PRESS RELEASE
Le Goût de Diderot
Greuze, Chardin, Falconet, David…
7 FEBRUARY – 1 JUNE 2014
As part of the celebrations marking the 300th anniversary of the birth of Denis Diderot (1713-1784),
the Fondation de l’Hermitage is pleased to host an exhibition focusing on the famous French
philosopher’s relationship to art. This important event will feature an exceptional selection of the
paintings, sculptures, engravings and drawings that Diderot had the opportunity to admire at the
temporary exhibitions of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture, the well-known Salons
held at the Louvre, which he discussed in reviews written in the years 1759–1781. These writings are
remarkably free in tone and mark the emergence of art criticism as we know it today. They reveal
both Diderot’s initial awareness of art and the way that his taste, eye and aesthetics were developed
through acquaintance with the works of his time. The exhibition also highlights the impact of his
writings on the art world.
The exhibition begins with a section devoted to Diderot’s knowledge of art before his discovery of the
Salons. It then explores four themes that shaped his tastes and aesthetics: truth in painting; space and
volume; the poetry of painting; art as magic. The selection includes works that Diderot either admired or
disliked and features some of the greatest artists of the 18th century, including Chardin, Boucher, Vernet,
Falconet, Greuze, Robert, Houdon and David.
The event has been developed in partnership with the Musée Fabre, Montpellier, which has a particularly
fine collection of painting and sculpture from the second half of the 18th century and will be the exhibition’s
initial host from 5 October 2013–12 January 2014. This collaboration is a reminder of the importance of
relations between the great minds of France and Switzerland during the Enlightenment. Lenders for the
event include prestigious collections in France (notably the Musée du Louvre, Paris, the Château de
Versailles and the Palais des Beaux-Arts, Lille), other European countries (the Alte Pinakothek, Munich, the
Boijmans-Van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam, the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool and the Princely
Collections, Lichtenstein) and North America (the County Museum of Art and Getty Museum, Los Angeles
and the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa).
General curatorship: Michel Hilaire, General Curator and Director of the Musée Fabre, and Sylvie
Wuhrmann, Director of the Fondation de l’Hermitage. The advisory committee comprises Mr Guillaume
Faroult, Curator at the paintings department of the Musée du Louvre, Prof Stéphane Lojkine of the
Université de Provence, Aix-Marseille II, Mr Guilhem Scherf, Head Curator at the sculptures department of
the Musée du Louvre and Mr Olivier Zeder, Head Curator and Curator of 16th-18th century collections at the
Musée Fabre.
Catalogue: The catalogue features colour reproductions of all the works on display and contributions from
eminent experts on the 18th century.
The exhibition and catalogue have been generously supported by
and the Fondation pour l’art et la culture.
and the Fondation pour l’art et la culture.
Press: Emmanuelle Boss, [email protected]
Fondation de l’Hermitage
2, route du Signal, case postale 38
CH - 1000 LAUSANNE 8 Bellevaux
www.fondation-hermitage.ch
Director
tel.
fax
email
Sylvie Wuhrmann
+41 (0)21 320 50 01
+41 (0)21 320 50 71
[email protected]