Beauty, Voluptuousness, AND Morality!

I am completely blown away by a show on right now at Musee D'Orsay, which will continue until mid-January. I've already been twice, and plan to go again at least two times. (As someone under 26, I get into the museum for free!). Its called, Beauté, Volupté, et Morale dans l'Angleterre de Oscar Wilde, or Beauty, Voluptuousness, and Morality in the England of Oscar Wilde. Now, just from the title this is right up my alley. My undergraduate thesis was in part devoted to "The Picture of Dorian Gray". The show is an examination of the Aesthetic Movement in England and the quest for a new form of beauty, altogether different from the standards imposed by the Royal Academy. So, what this means is a lot of Pre-Raphaelite and Art Nouveau. Again, totally my deal. In college I had a poster of Waterhouse's The Lady of Shallot gracing my walls for all four years. This show is in partnership with the Victoria and Albert museum, which is wonderful, as it showcases a lot of artwork never seen outside of England. There is ample representation of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Fredrick Leighton, William Morris, and others whose names escape me. It is utterly gorgeous. It has so many sensual, dreamy artworks, and not just painting. There is a lot of decorative art represented as well, for example, furniture. Perhaps the greatest treat for me is that there is some clothing and jewelry on display as well. This show produced a very strong emotional reaction in me, as assembled together were so many paintings and objects that I find innately beautiful and breathtaking. I cannot recommend it enough! The Musee D'Orsay has banned photography, so I can't share photos of the actual show, but I can share the postcards that I have arranged into a tableau on my wall.