VERSAILLES x 3

"most of the people who come to the court are persuaded that, to make their way there, they must show themselves everywhere, be absent as little possible at the king's lever, removal of the boots, and coucher, show themselves assiduously at the dinners of the royal family ... in short, must ceaselessly work at having themselves noticed."- so wrote a courtier at Versailles during Louis xiv's time

In a strategic move to maintain dominance over a fragmented and restless nobility, Louis XIV established Château de Versailles on the outskirts of Paris as his seat of power. Through decades of construction, architects, intrigue, the court was subjected to backbreaking curtsies, rigid protocols, closet size rat-infested quarters, and courtiers urinating in darkened corridors and stairways.

the Chateau view from the Orangerie

XIV had them right where he wanted them.

L'etat c'est.— Louis xiv

I am the State.

Perhaps he knew then, what we know today—that Versailles would be standing centuries after the Ancien Régime would fall.
Three new books, and no—there can never be enough— are testament to Louis XIV's vision.

VERSAILLES 
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VERSAILLES THE GREAT AND HIDDEN SPLENDORS OF THE SUN KING'S PALACE  by Catherine Pegard, president of the Versailles supervisory board. Access to the palace by four photographers, Christopher Fouin, Thomas Garnier, Christian Miles, and Didier Saulnier, gives the reader a voyeur's laser focus into the rooms sans hundreds of 21st-century mere mortals milling about in sneakers and iPhones.

The grandeur of Versailles is on full display in the book, but it's the photographs that capture the intricate details of the chateau. that appeal to me most, and in this, the book excels.

detail of Hyacinth Rigaud's portrait of the King. The "of the moment" red heels were a fashion created by the King's more fashionable brother Philippe de France. Monsieur, as he was known, had been tripping through the butcher's district on his way back to Versailles and arrived with bloodstained heels. 

the Mercury Salon in detail,  

Louis xiv played cards here—amongst other things, on occasion a State Bedroom, and ultimately the room where he would lie in state.

Marie Antoinette's private library, not a reader, the books remained for the most part—untouched by the royal hand.

all images above are from VERSAILLES published by Vendome Press

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Author of FASHION AND VERSAILLES is a sumptuous new book written by Laurence Benaim who has written biographies about Saint Laurent, Marie Laure de Noailles, and Jean-Michel Frank in French, and two in-depth books about Christian Dior. Her new book traces Versailles as the place of the original dress code, and fashion police—Louis XIV.

The book is lavishly filled with fashion photographs amassed at Versailles, fashion inspired by Versailles, and the great portraits that emerged from life there. Besides being beautiful, we find such historic jewels as the creation of Françoise Athénaïs de Rochechouart de Mortemart's "innocent" frocks that were designed to conceal her pregnancies—Louis XIV fathered seven children with Athénaïs, aka Madame de Montespan.

Designers have long been inspired by the French courts. Rose Bertin, dressing Marie Antoinette, was perhaps the first fashion designer, created colors that reflected court life—cuisse de nymphe or "maidens thigh," certainly applicable to the dishabille state of many women bent on seductions at court.

Lagerfeld interprets Versailles Style, originally published in Vogue Paris, 1998.

British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood interprets Fashion & Versailles

photograph by Jean-Marie Perier for Elle, 1994.

Always recognizable, the photographs of Deborah Turbeville's Unseen Versailles, convey the idea that Catherine Pegard, who wrote the first book here,  puts forward as the book opens, writing, "Versailles is where fashion finds new beginnings, always, etched as it is in the footsteps of the lovely ghosts that kindle the dreams of couturiers." Pegard, is the president of the Public Establishment of the Palace, Museum, and National Estate of Versailles, writes the foreword to the book.

"Pompadours of the New World"- Laurence Benaim

Pale gray lace and pale pink roses trail from a gown by Pierre Balmain, 1953. 

Le Style Louis

Chanel Haute Couture, 1987-1988

iii

Last—but certainly not least, VERSAILLES A PRIVATE INVITATION looks at the chateau through an entirely different lens.
Firstly it's the lens of the great photographer Francis Hammond, and secondly, Hammond had carte blanche to each and every niche at Versailles. He also had access to the newly restored Cabinet de la Meridienne, the boudoir of Marie Antoinette, and the Salon d'Aurore. In addition to photographing these treasures, he had access to rare objet d'art not seen by the public.

Versailles' Clock Room

The copper rod in the floor to the window marks the Paris Meridian

Author Guillaume Picon gives readers inside access to family secrets using quotes from Marie Antionette's letters, first-hand accounts of visitors and courtiers of the palace in the eighteenth century, memoirs, and from classical literature. Readers certainly know how I do love a quote!
                     

The busts in the Gallery of Battles depict the great military leaders of France many who walked the halls of Versailles to pay homage to their King.

One of 67 staircases in the chateau

Each of these books is worth having all with unique perspectives. It's likely there will be another book on Versailles and another. I've 4 books on Versailles in my library already, not to mention several on various Kings, courts, and Queens. The books will go on, as will Versailles.
Unlike Rose Bertin's color temps perdu or lost time, something akin to a mist I'd guess, time is not lost at Versailles, but it does stand still.

