Le Moulin Rouge

Carefree, Lightness and Joy of Life ... Here are three words that could best describe this unique period in the History of France. A moment of respite between two wars, a period of transition between two centuries, where social barriers fade, where industrial progress gives everyone hope for a better life, in a particularly rich cultural abundance and where one has a lot of fun.

The burghers are slumming, the popular culture is honored in a joyous disorder full of gaiety and vitality. In this context conducive to artistic creation, literary circles are made and unmade over the course of meetings while painters and illustrators are particularly inspired by this cheerful atmosphere, sometimes outrageous but full of fantasy, breaking the rigidity of classicism in force.

Japonisme *, this oriental-inspired movement that uses influences of Japanese style in French art, is at its peak. Toulouse-Lautrec and his famous Japanese prints, is the most brilliant disciple. The decor is in place for the appearance of the first cabarets including the Moulin Rouge in 1889.