Following the exhibition devoted to Victor Hugo as decorator, the Maison de Victor Hugo today explores the relationships between the writer and architecture, a major source of inspiration in his literary and graphic work. His novel Notre-Dame de Paris, published in 1831, remains the most famous on the subject, both a plea for the defence of heritage and a true aesthetic manifesto.
It is also through drawing that the writer celebrates ancient monuments. From the first sketches taken from life to the studies made in the 1830s and 1840s during his travels in Belgium, in the Rhine valley or in Spain, cathedrals, ruins and castles crystallise this passion, confirmed by his poems, accounts and correspondence. Thirty years later, he collects unpublished photographs of these revisited places, gathered in the album Phébus. Combining writing and drawing, Hugo sketches the sets for his plays and produces wash drawings linked to his writings. Little by little, he moves away from the real and transforms it. His compositions open the way to the imaginary. The castle and the ruin serve graphic experimentation, mingle with the alphabet, or metamorphose into paper cut-outs. Dreams feed fantasy. Surreal compositions, chimerical temples and fantastic cities form visionary architectures, such as the exceptional Burg à la croix. Presented in the apartment on the 2nd floor, contemporary photographs taken at Hauteville House, in Guernsey, reflect the major role of architecture at the heart of the poet's intimate life.
This exhibition is produced with the exceptional participation of the Bibliothèque nationale de France.