Out of the Ashes: The Return of Deyrolle

Photo by Martin d'Orgeval

In my last post, I mentioned Deyrolle, the beloved Parisian taxidermy shop. On February 1, 2008 a fire devastated much of the apartment and its collections (more here and here).

Deyrolle after the fire. Photo by Prof. Jas Mundie

Photo by Martin d'Orgeval

Photo by Mark Dantan

Photo by Martin d'Orgeval

Photo by Laurent Bochet

Photographer Laurent Bochet, a friend of Deyrolle owner Louis Albert de Broglie, captured images of the fire's aftermath. Although the space was in ruins, the scenes Bochet memorialized are breathtakingly and hauntingly beautiful. Vestiges of their former glory, the animals and remains of the shop still manage to fascinate.

Photo by Laurent Bochet

Photo by Laurent Bochet

Photo by Laurent Bochet

Photo by Laurent Bochet

Along with the text of Louis Albert de Broglie, Bochet collected his images into a book, "1000 °C," which is available here , here and here. The book was released in Europe on September 1, 2009, the same day Deyrolle reopened its doors. Today marks the US release.

Image via Deyrolle.fr

Photo by Laurent Bochet

The legions who love this Paris institution rallied behind its restoration. Deyrolle has returned to a proud state (though renovations continue in some parts of the building), and donations have helped the shop rebuild its collections.

Deyrolle before the Fire. Photo by Mark Danton, via vanityfair.com

Deyrolle before the fire. Image via deerwomen.com

Deyrolle Today? Image via parisbao.com

Through December 1, 2009 Deyrolle has Bochet's photographs on exhibit in the shop. Great interviews here and here delve further into the photographer's experience with this project. As Bochet himself mentioned, the animals destroyed in the Deyrolle fire died two deaths in a way. Fortunately, they will live on through this amazing exhibit and book.

Laurent Bochet. Image via Parisbao.com

Glamorous & Ghoulish

Last year when I was in Paris, I found the most wonderful ring at Colette. It was a beautiful little snail conjured of shell and gold and, as I discovered, made by Delfina Delettrez. Ms. Delettrez, all of 21 years old, has already launched her own jewelry business. Her luxurious pieces embody a lovely yet simultaneously humorous and macabre sensibility.

Photo by Dominique Maitre. Image via WWD.com

Photo by Dominique Maitre. Image via WWD.com

Photo by Dominique Maitre. Image via WWD.com

Delfina Delettrez in her jewelry.

Glamour and jewelry-making course through Delettrez's veins. Not only is she a member of the Fendi family, but Delfina learned her craft from her father, Bernard Delettrez, a famous French jeweler. On top of all that, she has the support of her stylish mother Silvia Fendi as well as the inimitable Karl Lagerfeld, who designed her fabulous crescent moon and stars logo(originally created for her father 30 years before).

Delfina Delettrez in her jewelry.

Delfina Delettrez Boutique, 67 Via del Governo Vecchio, Rome, Italy.

Delettrez has a jewel box boutique in Rome, just steps from the Piazza Navona, where she sells her line. In a nod to the space's former incarnation as a pharmacy, Delfina added hints of absinthe and penicillin green to the decor.

Photo by Dominique Maitre. Image via WWD.com

To showcase her fourth collection, "Garden of Delight," Delettrez collaborated with the storied Parisian shop Deyrolle (which, happily, has rebounded from last year's devastating fire). Deyrolle's taxidermy animals were adorned in Delettrez's exquisite and intricately crafted pieces, and they provided a perfect backdrop for the recurring animal motif. Much of Delettrez's jewelry also speaks to the dichotomy between life and death.

Image via Polyvore.com.

Image via Couturelab.com

"Delfinasia," a film written and directed by Delettrez's best friend Asia Argento, captures the odyssey of Delfina's pregnancy, as well as the origins of her jewelry line. Delettrez exorcised her fears of death and insects by fashioning beautiful jewels in their likeness. And so was born the jewelry of Delfina Delettrez and my wonderful little snail ring...

Unless otherwise note, all images by Delfina Delettrez.

An Ode to John Lautner

Calling all John Lautner fans! Tonight, as part of its After Hours program, the Orange County Museum of Art will screen "Infinite Space: The Architecture of John Lautner." The film "traces the lifelong quest of visionary genius John Lautner to create 'architecture that has no beginning and no end'... Original archive drawings and photographs are layered with artistic photography of seminal buildings, bringing to life Lautner's quest to create timeless space." The screening starts at 8pm and is free with museum admission.

John Lautner at Taliesen. Image via "John Lautner."

John Lautner was a 20th Century American architect whose work is best defined by a connection to nature and an original imagination. He was an apprentice to Frank Lloyd Wright, and though his name is not as well known, he is one of the few Wright underlings who truly made a legacy of his own.

John Lautner, Architect. Image by Johnlautner.org.

After leaving Frank Lloyd Wright, John Lautner found himself in Los Angeles, where he practiced for some fifty-five years. His work defies definition: all of his creations were incredibly inventive, and no two were ever the same. I could go on and on about this architectural genius, but instead I will leave you with some images of his work (you may recognize a few!):

Chemosphere/ Malin Residence, Los Angeles. Image via you-are-here.com.

Sheats/Goldstein Residence, Los Angeles.

Segal House, Malibu. Image via moderndesigninterior.com.

Stevens Residence, Malibu. Image by New York Times.

Elrod House, Palm Springs. Image by Architectural Digest.

Garcia Residence, Los Angeles. Image via Askergren.com.

If anyone knows source of unattributed image, please let me know!

Want that!

... as my niece would say. Robert Polidori is an incredible photographer who has done a number of photographic series: Versailles, New Orleans, Chernobyl and Havana among them. Featured here are some of the gorgeous photographs Polidori took of Versailles.

Cabinet Interieur de Madame Adelaide # 2, Chateau de Versailles 1986

Salle d’Afrique, Chateau de Versailles, 1985

Questel Staircase, Chateau de Versailles, 1985

Versailles, Salles XVIIIeme, Detail of portrait of Louis XIV, by Henri Testelin, 2007

Salle de Bain, Marie-Antoinette, R.D.C. Cord Central, Versailles

Antichambre du Capitaine des Gardes #1, Chateau de Versailles, 1985

Versailles, Salles d’Afrique, Portrait of Louis XVI by Callet #2, 2007

Salle d'Afrique, Versailles

Salles XVIIIème Louis XIV, Roi de France by René Tallain

Attique du Midi, Détail de la porte d'entrée

The Smalah Room, Versailles, 1984

The First Antichambre of Madame Victoire, Versailles

In the foreground the portrait of Francoise-Marie de Bourbon

Versailles, Appartement of Madame Adelaide, Painting of Marie-Clotilde-Xaviere De France, by Francois Hubert Drouais, 2007

Maybe someday I can add a Polidori to my collection. Until then, I will enjoy his photographs in the myriad books he has published. His breathtaking work can also be found here, here, here and here.