Chateau de la Napoule
After leaving Cannes, we visited the Chateau de la Napoule and enjoyed lunch on their terrace overlooking the sea. Before doing any exploring we watched a video on this restored French castle. The castle has been classified as an historical landmark since 1993 and the gardens are listed by the French Ministry of Culture as among the Notable gardens of France. It was also featured as one of the main locations in the 1999 movie Simon Sez.
The castle was constructed in the 14th century by the Countess of Villeneuve. Over the centuries it has been rebuilt several times. In the 19th century it was turned into a glass factory. In 1918, it was purchased by Americans, Henry Clews Jr. and Marie Clews, who restored the castle and moved in. The couple added additional sections in their own personal style with sculptures by Henry Clews Jr. Currently the castle is owned by the La Napoule Art Foundations which was founded in 1951 by Marie Clews.
Chris posing in front of an elephant made from recycled tires by artist Serge Van de Put, a Belgian artist born in 1958 in Antwerp. During his travels, Serve discovered the ingenuity of Africans who give a second life to tires, an indestructible material they use to make buckets, shoes etc. He started working on a portrait of an African using the tires but then moved on to more substantial works.
Nothing too informative about this photo, I just liked the red ladder against the building. A man passing by the Chateau one day found Henry at work, sculpting his elaborate creatures onto the recently rebuilt gatehouse. After stopping to watch this work the man finally approached the artist and asked "Can you please tell me what this place is and who are you?". Henry, the eccentric prankster, answered, "It is a lunatic asylum Sir, and I am one of the lunatics".
When the Clews acquired the castle, the cedar and eucalyptus trees had been abandoned for years. Marie began the restoration of the gardens. The park today has elements of a garden a la franchise and of an English landscape garden with a grand alley, basins and views of the seas. Roman and I walked all around checking out the gardens.
Roman in front of one of the beautiful trees.
|
|
The secret garden with a Venetian well in the centre.
Henry Clews with his wife re-built the medieval chateau in the 1920's as it had mostly been destroyed during the French Revolution (except for an exterior wall and a portion of one of the wings). Henry was a painter and sculptor although he had tried to follow his father's footsteps by being a banker on Wall Street. He eventually left to become an artist following his passion. He had ties with Rodin in Paris who helped him connect with the Parisian art world. |
|
Many of Henry Clews works decorate the cloister. For example, the cloister is decorated with big-bellied and grimacing spirits that were inspired by pre-Columbian art.
One of the sculptures. |
Looking through one of the windows in the courtyard.
|
For Henry and Marie, it was love at first site when they discovered the Chateau de L Napoule just outside of Cannes, France in 1918, This is what the courtyard looks like now but when the Clews saw it, the building had monstrous chimneys, a lone palm tree trapped in the courtyard and a bedroom totally decorated in pink with pink wallpaper, pink carpet and even pink furniture. However, the stunning views of the Mediterranean and the mysterious atmosphere of the place made up for its shortcomings.
After Henry's death, Marie stayed at the chateau through the years of German occupation. She hid and buried much of Henry's art work before the castle was captured by German soldiers. She ended up staying at the castle and acting as a maid so she could stay close to her home and try to protect it.
A view from the Terrace where we enjoyed lunch. This is the view of the sea behind the chateau. The local villagers were not forgotten by the Clews who built a fisherman's beach with harbour and arranged for religious services and other events on the chateau grounds for the people in the town. When Henry died in 1937 the funeral procession included virtually the entire village.
|
|
Sam, Chris, Gretchen and Richard.
Walking back to the gardens after lunch.
Ogs, wogs, imps and gliks. Henry created a fantastical land at the Chateau, filled with creatures of his own imagination. The above creature is called the Glik of La Napoule sculptured in 1928. This guy is a friendly spirit who presides over the courtyard of La Napoule.
Walling back to the gatehouse where the entrance to the Chateau is located.
The gatehouse was another addition by the Clews. During their two decades together at the Chateau in addition to the reconstruction and the creation of art, they also hosted elaborate parties for European society and American expatriates. |
|