Nov 17, 2007 – Feb 17, 2008
Tuesdays–Sundays (9:30am–5:15pm)
Celebrity retreats, situated far from the gossip-hungry public, are anything but a new phenomenon. Marie-Antoinette's Petit Trianon at Versailles was just such a pied-à-terre — tantamount to a private Hamptons for the young queen and her very exclusive guest list. Designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel in the 1760s, the château is a simple, sophisticated affair, and comparatively sober next to the decadent, arabesque remnants associated with Louis XVI's reign. The Legion of Honor's exhibition is a gestalt of the Petit Trianon's interior and exterior, displaying the estate's myriad furnishings, sculptures, paintings, and prints. It's a lavish collection that affords a keen look into royal life, shortly before it descended into a bloody revolution.
– Isaac Amala