Street Art in Versailles

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Some people might think that Versailles is a royal city that only belongs to the upper class but in fact the city can show a different face time to time. The tourism office tries to prove it with a special visit of the Street Art work that takes place in the city of Versailles. As a matter of fact, several artists recently created some nice pieces scattered around the city. Everybody has its own vision and definition about what is the Street Art. Let me explain to you what you will be able to find here in Versailles !

What is Street Art ?


Sometimes Street Art is closely linked to graffitis and it can have a bad reputation but it is not all the time the case. Street Art is a urban art and a contemporary artistic style. Street Art includes all forms of art that you can find in the streets or in public places. Several methods are used to produce a Street Art work : graffiti, graffiti with stencil, stickers, posters, video projection, ceramics and so on.  We can mostly find these artworks on walls, sidewalks, streets, parcs or on monuments. The term “Street Art” was actually invented in order to make a difference with acts of vandalism and illegal graffitis. Even if Street Art is not always legal we truly consider it now as a Art movement and people are more and more interested in it, that is why in most of capitals and big cities you can see this art flourishing, Versailles did not make a exception !

The History of the Street Art in Versailles


Street Art was born in Italy during the Italian Renaissance, the artists worked on the light, the volumes and the perspectives. The goal was to create a 3D dimension on a flat surface. 
They also worked on the intensity of the colours and this is how Street Art was born. We can find some examples of it in the Palace of Versailles, such as trompe-l’oeil paintings that imitate marble, wood and other materials. You can find some nice examples of Street Art in the Palace of Versailles with some baroque style perspectives; you will see them on ceilings but also in the Venus salon with fake columns or fictive landscapes. 
Nowadays in Versailles there are 2 schools of decorative paintings (School Jean Sablé and school of Mural Art) with whom the town hall of Versailles made a partnership in order to decorate the city with some painted artworks between 2010 and 2015.
During autumn 2018, 25 bollards located near to the Royal Tennis Court were painted with stencil spray in order to represent some characters in costumes. We actually recognize characters from the 18th century and the French revolution. And after that several artists also came and added their touch to the Street artworks which were already there.
During this visit you will also have the opportunity to discover the Invaders and to understand their history, where they come from and to understand how they are inspired by the history of the city
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The Tourist Office offers 2 Street Art tours !

Depending on your wishes, the Versailles Tourist Office offers 2 Street Art tours. One of the visits will focus on prominent figures of the French Revolution, posts, Invaders, representations of La Fontaine's fables and poetic works of art.

The second will take you to the Bernard de Jussieu district. A little out of the way from other points of interest in the city, but I guarantee you won't be disappointed with the ride ! Indeed, the district is full of incredible works of Street Art, proposed by less than 10 artists, (Eron from Italy, Telmo Miel from the Netherlands, Waone from Ukraine, Seth from France, Jade Rivera from Peru), this summer, Aryz from Spain, Sainer from Poland, Pastel from Argentina, Mona Caron from Switzerland as well as Saddo from Romania will be coming to continue the inauguration of this open-air museum.

This project proposed by Quai 36 brings a new point of view of Versailles and offers a new cultural and artistic dynamic in the city.
We can't wait for you to discover the works all around the theme of nature in the city ! A great way to rethink town planning.

Bonus :

There is a special App called Beekup which will give you more information about every art work that you will see in the street. So if you liked the Street Art visit of Versailles which does not include all the work of the artists. You will be able on your own to find them and to understand them with the explanations of the app (the application only exists in French).

Why should you participate to this visit ?

If you are interested in all sorts of art, if you want to discover several parts of the city and to improve your skills in french history

How to book ?

You can book your visit on the website or you can book your place directly at the Tourist Office.
                           BOOK YOUR STREET ART GRANDEUR MURALE TOUR                               BOOK YOUR STREET ART TOUR

Dates

The Street Art tour takes place one Sunday per month, until the end of December (the 1st Sunday of the month) from 3 pm and lasts 1:30h. The Street Art Grandeur Murale Tour is scheduled for October 17 starting at 3 pm.

Les Artistes

Invader : he describes himself as an Unidentified Free Artist, he uses a pseudonym and hides behind a mask. He started his Invader’s project since 1998

Le Cyklop : the real name of the Cyklop is Olivier d’Hondt, he is 50 years old. He tries to create characters on bollards which makes us think of the Lego characters. The mayor of Versailles liked the work that he did in the streets of Paris and the Town Hall decided to contact him. Since December 2018 he is decorating other bollards but with a natural topic this time.

Megumi Nemo is an artist that creates artistic murals sticked on the wall, her work is mostly ephemeral and they will tend to disappear because of their fragility

School of mural art of Versailles

School Jean Sablé

Artists from Quai 36 :

Eron d'Italie, Telmo Miel from Netherlands, Waone from Ukraine, Seth from France, Jade Rivera from Peru, Aryz from Spain, Sainer from Poland, Pastel from Argentina, Mona Caron from Swiss, Saddo from Romania.

Temporary exhibitions

Espace Richaud

From September 19 to November 29, discover the exhibition "the art of trompe-l'oeil on display in the city". Coordinated by the Lambinet museum team, this exhibition will present the trompe-l'oeil in all its forms! The exhibition will be accompanied by a tour through the city to the Bernard de Jussieu district, allowing visitors to discover the various works of the city.

Entrance fee (5 €) except for people under 26 years old.
Accessible from Wednesday to Sunday from 12 am to 7 pm

Former Central Post

"Re-enchanting the city : a Quai 36 exhibition" will be available until Novembrer 1st. Let yourself be carried away by the work proposed by the Quai 36 collective which has transformed the Jussieu district in Versailles thanks to 10 Street Art artists.
Entrance fee ( 5€) except for people under 26 years old.
Accessible from Wednesday to Sunday from 12 am to 7 pm.

 
Written by Adélaïde
Published on Monday January 10, 2022 at 15:28