Museum of Decorative Arts – Paris: Shocking! The Surrealist Worlds of Elsa Schiaparelli

From July 6, 2022 to January 22, 2023, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs is honoring the bold and inspiring work of Elsa Schiaparelli, an Italian designer whose inspiration was nourished by a privileged relationship with artists from the Parisian avant-garde of the 1920s and 1930s. Nearly 20 years after the retrospective dedicated to him in 2004, the museum wanted to revisit his work in order to rediscover to the public his innovative fantasy, his taste for the show and his artistic modernity.

Shocking! The Surrealist Worlds of Elsa Schiaparelli, brings together 520 works including 272 costumes and fashion accessories, compared with paintings, sculptures, jewelry, perfume flacons, ceramics, posters, and photographs signed by the greatest names of the time, from Man Ray to Salvador Dalí, from Jean Cocteau to Meret Oppenheim or Elsa Triolet. This major retrospective also highlights the legacy of the Schiaparelli style with silhouettes interpreted by famous couturiers paying tribute to it: Yves Saint Laurent, Azzedine Alaïa, John Galliano, Christian Lacroix, Daniel Roseberry, artistic director of Schiaparelli since 2019, interprets the legacy of Elsa Schiaparelli. The exhibition is presented in the fashion galleries Christine & Stephen A. Schwarzman in a poetic and immersive scenography entrusted to Nathalie Crinière.

Mata Salamat’s Deep Friendship

After being elected Miss Lyon in 1929, then Miss France in Paris in 1930, beauty queen and a representatieve of France, Yvette Labrousse traveled to many countries around the world. She found herself particulary taken by Egypt and, in the late thirdies she moved to Egypt. There Yvette Labrousse met her future husband, the Sultan Aga Khan III, 48th Imam of the Nizari Shia Ismaili community, and they fell in love at first sight and married on 9 October 1944 in Switzerland. Then she took the name of Om Habibeh (Little Mother of the Beloved) and became Begum, fully Begum Om Habibeh Aga Khan.

They settled in the Avenue Victoria villa ‘Yakymour‘ at Le Cannet, in the hills above Cannes. Her Higness La Bégum, who was nterested in the arts including classical music, opera and ballet, used to assemble the members of the Cannes film festival jury, and many national and international artists and movie stars. Some of them became friends for live. Like Kees van Dongen, Jean Cocteau, Sophia Loren, Maurice Chevalier, Gina Lollobrigida and Marlene Dietrich

Begum Om Habibeh Aga Khan and painter Kees van Dongen. She wasn’t only Kees van Dongen’s muse, but with her husband’s encouragement, she also developed an active interest in painting and sculpture. Kees van Dongen made several portraits of Begum Om Habibeh and her husband.

Begum Om Habibeh Aga Khan had a big heart for everybody. Also for people outside the Shia Ismaili community. She was dearly loved by her people because of her generosity to the poor, childern, women and the elderly, and, by her own husband as well. No matter what kind of religion, man or women, or even sexual oriantation, she was véry openminded and loyal. Yakymour and Nour el-Salam her home in Egypt, were both an open house.

Her Highness The Begum Om Habibeh Aga Khan and  Jean Cocteau take part in la Bataille des Fleurs at la Promenade de la Croisette in Cannes on May 3, 1954. Her Highness The Begum Om Habibeh had a special relation with Jean Cocteau and his partner Jean Marais. They visit eachother often, and had a special and deep frienship.

Her Highness The Begum Om Habibeh Aga Khan and  Jean Cocteau take part in la Bataille des Fleurs at la Promenade de la Croisette in Cannes on May 3, 1954.

Marlene Dietrich, Jean Cocteau and Her Highness The Begum Aga Khan III attend the dress rehearsal of Gilbert Bécaud’s ‘L’Opéra d’Aran’ at le Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris on October 26, 1962 (Click photo to enlarge).

Marlene Dietrich, Jean Cocteau and The Begum Aga Khan enjoying Gilbert Bécaud’s ‘L’Opéra d’Aran

Gilbert Becaud, the most Sung french artist in the world and has a sense of the verb and the incomparable melody. Essential figure of the variety at the turn of the 1960s, his titles ‘Age tendre et tête de bois’ and ‘Salut les copains’ are borrowed by the most iconic TV shows for youth and his most famous song, ‘Et maintenant ’, just published (1961).

Gilbert Bécaud (Click photo to enlarge)

Gilbert Bécaud then at the height of his fame, began at cross-purposes of evolution that was taking his artistic career, the crazy bet to compose an opera that might combine a lyrical drama talents of popular melodist. Before becoming ‘Mr. 100.000 volt’, Bécaud had received classical training at the conservatoire de Nice and began his career at many film scores, notably for Marcel Carné. This enigmatic work, whose booklet is signed Pierre Delanoë, Jacques Emmanuel and Louis Amade, brought together all artistic Paris and many friends, like Marlene Dietrich, Jean Cocteau and Her Highness The Begum Aga Khan III, during his performance at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in 1962.

Marlene Dietrich and Her Highness The Begum Aga Khan III at the dress rehearsal of Gilbert Bécaud’s ‘L’Opéra d’Aran’ at le Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris on October 26, 1962 (Click photo to enlarge).

Marlene Dietrich, Jean Cocteau and Her Highness The Begum Aga Khan III attend the dress rehearsal of Gilbert Bécaud’s ‘L’Opéra d’Aran’ at le Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris on October 26, 1962 (Click photo to enlarge).

Marlene Dietrich, Gilbert Bécaud, Jean Cocteau and Margarethe Wallmann attend the dress rehearsal of Gilbert Bécaud’s ‘L’Opéra d’Aran’ at le Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris on October 26, 1962 (Click photo to enlarge).

An opera which then toured around the world for more than 30 years. Directed by Laurent Balandras and Olivier Julien in agreement with Gilbert Bécaud succession,

Gilbert Bécaud ‘L’Opéra d’Aran (Click photo to enlarge).

Now availble, offers a restored version of the Opera with for the first time in the outcome documents of unpublished tapes from the personal archives of the artist.

by Jean Amr