Prince Sixte Henri Tries to Stop Japanese Pop Art Exposition at Versailles

Prince Sixte Henri of Bourbon-Parma (uncle of the Duke of Parma) and a palace of Versailles defence group are trying to start a law suit to stop the exhibition of the works of Japanese artist Takashi Murakami.

Twenty two works of neo-pop-art artist Murakami are exhibited in the palace of Versailles and its gardens from September 14th to December 12th 2010. Murakami is regarded as a founder of the ‘super flat’ style. That is an art movement characterized by large colorful surfaces and figures that seem inspired on characters from manga comic books.

Prince Sixte Henri however can not appreciate the exhibition in the palace once built by one of his anscestors, king Louis XIV. According to AFP, the prince claims that: ‘By exhibiting at Versailles, artists benefit from an added value. We’re not against the modernity of art but against a way of thinking that denatures and does French culture no good’.

AFP also reports that Arnaud Upinsky, president of the Versailles Defence Coordination, said of the show that opened September 14:

“It’s about translating into judicial terms the debate and opposition that have been raised by exposing Murakami works,”

Last year the French artist Fransman Xavier Veilhan had an exhibition of his works at Versailles, while in 2008 the palace invited Jeff Koons to show some of his works. In 2008 another member of the Bourbon-Parma family, prince Charles-Emmanuel of Bourbon-Parma, already publically complained about the Koons exhibition in the palace of his anscestors.

Click here to go to the TRF thread on Versailles Palace and click here to visit the TRF thread on the Bourbon-Parma family.

Filed under France, Italy
Tagged Exhibition, House of Bourbon, House of Bourbon-Parma, Palace of Versailles, Prince Sixte Henri of Bourbon-Parma.

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