French impressionism brings the myth of Paris to life in Bendigo

Paris: Impressions of Life 1880-1925 is opening Saturday, 16 March and running until Sunday 14 July.

The exhibition is a collaboration between the Bendigo Art Gallery and the Musee Carnavalet, the oldest municipal museum in Paris.

Anne-Laure Sol, exhibition curator from the Musee Carnavalet, said the Bendigo Art Gallert was chosen for its many similarities to the Paris museum.

"We had the idea of this collaboration and we found there were a lot of things in common between your collection and our collection," said Ms Sol.

"We have a lot of affinity. So it has been a pleasure."

With the exception of some dresses loaned from the National Gallery of Victoria and the National Gallery of Australia, all of the works come from the Musee Carnavalet's collection.

Some, however, are being displayed for the first time in this exhibition.

"Many of the posters, for example, and many of the street signs, have not been on display. So we had to restore them." said Ms Sol.

The Musee Carnavalet was founded in the late 19^th century to preserve arts which were falling out of style and being destroyed.

It is housed in a private mansion from the period, with Bendigo Art Gallery's modern design offering a new perspective.

"The ceilings are not that high," said Ms Sol. "Here, there's a lot of space, a lot of light. I'm seeing all these paintings in a very different way. So that's very pleasant."

The time period covered by the exhibition is known as Belle Époque, and was chosen for its cultural significance in creating the myth of Paris as it's now known.

During this time, people came from all over the world to study with Parisian masters, including Bendigo's own Agnes Goodsir.

Visitors will travel through seven pathways, exploring a different area of 19th and 20th century Paris in each space.

"Here we're showing the reality of the myth story," said Ms Sol.

"It's very moving that at the opposite end of the world, people can be as interested in the story of Paris.

The city of Bendigo has taken the opportunity to build a tourism campaign around the exhibition, following the success of Viva Bendigo in 2022.

"What I found very moving is that all the city is playing the fame of Paris," said Ms Sol.

"It's really very nice. It shows how the museum is important for the city and involved in everybody's life."