contains a Jean-Honoré Fragonard painting.






Raising the Cross


St Helena of Constantinople


The Crown of Thorns


Fragonard's The Washing of the Feet


This tower forms part of the town hall


There is the much taller cathedral bell tower behind which is the visible landmark


Entrance to the courtyard of the town hall

If you like the Wallace Collection there is a good chance you will like the Fragonard Museum, containing a world leading collection of art by three Grasse painters, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Jean-Baptiste Mallet and Marguerite Gérard who essentially plied their trade in Paris.







The Visitation by Jean-Honoré Fragonard. Théophile Gautier thought he could see the light, the finesse and the grace of a Tiepolo in it.


Descent from Grasse to La Napoule by Jean-Honoré Fragonard


The Empress Marie-Thérèse presenting the future Emperor Josef II to the Hungarian grandees by Alexandre-Évariste Fragonard



Afternoon in the Country by Jean-Baptiste Mallet


The Reading of the Letter by Jean-Baptiste Mallet


The Lesson of Henri IV by Auguste Évariste Fragonard


Minature by Marie-Anne Gérard


The Good News by Marguerite Gérard

There are 30 paintings by Marguerite Gérard on show and few museums give such prominence to a female artist. Just before her 25th birthday a painting by her was offered at public auction and the high price it achieved drew much attention.


The last portrait and the official image of Jean-Honoré Fragonard after his death by Marguerite Gérard