Fashion: I said big monsieur!

"I hear nothing but balls and high heads-so enormous that nobody can sit upright in their coaches, but stoop forward as if they had got the children's collick."

Mrs. Delany, 1775.  Autobiography And Correspondence Of Mary Granville - Vol 1, Vol 2, Vol 3.

Exhibition: Tyranny of Beauty

Marie Antoinette is "the height of sophistication," to Jean-Charles de Castelbajac who spoke about his recent exhibition to the Straits Times.  In Castelbajac's current exhibition: Tyranny of Beauty he aims to

"disembody Marie-Antoinette and turn her into a 21st century woman."

Heather recently posted on the show and all the reasons you may want to check it out!  I want to share a work from the show that you may be interested in....

This particular work of art features three busts of Marie Antoinette.  The question he asked:

What would a plastic surgeon recommend for Marie Antoinette today?

Castelbajac has created three different designs, if you will, each from a different cultural point of view: French, American and Russian.

The French makeover keeps the long forehead, but reduces the size of her lips, while keeping a very similar nose.  The American prescription minimizes the nose and lifts the eyes, while the Russian look features enhanced cheekbones and jawline with a petite nose.

 

 (1 French, 2 American, 3 Russian)

What do you think of his creations?  Would Marie Antoinette go for any of these looks?  Will you be checking out the exhibition Tyranny of Beauty?

A day in the life: Duchesse de Choiseul

"The Duchess has only two hours' time to herself, and these two hours are devoted to her toilet and her letters; the calculation is a simple one,- she gets up at eleven; breakfasts at noon, and this is followed by conversation, which lasts three or four hours; dinner comes at six, after which there is play and the reading of the memoirs of Mme. de Maintenon...the company remains together until two o'clock in the morning."

Taine, Hippolyte A. The Ancient Regime: The Origins of Contemporary France, Volume 1. Gloucester, Massachusetts: Echo Library, 2006.