Provenance

The organization of the 1937 Universal Exhibition in Paris, from the hill of Chaillot to the Champ de Mars, raises the question of the fate of the Trocadéro Palace. Built in 1878, the Trocadéro clashes with its dated architecture. In order to modernize it, the General Commissioner of the Exhibition launches a competition. Covering both the architecture and its surroundings, it also includes the construction of the pavilions of foreign nations as well as the auditorium. The Niermans brothers propose a project for the layout of the auditorium. Innovative in both stage design and the modularity of the hall, they offer a sliding partition that allows for the reduction or expansion of the number of seats. Invited to decorate it, Max Ingrand proposes a composition "perfectly homogeneous, in harmony with the overall theater aesthetics." Max Ingrand designs a model that promises projected splendors. Against a golden background, the artist paints a broad composition in a personal style. Unfortunately, due to budget constraints, this arrangement cannot be executed" (Jean-François Pinchon, "Édouard et Jean Niermans. From the Trocadéro to the Maison de la Radio," Brussels, Pierre Mardaga, 1995, p. 40).This is then one of the rare testimonies of Ingrand's models for the Trocadéro.


Indeed, the archive collection of the Frères Niermans held by the Cité de l'Architecture in Paris contains photographs of three large decorative panels painted by Max Ingrand, which are organized in a similar manner. In the center and foreground, there is a reclining female figure, seen either from behind or from the front, surrounded by a procession of musicians playing tambourines, flutes, or accordions. In the background, a surreal architectural landscape is depicted.