The Birth of Department Stores at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs

Event Description

When department stores were born in the 19th-century, they became temples of modernity and consumerism. The Musée des Arts Décoratifs is hosting an exhibition on the birth of this new concept, which was launched by avant-garde entrepreneurs. Showing the evolution of Parisian commerce, the 700 items on display include posters, clothing, toys, and decorative art. To quote the press release: “Au Bon Marché, Les Grands Magasins du Louvre, Le Printemps, La Samaritaine, and Les Galeries Lafayette reveal their multiple facets through the prisms of history, politics, and society, from the Second Empire up until their consecration during the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts of 1925.”

Image credit: Les Grands Magasins Dufayel. 1895-1900. Poster, lithograph © Les Arts Décoratifs