The duk of Aumale and Chantilly. Photographs from the 19th Century
From October 2, 2022
to February 26, 2023
Musée Condé, Château de Chantilly
Route Pavée – 60500 Chantilly
The cabinet of drawings from the Condé Museum, Château de Chantilly, invites us to discover the important collection of photographs of the Duke of Aumale, heir to the estate. From 1875, hi emerging interest in photography led him to build up an important collection of photographs of Chantilly before and after its reconstruction.
As the heir of the Montmorency and Condé families, Henri d’Orléans, Duke of Aumale (1822-1897) inherited the domaine de Chantilly when he was eight years old. Like Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, the Duke of Aumale took an interest in photography when it was introduced in 1839, and as early as 1848 he posed for the best photographers of the day, including his fellow student and friend Viscount Vigier.
Before having his château de Chantilly, which had been mutilated since the Revolution, rebuilt by the architect Daumet in 1875, he commissioned photographic coverage of the site from Claudius Couton, a photographer from the Auvergne region.
After the reconstruction, in 1885 he asked Alphonse Chalot, a native of Chantilly, to take photographs of the château and the grounds. His interest in photography as it was emerging led him to build up a substantial collection of photographs of Chantilly before and after it was reconstructed.
© RMN-Grand Palais -Domaine de Chantilly-Michel Urtado