The emergence of department stores. Fashion, design, toys and advertisements, 1852-1925

Admire the Christmas window displays at La Samaritaine, test the latest creation from your favourite perfumer at Galeries Lafayette, or spend a few hours in the changing rooms to find the wedding dress of your dreams… Besides being great places to shop, the department stores offer a whole cultural experience. This is what you’ll find out at the Decorative Arts Museum and the Architecture & Heritage Centre. A major 2-part exhibition, hosted at 2 different venues, retraces the history of the department stores, from their emergence to the present day, inviting us to reflect on the impact these institutions have had on our society. Your window shopping sprees are about to enter a new dimension.

Part 1: the Decorative Arts Museum

From 10 April to 13 October 2024, the Decorative Arts Museum looks at the emergence of a new type of shop, the department store, a symbol of the Second Empire and the industrial revolution. The exhibition retraces their epic story, starting in 1852 with the opening of Le Bon Marché, through to the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts, held in 1925. The fascinating collection of advertisements, toys, fashion items and decorative art objects tell the story behind these historic names. Department stores have not only revolutionised the world of retail, they have also accompanied the rise of the middle classes. At the same time, in the fields of culture and advertising, they have contributed to the very popular image of the Parisian woman.

Part 2: The Architecture & Heritage Centre

From 16 October, your exploration continues at the Architecture & Heritage Centre. This time the horizon is broadened, with a retrospective spanning the period from 1852 to today, and a study of the department stores of Europe from an architectural angle. Seeking a balance between aesthetic achievement and practicality, department stores have changed the face of cities, reflecting the urban and commercial transformations operating in our society. The exhibition is organised in 3 sections - the golden age, the mass consumer society era, and resurgence - to show how the department stores have reinvented themselves in various ways, with the interwar period, the supermarkets, and the economic crises. It also explains the new challenges faced by these historic stores with the development of e-commerce and globalisation. A fascinating display of more than 300 items from the department stores’ previously unseen collections.

Cultural getaway or artistic exploration? The exhibitions of the Paris Region have some wonderful surprises in store.