Skip to content
Enjoy Piedmont
  • eBook
    • Do it yourself TURIN eBook – The guide for independent travelers
    • Checkout
    • Purchase History
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Why Piedmont?
  • Videos
  • Blog
  • English
    • English
    • Italiano
Galleria Grande - Reggia di Venaria
The Reggia of Venaria, or rather, a trip to Paris between gardens and Art Nouveau

The Reggia of Venaria, or rather, a trip to Paris between gardens and Art Nouveau

Elisabetta

If you’re like me, sometimes you just want to escape from everyday life and fly to Paris. But if you can’t spare more than even a day, you’ll be happy to know that you can always find a bit of Paris in Venaria Reale. In barely half-an-hour from Turin by the Venaria Express, you will find yourself lost in the beautiful eighteenth-century, French-style gardens. A long central alley occupied by a canal with a series of cascading weirs, each 60cm lower than the previous, flows from the Hall of Diana, the fulcrum of the seventeenth-century residence, up to what was once the Temple of Diana, with the Alps in the background. Walking up to the Alti gardens in front of the Galleria Grande (Great Gallery) and looking up to the sky, you will see the towers and the sloping roofs the palace’s attics, in perfect French style. Strolling along the Royal Alley, admiring the wonders of the garden and letting your gaze get lost in the infinity of the adjacent Mandria Park, you will feel like ladies and gentlemen of the court at a royal residence in Paris.

La Reggia di Venaria - Venaria Reale
La Reggia di Venaria – Venaria Reale
The Garden - Reggia di Venaria
The Garden – Reggia di Venaria
Canal - Reggia di Venaria
Canal – Reggia di Venaria

If the ambience of eighteenth-century Paris is not enough for you, and you want to relive the evolution of the City of Light and its best period, then until the 26th January 2020, in the Sale dei Paggi (Halls of the Pages) of the Venaria Palace, there is the beautiful exhibition “Art Nouveau – the Triumph of Beauty.” Curated by the Englishwoman, Katy Spurrell, this exhibition is really a great way to completely detach from everyday life and find yourself in the Paris of the late nineteenth century. At that time, the birth of the great nation states in Europe led to a period of relative peace and impressive development. The cities grew and the pace of life was rapidly increasing. However, the industrial production of commonly used goods had taken away their taste and elegance. Thus, the lower and middle bourgeoisie, excluded from the over-expensive, high-end craft market, required products at low costs but still artistic and less ordinary than those produced industrially.

See also  Mercato Centrale Torino - Another Must-See Reason to visit Turin's "Melting Pot"

In this climate of rapid development and progress, the artists refused to look to the past and to academicism. They felt the need to create an art that was in step with the times. A new art. Or more precisely in French, “Art Nouveau.” During this period, Paris was the undisputed art capital in Europe and it was therefore inevitable that this new artistic trend, even if it first emerged in Belgium and England, would develop and reach spectacular levels in Paris and France, becoming the style par excellence of modern city life.

Through furniture, decorations, furnishing accessories, paintings and lithographs, the curator shows us the various facets of this artistic movement which was the only one to massively permeate all aspects of everyday life, starting with the applied arts. The path is divided by thematic areas, so one starts with the great protagonist of “Art Nouveau”: nature. Following the discoveries of science, the natural form was placed at the same level as the human form, as man is part of nature. And in the cities, the use of natural forms and decorations in furnishings and objects was driven by the need for the artist to create artificial oases within the urban fabric and in the homes and bring man back to nature.

Art Nouveau - Umbrellifer Suite - Louis Majorelle
Umbrellifer Suite – Louis Majorelle

Within nature and in the representation of Art Nouveau, the woman was the undisputed protagonist of this period. The liberation of the woman, which came to us from the United States through the dress reform movement – the abolition of lacing and corsets – finally allowed us to have stronger, independent women who played sports and who could become dangerous to men. And it is just like that you will see the woman portrayed in the display by an artist (male of course!): as a femme fatale, who handles acid and morphine.

Art Nouveau - Acid Thrower - Eugene Grasset
Acid Thrower – Eugene Grasset
Art Nouveau - Morphine Addict - Eugene Grasset
Morphine Addict – Eugene Grasset

And how is it possible to talk about women and Art Nouveau, and not mention Sarah Bernhardt. The next section is dedicated to the very famous and beloved French actress, where she is exhibited in a rich collection of portraits of the “divine“, made by all the leading artists of the time who dealt with her and the public representation of her image.

Art Nouveau - Sarah Bernhardt - Alphonse Mucha
Sarah Bernhardt – Alphonse Mucha
Art Nouveau - Sarah Bernhardt on stage - Georges Clairin
Sarah Bernhardt on stage – Georges Clairin

The next part of the exhibit shows the original furniture and furnishings of the period and how they were advertised. In fact, this was also the golden period of the advertising poster. These works of art, made accessible to all, were created by artists such as Toulouse-Lautrec and Mucha. But they were not original and unique pieces as they were produced in numerous copies, thanks to the new technologies used at the time in the production of colour lithographs. In this section, rich in specimens, the posters for the Salon des Cent and for the theatrical performances are very interesting, some of which betray the influences of the Japanese prints that were popular at the beginning of the century.

