Imagine a Chinese-style pagoda in the heart of Paris, surrounded by Haussmannian architecture. The Pagoda Paris, originally a typical townhouse, was transformed into a hub for Asian art in the Western world in the 1920s. It has played an important role in introducing Chinese art to the Western world.
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00:00This building was known as the Paris Pagoda and was transformed into an authentic looking
00:07pagoda to be a centre point for Asian art dealings in the Western world.
00:12What are the most interesting architectural features here?
00:16You have all the architectural features of a Chinese pagoda and all the elements, this
00:21window lacing for example is exactly the same lacing as it is in the Forbidden City.
00:27This is incredible!
00:28It is.
00:29It is still amazing even after a hundred years.
00:33It's almost modern I feel.
00:35So the whole building was used to showcase Chinese and Asian art.
00:41And lacquer walls or paravents were a big feature and it was unique, it had never been
00:47seen in France before.
00:49Look what I found.
00:51Wow!
00:52Does it still work?
00:53Yes, it's a direct line to the Forbidden City of course.
00:58Thilo once said, art has no frontiers.
01:02Art is travelling as a silent ambassador to spread the word about culture and civilisation.
01:09And I think that was true then and it's still true now.
01:13We speak about Chinoiserie today.
01:15You also have to understand that the European taste in the Chinese court was as important
01:21as the Chinoiserie taste in the French court.
01:28Look at this window.
01:35It really symbolises the idea of the pagoda to bring together the East and the West.
01:40We have the impression to be in China, but when you look out of the window you see the
01:45Haussmannian architecture.
01:47And the magic is one doesn't disturb the other, in fact it's complementing each other.