Legends of the Seas

The art of living on board liners

After the First World War, a wealthy clientele emerged with a taste for luxury, comfort, modernity and new horizons. In France, the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique and the Compagnie des Messageries Maritimes built and launched liners whose names and silhouettes were to go down in history: Champollion, Mariette Pacha, Aramis, Paris, Île-de-France, Normandie, etc.

Eager to surprise and delight their passengers, both companies called upon renowned artists to fit out their ships: architects and decorators (Pacon, Rulhmann, Leleu, Dominique, Dunand

and Lalique), painters (Iribe, Dufy and Dupas), poster designers (Colin, Cassandre, Sandy-Hook, etc.), goldsmiths and master glassmakers (Christofle, Ercuis, Puiforcat, Saint-Louis, Daum and Haviland) all pooled their creativity and savoir-faire ensuring that these floating palaces were second to none. Through a tour interspersed with sound and video projections,

this exhibition bears witness to a golden age in which travel and pleasure went hand in hand.

Featuring 350 items (paintings, drawings, posters, models, furniture, costumes, gold objects,

menus, illustrated works, manuscripts and photographs), the exhibition was created in collaboration with the French Lines Association and includes loans from the Museum of Letters and Manuscripts, the International Chamber of Commerce of Le Havre, the Maritime and Port Museum of Le Havre, the Musée Malraux (MuMa) (Le Havre) and private collections.