Art Nouveau - Poster for the Salon des Cent - Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Poster for the Salon des Cent – Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
Art Nouveau - Poster for the Salon des Cent - Alphonse Mucha
Poster for the Salon des Cent – Alphonse Mucha
Art Nouveau - The Fan and the Parasol - Eugene Grasset
The Fan and the Parasol – Eugene Grasset

The final section of our ideal journey is the return flight from Paris to Turin. In Italy, the new art movement took the name of Liberty and occurred slightly later and so is a continuation of Art Nouveau. On display is a desk and chair by Enrico Monti that were exhibited at the International Exhibition of Decorative and Modern Art held in Turin in 1902. As you can see, the line of the Italian Liberty style is cleaner, with no decorations of plants and flowers. And so, the Art Nouveau movement would end around 1905 and the design trend would continue with cleaner lines.

Italian Liberty Style - desk and chair - Enrico Monti
Italian Liberty Style – desk and chair – Enrico Monti

Our trip to Paris is over, but it’s nice to know that it’s always here, only half an hour away by bus, and we can come back as often as we want!

See also  Coffee is a pleasure, if it isn't good, what pleasure is it?

Useful Info

The Reggia of Venaria Reale

Address: Piazza della Repubblica, 4, 10078 Venaria Reale TO

Hours:
– Monday: closed (except public holidays – closed on Christmas Day)
– Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday: from 10 to 17
– Friday and Saturday: from 10 to 19 and from 19 to 23.30 with Summer Nights ticket
– Sunday and holidays: from 10 to 19.30

Ticket Fares:

Full price – 25€ (This ticket includes admission to the Reggia, the Gardens and the current exhibitions)
Art Nouveau Exhibition – 14€

Guided Tours: You can book your guided visit here.

[contentcards url=”http://www.lavenaria.it/en/exhibitions/art-nouveau”]



Follow us everywhere!

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for our video tours. You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram.


Do it yourself Turin ebook – the only travel guidebook written by a real tour guide

Do it yourself Turin travel guidebook

A complete tour to explore freely, with maps and suggestions for experiencing the city like a local, where to eat and what not to miss.

Do it yourself TURIN is your expert Turinese friend, just for you, on your smartphone!

Download your eBook here

Our most popular posts:

Aperitivo a Torino Best Aperitif Turin

Where to have the best aperitif in Turin – for a truly unique Turinese experience

By Elisabetta / April 12, 2024 / 1 Comment
Torino Piemonte Card and Abbonamento Musei Piemonte Museum Cards

Torino Piemonte Card & Abbonamento Musei Piemonte – Are they worthwhile buying?

By Adam / March 16, 2024 / 0 Comments
Ravioli ai profumi di mare - Cannavacciuolo Bistrot Torino

The Best Restaurants in Piedmont – Michelin Star Restaurants of 2020

By Adam / November 21, 2019 / 3 Comments
Via Monferrato with umbrellas from above

Via Monferrato – The Trendiest Street in Turin

By Elisabetta / July 6, 2019 / 2 Comments
Lake Viverone

Why Lake Viverone? Because it has everything!

By Elisabetta / August 10, 2019 / 0 Comments
Porta Palazzo mercato

Mercato Centrale Torino – Another Must-See Reason to visit Turin’s “Melting Pot”

By Elisabetta / April 24, 2019 / 1 Comment
The Sacra di San Michele - the most beautiful panorama just 1 hour outside of Turin 1

The Sacra di San Michele – the most beautiful panorama just 1 hour outside of Turin

By Elisabetta / September 17, 2020 / 0 Comments
Egyptian Museum - Turin

The Captivating Egyptian Museum of Turin, or why does “The road to Memphis and Thebes passes through Turin?”

By Elisabetta / April 5, 2019 / 1 Comment
Avigliana Lakes

Lakes of Avigliana: a captivating afternoon between history and nature

By Elisabetta / March 20, 2021 / 0 Comments



Art
Art, Art Nouveau, Turin, Venaria Reale

Post navigation

PREVIOUS
The Wine, the Stone and the Sabaudity – Part II
NEXT
Via Monferrato – The Trendiest Street in Turin

One thought on “The Reggia of Venaria, or rather, a trip to Paris between gardens and Art Nouveau”

  1. Pingback: Torino Piemonte Card & Abbonamento Musei Piemonte - Are they worthwhile buying? - Enjoy Piedmont

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Search

Follow us everywhere!

Turin travel guidebook

Do-it-yourself TURIN – your ultimate guide to Turin, ItalyDo it yourself Turin travel guidebook

Mailing List

Sign up for our newsletter

* indicates required
Language Preference
Website

Check out our Video Tours on YouTube!

Latest Reviews

star rating  Just spent a wonderful afternoon exploring Turin with the delightful Elisabetta. She was an excellent guide - engaging, interesting and so enthusiastic about her fantastic city. She was... read more very informative and had lots of stories to tell. Our two boys also enjoyed the walking tour....More

tripadvisor logo
GabrielleM750
October 28, 2019

Recent Posts

  • Where to have the best aperitif in Turin – for a truly unique Turinese experience
  • Torino Piemonte Card & Abbonamento Musei Piemonte – Are they worthwhile buying?
  • Val Grande: nature and trekking in the largest wilderness area of the Alps
  • The Wines of Langa – between Tradition and Innovation
  • Lakes of Avigliana: a captivating afternoon between history and nature

Categories

  • Art (14)
  • Food and Drink (16)
  • General (4)
  • History and Culture (22)
  • Nature (11)

Archives

  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • September 2020
  • July 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

© 2025   All Texts, Images & Video on this site are Copyright by Enjoy Piedmont/Elisabetta Testore/Adam R. Reardon. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorised Usage Prohibited.