Tea at Trianon: Redecorating the White House

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Redecorating the White House

The Obamas have some decorating plans. According to Hello! magazine:

Michelle and her husband teamed up with a Californian decorator and the White House's curator William Allman to choose the works, which include both paintings and sculptures.

"The first lady had clear ideas about what they were aiming for," William revealed. "They knew their tastes."

Among the art pieces, which can only be hung in private rooms and offices rather than historic public spaces, is a bold canvas by Edward Ruscha titled I Think I'll….

It shows a painted red sunset with phrases such as "I' think I'll" and "maybe…no" inscribed on top.

There are also paintings by contemporary American print maker Jasper Johns and Alma Thomas, an African-American abstract painter.

Sculptures chosen by the president and his first lady include a steam boat paddle wheel, a patent model for a gear cutter and bronze figurines.

Their choices are "great art to live with," said the curator of modern and contemporary art at the National Gallery – where many of the items come from.

"A lot of it is challenging. There are different styles: figurative art, abstract art."

Julygirl said...: I trust we are not paying for that 'art'.; October 21, 2009 at 10:59:00 AM EDT
Alexandra said...: I'm pretty sure it's borrowed from the National Gallery of Art.

I've seen some of the pieces, and I think it would be difficult to blend them in among the traditional. I don't think they are changing out all the decor, so these pieces will definitely stick out!

Ruscha is pop art, very trendy now...much better suited for a mid-century modern home, or modern Euro-style(like IKEA).; October 22, 2009 at 7:07:00 PM EDT