This museum is a must for all the Romantic souls of the world!
This tiny museum, unique in Paris if not the world, is a microcosm of the Romantic movement that swept Europe in the early 1800s. Inspired by a love of nature and an emerging sense of individuality, writers such as Byron, Shelley, Walter Scott & Goethe began writing Romantic novels that, in turn, inspired numerous artists. Painters, sculptors, composers, and singers began creating a new form of art, one that showed human emotions and sensitivity.
The Museum of Romantic Life is situated in a private mansion built in 1830 for one of these artists, a Dutch painter named Ary Scheffer. His circle of friends included Chopin, Lizst, Rossini, George Sand, Dickens, Turgenev, and Delacroix, to name a few. These artists gathered in Scheffer's mansion to exchange ideas, share their work and relax.
The museum displays Sheffer's work – his paintings, sculptures, and other objects. Two leading figures of the day are highlighted – George Sand, the author; and Ernest Renan, related to Scheffer by marriage. The entire ground floor serves as a homage to Sand, the most popular author of her day in both France and England. A pioneer in women's rights and defender of the working class, she broke ground as a writer and figurehead of the Romantic movement.
Explore the Cradle of Romance with this tour!
