A scientific partnership dedicated to the history of fashion and collections

Entitled ‘Le Théâtre des apparences’, this project aims to offer the public a new perspective on the painting collections of the Centre des Monuments Nationaux and the Palace of Versailles by highlighting the role of clothing as a historical, social and cultural marker. The works will be complemented by the textile collections of the Galliera Museum, creating a dialogue between paintings and garments to illustrate the evolution of silhouettes, fabrics, accessories and dress codes from the 16th to the 19th century. Coming soon to the CMN website, this new experience will invite the public to discover these collections in a whole new light!

The aim is to provide the public with original perspectives for understanding the artworks, whilst also demonstrating how the study of costume serves as a valuable analytical tool for art historians. Visitors will thus be able to discover how fashion can be used to identify social status, decipher representations of power, or even refine the dating of a painting through the evolution of shapes, textiles and ornamentation.

This project brings together the complementary expertise of the four partners: the Centre des monuments nationaux and the Château de Versailles Research Centre are providing a collection of paintings; the Galliera Museum is contributing its scientific expertise and its rich textile collections; whilst the University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines is supporting the programme’s scientific development. Ultimately, this collaboration could also pave the way for a full-scale research project focusing on the history of fashion and representation.

This collaboration was presented to the public during the preview of the Festival of Art History, held on 1 June at the Galliera Museum in partnership with the National Institute of Art History. On this occasion, a round-table discussion bringing together the curators of the exhibition *18th-Century Fashion: A Fantasised Legacy*, curators and academics explored the enduring nature of 18th-century dress codes and their reinterpretations right up to contemporary fashion. The evening continued with a presentation of the research programme ‘Le Théâtre des apparences’, followed by an artistic interlude combining dance and creations by students from the Fashion Design department of the École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs.

Hosted on the Centre des monuments nationaux website, this forthcoming digital tour will offer a unique perspective on the collections, inviting everyone to take a fresh look at the works through the prism of clothing and appearance.