Château Borély relives fabulous high-society gatherings when couture packed out the stands
The passion for horse racing swept through England before conquering France at a gallop. Napoleon III and the Empress Eugénie opened Longchamp in 1857 and the Borély course opened on 4 November 1860, at the initiative of the Société des Courses de Marseille. But the horses and jockeys were not the only stars of the show. Charles Frédéric Worth had founded his couture house in 1858 and instantly chose the racecourse for his fashion shows. Jeanne Paquin attended the Grand Prix surrounded by her models. The young Gabrielle Chanel, Paul Poiret and Jean Patou followed after. As with the big Paris courses, Borély race meetings became must-go events for high society and strategic occasions for top couturiers to hold their fashion shows. The exhibition, in among the Château Borély’s permanent museum collections, comprises some 40 couture models from the Fondation Alexandre Vassiliev along with paintings, engravings and photos, and screenings of archive films in the Château courtyard after dark. Accessories have always been crucial to racecourse elegance, and not only for women, so the show includes gloves, canes and cravats as well as hats, silk scarves and clutch bags.
Du 25 juin au 12 octobre 2014
Musée des Arts décoratifs, de la faïence et de la mode,
134, avenue Clot Bey,
Château Borély,
Parc Borély, Marseille, 8e.
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