A Saturday at Drouot: A Snapshot of Graphic Arts

What if Saturday became the day you stepped through Drouot’s doors to enjoy an exceptional cultural experience, meeting the people who bring our world to life? This weekend, Drouot turns its lens on the graphic arts! From drawing to analogue photography, the auction house’s salerooms tell stories through images, with exhibitions of historic and contemporary photography, press cartoons, paintings and traditional drawings. An afternoon sale of photographs signed by Matthieu Ricard will also be a highlight. Come and capture the magic of the auction world in a moment of inspiration.

Drouot also welcomes Matthieu Blazy, Artistic Director of Chanel, invited by M Le Monde to curate a highly personal exhibition.

- Fashion & Collectables, Jewellery, Silver, Design, Street Art and 20th-Century Art
Room 1 – LEMON AUCTION
Sale on 17 November

Modern and Contemporary Photography
Room 2 – YANN LE MOUËL
Sale on 17 November

Jewellery & Silver
Room 3 – L’HUILLIER
Sale on 17 November

Drawings, Paintings & Sculptures
Room 4 – Daguerre
Sale on 17 November

Marshal Oudinot: The Laurels of Glory
Room 5 – AUCTION ART
Sale on 17 November

Fabrics, Antique Costume and Textiles from Around the World
Room 6 – COUTAU-BÉGARIE
Sale on 17 November

Photographs by Matthieu Ricard
Room 7 – NOUVELLE ÉTUDE
Sale on 14 November

An Exhibition Curated by Matthieu Blazy, Artistic Director of CHANEL
As part of the M LE MONDE Festival
Room 9

Natural History
Room 10 – MILLON
Sale on 18 November

The Art of Living – Fashion, Jewellery, Watches & Leather Goods
Room 11 – MIRABILI
Sale on 17 November

Humorous Drawings
Room 12 – ART VALOREM
Sale on 17 November

20th-Century Art
Room 15 – TESSIER-SARROU
Sale on 17 November

To mark the 15th anniversary of M LE MONDE, Drouot is partnering with the magazine as part of its festival, an event celebrating creativity, culture and the personalities shaping our times.

Matthieu Blazy, Artistic Director of CHANEL, is the guest personality selected by M Le Monde to take centre stage at Hôtel Drouot. Through a selection of artworks and art objects specially chosen by him, Matthieu Blazy shares his vision of the auction world and of the auction house, which he has been visiting since childhood, offering a glimpse into his sources of inspiration.

Through a collection of 380 photographs, auction house Yann Le Mouël presents a journey through the history of photography, from the 19th century to contemporary practice. The works brought together explore a wide range of themes – ethnography, travel, fashion and portraiture – revealing visual connections, echoes and dialogues between images. Selected for their distinctive character and aesthetic qualities, they form a compelling ensemble that invites visitors to explore photography in all its forms, through a decidedly contemporary lens.
In Room 5, Auction Art & Associés presents the splendours of the First French Empire through an exceptional collection of personal and historical objects belonging to Marshal Oudinot, nicknamed ‘the Intrepid’ by Bonaparte, and his wife Eugénie. Preserved by the family since their creation and passed down through generations, presentation weapons, Imperial jewellery, decorations and ceremonial dress bear witness to the couple’s prestige and their connections with the leading figures of their time.
 

At the heart of this collection, two presentation swords still bear the full splendour of the distinctions awarded in recognition of the Marshal’s career. The first is estimated at €120,000–150,000, the second at €400,000–500,000. Equally impressive is a demi-parure of emeralds and diamonds which, according to family tradition, was given by Napoleon to Eugénie on the occasion of her wedding (estimate: €120,000–150,000).

Nouvelle Étude, meanwhile, welcomes Matthieu Ricard – a doctor of cellular genetics, Buddhist monk and author – for a sale of his evocative photographs in aid of the Karuna-Shechen charity. For more than 60 years, Matthieu Ricard has built up a photographic body of work inspired by his encounters and travels. His images explore landscapes, faces, spiritual life and the natural world. While the Himalayas occupy a central place in his work, his gaze has also turned to other parts of the world, including Iceland, Chile and Argentina.
 
The collection of humorous drawings presented by Art Valorem in Room 14 brings together nearly 800 works on paper by more than 170 artists. With the rise and development of press freedom during the 20th century, humorous drawing, political cartoons and caricature gradually broke free from the constraints of the more restrained approach that had characterised the previous century. Many artists seized the opportunity to produce more committed and irreverent work. This is a chance to rediscover some of the leading names in the field, including Cabu, Chaval, Dubout, Étaix, Faizant, Loup, Reiser, Sempé, Siné, Topor and Tetsu.
 

Step into the heart of our iconic institution, a leading name in the art market, and discover its history, from the Second Empire to the present day, its evolution, the organisation of auctions and the intricacies of the auctioneer’s profession.

Behind its red drapes, the auction house is home to a thriving ecosystem that sets the pace of a vibrant world of bidding and hammer falls in the heart of the capital.

As you explore the different floors of Hôtel Drouot, on a tour punctuated by aesthetic discoveries and the sound of the auctioneer’s hammer, you will discover the richness and diversity of the cultures, periods and craftsmanship showcased this Saturday.The world of auctions will hold no more secrets for you!

Using five photographic works selected from the sale she has put together with Yann Le Mouël, Charlotte Barthélemy will introduce visitors to the intricacies of this hugely popular medium, practised by so many of us, yet whose various processes deserve the insight of an expert.

From daguerreotypes and calotypes to albumen prints and gelatin silver prints, she will explain the evolution of photographic techniques and their aesthetic implications, while sharing insights into the particularities of expertise in her field.

Auction house Daguerre and its expert Ludovic Miran invite visitors on an extraordinary journey in the footsteps of the legendary La Pérouse expedition, which came to a tragic end in June 1788.
Of a group of twelve previously unpublished letters written by Jean-André Mongez, a member of the expedition, seven date from the voyage itself, between August 1785 and the expedition’s final days.

Until this discovery, no first-hand source had offered such an insight into the experience of the expedition. These extraordinarily moving letters provide the most authentic and touching portrait of one of La Pérouse’s companions, revealing his profound misgivings and emotions, both before departure and throughout the expedition.