Practical information
Price Admission is included in the museum admission fee
Public Exhibition
Start 01 May 2024
End 03 November 2024
Before becoming the undisputed master of Art Deco glass, René Lalique (1860-1945) had gained a name for himself during the Art Nouveau period. Considered by Emile Gallé as the inventor of modern jewellery, he introduced various innovations in his jewellery creations, both in terms of sources of inspiration and the materials he used.
Trained as a master jeweller, in his early creations Lalique made exclusive use of diamonds, favouring them for their unrivalled clarity and sparkle. But he was too independent a spirit to stick to tradition. « I worked relentlessly, sketching and sculpting, doing endless studies and technical trials, in the aim of creating something new, something that had never been seen before. » He began using gold and precious gem stones together with materials that had previously been rarely used and were seen as less noble, such as horn, ivory, semi-precious stones, enamel, and – of course – glass. It was his firm conviction that it was « better to seek beauty than display luxury… Spirit should take precedence over matter. »
His is « above all an art of imagination and even, may we say, an art of feeling and poetry »[1]. A close observer and explorer of nature from his childhood, René Lalique took huge inspiration from the world of plants and animals. Female figures are also omnipresent in his work, whether as allegorical or winged figures or aquatic goddesses. He was curious and open-minded; an avid reader, he loved to visit museums and exchange ideas with his artist friends. « He was familiar with the archaeological discoveries of Egyptian, Greek and Etruscan civilisations, as well as the treasures of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, Byzantine and Caucasian art, the art of the Far East, and even of America [2].
The exhibition will be held at the Lalique Museum from 1 May to 3 November, showcasing Lalique’s creations with a focus on the materials he used and his sources of inspiration.
Admission is included in the museum admission fee
8€/full rate – 4€/reduced rate – 18€/family rate (1 to 2 adults and up to 5 children under 18)
From May to September: the museum is open every day from 9.30am to 6.30pm, public holidays included
October and up to 3 November: from Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm
[1] Léonce Bénédite (1859-1925), curator of the Musée du Luxembourg
[2] Roger Marx (1859-1913), art critic