Mistletoe & Holly to (IN)DECOROUS TASTE -the Best December Post

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(in anticipation of little augury's birth on Dec 31st, New Year's Eve, MY first of the BEST of 2009. On the BEST I bestow MISTLETOE & HOLLY, & the OTHER- A LUMP OF COAL)

Mistletoe & Holly for The Best Post of December 2009 LAUREN of (In)Decorous Taste

Yes-I know December is still rolling-but this post takes the cake? No-the Bird. Impressive is beyond is the term for this confection from LAUREN here. Take a gander and Be impressed. When I asked Lauren about posting this to my site I was very specific in saying- anyone that KNOWS ME will know this is not of my own creation. If you CLICK anywhere in this portion of the text it will take you to LAUREN'S ORIGINAL POST-DO Go and let HER know how much you appreciate her culinary skills-and believe it or not she is best known for her quite wonderful decorative arts skill- wall application, furniture and well who knows what she will paint- We will all be waiting to see-

Louis XV and The Jacquard Chicken

Behold, the HARLEQUIN CHICKEN:

Above, The finished chicken, presented on a faux malachite tray courtesy of my mother.

Originally, I was going to share with you today an image of a chicken from a 1967 House & Garden (reprinted in an issue on "luxury" from September 1998) about a favorite recipe of Louis XV, a truly extravagant chicken that could have passed for op-art, otherwise known as a "Harlequin Chicken."  Despite my intentions, this image never made it into this post, nor even onto my scanner, because at some point while reading, I was suddenly overcome with a feverish NEED to recreate the roaster.

Now, noting that the article offered no guidance for the creation of the bird (other than to say that chefs "hold their breath until the last diamond is put in place"), I can only attribute my infatuation to the odd fact that this struck me as a chicken that LOOKS like a cake, that looks like a chicken.  And what could be splashier at a dinner party than a real bird masquerading as a candy confection mimicking an actual, savory meat dish?!

Louis XV's chefs used boiled and cracked knuckles of veal to create the gelatinous sauce, but (as House & Garden noted in 1967), we now thankfully have lovely packets of gelatin to speed things along.

One Google search for chaudfroid sauce and much experimentation later, I arrived at my own method for making a harlequin chicken, in case you should want to try...

You'll Need:
- 1 small chicken
- 1 3/4 c light cream
- 1 bay leaf
- 8 peppercorns
- 1 TBSP butter
- 2 TBSP flour
- 1 envelope (2 TBSP) gelatin for the sauce
- 1 envelope (2 TBSP) gelatin for the eggplant glaze
- 3 TBSP boiling water
- 1 large eggplant
- salt and pepper to season

What to do:  
1. Roast the chicken in an oven: Pat it dry, remove the innards, truss it, and cook it at 450 degrees for around an hour, uncovered.  Remove, allow to cool, and peel off the skin. Place in refrigerator to chill.

2. Blanche eggplant in a large pot of boiling water, until it's shriveled and soft, around 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. Cut in half lengthwise, scoop out the flesh, scrape the skin clean, and cut the skin (carefully, carefully!!!) into a diamond pattern by scoring with a paring knife. Set pieces aside, discard flesh.

3. Mix the cream, bay leaf, and peppercorns in a small saucepan and heat to boiling, stirring constantly.  Turn off heat and let rest 5 minutes.  Strain liquid into a bowl. In a pan, melt the butter.  Add the flour, stirring into a smooth paste.  Slowly add the cream.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer 2 minutes.  Put 3 TBSP boiling water in a small bowl and sprinkle with gelatin.  After it's dissolved, stir the gelatin liquid into the cream. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Take out the thoroughly chilled chicken and pour this mixture carefully on top of it.  The goal is to have as thin and even a surface as possible. It might help to have the chicken on the rack and have excess sauce drain into a pan so that it can be reheated. After it's coated, put it back in the refrigerator and chill for around 5-10 minutes, until firm.

5. Repeat this process until the bird is covered in a smooth (or, you know, vaguely smooth) plastic-y layer of aspic béchamel (sounds appetizing, right?). Chill until completely firm. (Side note: does anyone remember those Vivienne Westwood Angolmania banana colored jelly heels with giant black hearts on the toe? For better or worse, the chicken started reminding me of those.)

6. Mix another 3 TBSP boiling water with another packet of gelatin.  Dissolve. Dip the eggplant diamonds into the gelatin mixture (I used a tweezer), coating evenly, and carefully arrange them into a harlequin pattern on the chicken.  At this point, the chicken began to look like it was sporting an argyle sweater:

7.  And finally, fully covered! A word of encouragement- it's not as difficult as you'd think, just leave yourself plenty of time.

All images created, styled, and photographed by (IN)DECOROUS TASTE. Faux malachite serving tray also painted by (IN)DECOROUS TASTE.
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