Bellépoque

4 Nulty St, Bridgton ME

26 May, 2022

Description

Bellepoque, shorthand for La Belle Epoque, or “the beautiful age,” describes the period of 1890 – 1914. A golden era, gilded even, in retrospect; a time of peace and prosperity between wars. It was a time of innovation, of railway barons and railroad workers, of the Parisian can-can dancers of the Moulin Rouge, haute couture, and orchids grown under glass. Philosophers examined the ego, artists expressed symbolist visions and exposed societal illness in the face of the Fin de siècle, fearing and welcoming the approaching 20th century. In his book A Nervous Splendor: Vienna 1888-1889 Frederic Morton tells the history where, in the span of only ten months, "the Western dream started to go wrong." The exhibition Bellèpoque, uses that rich and turbulent period in history as a jumping-off point to present themes of escapism, constructed realities, materials and waste, and explore the relationship between beauty, decay, opulence, loss and sometimes catastrophic change.