Bendigo Art Gallery unveils Paris themed international exhibition

The historic streets of Paris will be brought to life for the Bendigo Art Gallery's next international exhibition, Paris: Impressions of Life 1880-1925.

The exhibition, set to open on March 16, 2024, will bring more than 170 works of art and objects from the historic Musée Carnavalet in Paris.

It will feature seven themed pathways with street signs from Paris, historic couture and decorative arts as well as work by artists Jean Béraud, Maurice Utrillo and Paul Signac, and graphic prints once featured at the Moulin Rouge by Toulouse-Lautrec.

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Bendigo Art Gallery director Jessica Bridgfoot said the exhibition was a celebration of everything the gallery had become known for, including art, design, celebrity and fashion.

"The exhibition involves beautiful impressionist paintings from the turn of the 20th century... and beautiful posters that celebrate that time with the Moulin Rouge that we all know and love," she said.

"We've also been fortunate to be able to bring in some fashion to the exhibition, so we think the exhibition provides an incredible social history and glimpse into what Paris was like at that time."

Ms Bridgfoot said a key highlight of the exhibition would be "the passage through the entertainment and nightlife of Paris".

"There's a beautiful big focus on the sort of reverie and wonderment of the Moulin Rouge with some artists that we all know and love, like Toulouse-Lautrec, and an incredible array of hand colored posters from that period," she said.

Ms Bridgfoot said she hoped to see the Bendigo community embrace the exhibition, similar to the festival which ran alongside the Elvis: Direct from Graceland exhibition.

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Member for Bendigo West Maree Edwards was at the gallery to help announce the exhibition, which was supported by state government funding.

"I think the important thing to remember is the investment and the return on that investment to the Bendigo community," she said.

"Over 665,000 visitors since the start of that partnership and over 108 million delivered to the Bendigo economy; the return on the investment is very evident, and we are very keen to continue that partnership, to see the delivery of more blockbuster exhibitions to Bendigo, because we know how successful they are.

Ms Edwards said the state government would support the gallery's international collections program over the next three years.

"We also know how much they are embraced by the Bendigo community and the traders get behind them, the community get behind them, and this one will be no different," she said.

Ms Edwards said she hoped Bendigo would embrace "everything Paris" when the exhibition opens in March 2024.

Paris: Impressions of Life 1880-1925 was curated by Musée Carnavalet's director Valerie Guillaume and curator Anne-Laure Sol, assisted by Bendigo Art Gallery's curatorial manager Lauren Ellis and curator Clare Needham.

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