Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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Toulouse-Lautrec Museum (Musée Toulouse-Lautrec)
The Palais de la Berbie (once the fortified home of Albi's archbishop) has the world's
largest collection of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec's paintings, posters, and sketches.
Cost and Hours:
€8, audioguide-€4 (for most, the printed English explanations
are sufficient); July-Sept daily 9:00-18:00; June daily 9:00-12:00 & 14:00-18:00; April-
May and Oct daily 10:00-12:00 & 14:00-18:00—but closed Tue in Oct; Feb-March and
Nov-Dec Wed-Mon 10:00-12:00 & 14:00-17:30, closed Tue; Jan Wed-Mon 10:00-12:00
& 14:00-17:00, closed Tue; Place Ste. Cécile, tel. 05 63 49 48 70,
Background:
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, born here in 1864, was crippled from
youth. After he broke his right leg at age 13 and then his left leg the next year (probably
due to a genetic disorder), the lower half of his body stopped growing. His father, once
very engaged in parenting, lost interest in his son. Henri moved to the fringes of society,
wherehegainedanaffinityforpeoplewhodidn'tquitefitin.Helatermadehismarkpaint-
ingthedregsoftheParisianunderclasswithanintimacyonlymadepossiblebyamanwith
his life experience.
Visiting the Museum:
From the ticket booth, walk down a few steps and enter the
main floor collection. The first room is filled with
portraits
of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
painted by other artists. In the second half of the room we see his earliest classical paint-
ings, the horses, and his boyhood doodles. I especially like the dictionary he scribbled all
over as a schoolkid. In the 1880s, Henri was stuck in Albi, far from any artistic action.
During these years, he found inspiration in nature, in the pages of magazines, and by ob-
serving people. This was his Impressionistic stage.
Next, go down a few more steps and see his most famous stuff, the paintings of
the prostitutes and brothels of
Paris.
In 1882, Henri moved to the big city to pursue his
passion. In these early Paris works, we see his trademark shocking colors; down-and-
dirty, street-life scenes emerge. Compare his art-school work and his street work: Henri
augmented his classical training with vivid life experience. His subjects were from bars,
brothels, and cabarets...Toto, we're not in Albi anymore. Henri was fascinated by cancan
dancers (whose legs moved with an agility he'd never experience), and he captured them
expertly. In these exploratory years, he dabbled in any style he encountered. The naked
body emerged as one of his fascinations.
Henri started making money in the 1890s by selling illustrations to magazines and
newspapers. Back then, his daily happy hour included brothel visits—1892-1894 was his
prostitution period. He respected the ladies, feeling both fascination and empathy toward
them.The
prostitutes
acceptedhimthewayhewasandlethimintotheirworld...whichhe
