This first-ever collaboration between the Musée de Cluny in Paris and the MNBAQ was a unique opportunity to present splendid works (limestone cornices, pieces in ivory and precious metals, enamelwork, stained glass windows, tapestries, textiles and illuminations) in a rare loan from the Musée de Cluny, Musée National du Moyen Âge de France. This veritable journey back in time enabled visitors to better understand the vision of nature developed by artists in western Europe between the 10th and the 15th centuries, and how these artists gradually evolved from a vision laden with symbolism to documented representation.
The volume accompanying the exhibition brings to light these artists’ sources of inspiration, their principal modes of expression and the abundant iconography of their work. It also shows the fundamental bond between medieval peoples and nature, giving singular voice to concerns that are still with us.
This exhibition was mounted by the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec and conceived by and made possible through exceptional loans from the Musée de Cluny – Musée National du Moyen Âge, Paris.
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