Last weekend the 'Crafted: makers of the exceptional' days were held all over Europe. There were several venues in Versailles but VDP lacked time to visit more than one. Isabelle Blivet of Atelier Alla Greca
is restoring a XVIIth century register of births, marriages and deaths. The whole point of the event is to
be able to watch and learn how it's done and it was fascinating.
Isabelle, who has been commissionned by the Elysée palace -the official residence of the President of France- or Musée du Quai Branly, also specialises in bookbinding, using antique techniques from all over the world, such as leather and wood books made by the Copts. You have seen the darling seal dog before: it was here, three years ago!
Le weekend dernier se tenaient les Journées Européennes des Métiers d'Art. Il y avait plusieurs lieux à visiter à Versailles mais VDP n'a eu le temps de se rendre qu'à l'un d'entre eux. Isabelle Blivet de l'Atelier Alla Greca restaure ici un registre d'état-civil du XVIIè siècle et travaille notamment pour le palais de l'Elysée et le musée du Quai Branly. Tout l'intérêt de ces journées réside dans la possibilité non seulement de regarder mais de se faire expliquer les techniques utilisées, c'était fascinant. Isabelle est également spécialisée dans la reliure ancienne, voire très ancienne, copte par exemple. Vous avez déjà vu l'adorable phoque labrador en 2009, c'était ici !
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All this was happening at Art de la Feuille d'Or (art of the gold leaf) in the antiques district, more about it tomorrow!
Tout ceci se passait à l'Art de la Feuille d'Or dans le quartier de la Geôle (des antiquaires), la suite demain !
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Very interesting, I work in an archives so I get into old things like that.
ReplyDeleteOh, very interesting indeed -- fascinating, as a matter of fact. Of course, I love the dog -- in both pictures! Thanks as always for sharing, Ciel, hope your week is off to a great start! Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteNice seal. ;-)
ReplyDeleteWhat a place to work in. Everything I've heard about conserving art and artifacts, it's complex work.
ReplyDeleteThe dog is adorable!
What an intriguing occupation, though I am sure it is tedious.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Michelle. Love that cute dog.
ReplyDeleteI have the greatest admiration for the people who do this work. They bring the physical essence of remote times to our 21st Century senses. Beautifully illustrated.
ReplyDeletePassionnant, passionnant et si necessaire.
ReplyDeleteNice set of photos. I'm glad there are people who do this valuable work.
ReplyDeletede l'or partout
ReplyDeleteThat must have been an interesting visit. We went to one of the local ateliers here (a pottery)... it was an expensive trip... but worth it.
ReplyDeletehow neat...and then i saw that dog...love him!
ReplyDeleteFor sure I would enjoy learning about how old books are restored. It sounds fascinating!
ReplyDeleteAn amazing line of work, I think there is no lack of book to restore. By the way, I am quite fed with my much less precious ones...
ReplyDeleteSuch restoration must take infinite skill and infinite patience. I admire greatly those capable of doing it; it is a worthwhile endeavor. The dog...oh, that dog, looks so much like our Haley!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a fascinating event where you could learn some interesting techniques. It made me think of when I was in Italy two years ago and I entered a church in Rome and saw a woman way up high on scaffolding doing restoration work on the ceiling. It was interesting to watch how slowly and carefully she worked.
ReplyDeleteLove that cute dog.
Let's hope the art of book binding never fades Ciel, so many wonderful old volumes that require love and attention. Seal dog.. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm happy someone is keeping this art form alive. That golden retriever has such loving eyes.
ReplyDeleteTolle Fotos, Ciel, gut, dass es noch Leute gibt, welche diese alten Traditionen und dieses schöne Handwerk weiterführen.
ReplyDeleteI worry that there will be no books to restore in the future now that e-books are taking over! Love the seal/dog.
ReplyDeleteMy dad had learnt how to apply gold-leaf. it is a pain-staking job but the end result is beautiful. I would love to learn how to restore books.
ReplyDeleteHard work, but very satisfying, I'm sure!
ReplyDeleteAren't you lucky to see this work being done! I envy you.
ReplyDeleteWow -- fascinating. I can't imagine the time and attention to detail required to restore those books. Hope all's well!
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