Home Furnishings from the Museum
/I am (still) in the midst of furnishing my new Montréal apartment. I have spent hours searching for fun and functional furniture and decorations to make this nest feel like home.
After spending a recent morning assembling furniture, I decided to treat myself with a visit to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Funnily enough, my Ikea-addled brain could only see potential decorations for my bare apartment walls. I decided to go with it. I wandered the Modern Art galleries, deciding which paintings would go in which rooms of an imaginary ideal apartment.
The Living Room: Woman on a Sofa
Kees van Dongen, Before 1920
This painting is so luxurious and glamorous- the perfect backdrop to entertaining in a living room. Yet the subject is reclined, which makes this artwork also appropriate for sunny afternoons spent sprawled on a chaise lounge with a novel and a jazzy album on the record player.
The Office: Bend in a Road in Provence
Paul Cézanne, About 1866 or later
This painitng feels so stately and solid. I would love to hang it up next to my writing desk, so it could look over me as I wrote in a leather journal or caught up on my handwritten correspondence. This is Cézanne's first large landscape; he was still an unknown artist when he painted it. This artwork is thus a good reminder to try new things and to be brave in one's endeavors- the perfect message for a home office.
The Dining Room: Seated Woman, Back Turned to the Open Window
Henri Matisse, About 1922
This painting transports me; it's a feast of textures, colors, and shapes. I would hope for these same transcendental powers for the meals served in my dining room.
The Kitchen: Parakeet
Kees van Dongen, About 1910
I've always dreamed of a kitchen outfitted with blue and white Delft tiles. This painting would go nicely in this dream kitchen, and the parakeet would be a friendly presence during meal preparations.
The Bar: Moonrise at Auvers or Return of the Flock
Charles François Daubigny, 1877
This painting of a moonrise is truly a showstopper, with its intricate textures and surprisingly vibrant colors. Due to the subject matter, I originally thought this would be an ideal candidate for the bedroom. But there is an edge to it. That moon is simply too exiting- I wouldn't be able to sleep! The energy emanating from the landscape would be perfect for a hidden bar room, full of whiskeys and mezcals.
The Bedroom: The By Road at the Roches-Courtaut Woods - Indian Summer
Alfred Sisley, 1881
This painting of a mild day in November is so calming. The colors and the calligraphic lines of the trees would be a welcome way to start the morning and to meditate on the new day.
The Dressing Room: Peonies
Henri Fantin-Latour, 1876
These elegantly adorned flowers would be the perfect accompaniment to a wooden dressing table, covered with silver hairbrushes and glass bottles of perfume. The simplicity and wild colors would be an inspiration for getting dressed in the morning.
This is an installment of this month's creativity theme of HOME. If you missed it, check out a description of the project here!
Address: 1380 rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montréal ∣ Métro: Station Peel or Station Guy-Concordia (Green Line) ∣ Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 5pm, major exhibition open until 9pm on Wednesday
