Mapping Femininity of Le Jardin du Luxembourg

MappingFemininityofLeJardinduLuxembourg
RasmusGrønfeldtWinther
[email protected];www.rgwinther.com
September3,2016
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Feminine energy pervades Luxembourg Garden in Paris. These gardens are
bookended by the Luxembourg Palace and the Observatory fountain (Fig. 1). The
Luxembourg Palace was built by Marie de Medici, after the 1610 assassination of her
husband, le bon roi Henri (Fig. 2). Upon the demise of the Bourbon king, Marie no longer
wishedtoliveinLeLouvre,andstartedpreparinganewpalace.Shehadanarchitecttravel
tohernativeFlorencetomakedetaileddrawingsofthefamedPalazzoPittiasinspiration
forhernewpalace.Afteratumultuoushistory,includingservingastheprimaryresidence
ofNapoleonBonaparte,andastheheadquartersofLuftwaffeinFrance(andlivingquarters
ofHermannGöring),theLuxembourgPalacetodayseatstheFrenchSenate.
TheObservatoryfountainstandsattheveryendoftheMarcoPologardens(Fig.3).
These gardens are much narrower than the Luxembourg Garden proper, but are almost
precisely as far from Rue Auguste Comte as the façade of the Palace are from that Rue.
Followingprinciplesofarchitecturalgeometry,theMarcoPologardensextendsymmetrical
from the proper gardens. The Observatory fountain is crowned by a celestial sphere with
the 12 zodiac signs embedded in the ecliptic, represented by a metal strip. Four women
carry this sphere. They are each one of the four parts of the world: Africa, America, Asia,
andEurope.Indeed,theObservatoryfountainisalsoknownasFontainedesQuatre-Partiesdu-Monde.
BetweenthePalaceandthefountain,withintheLuxembourgGardenproper,alarge
basin lives on the axis running from the Palace to the fountain. Around this basin,
symmetricallyarranged,thefemininethemecontinueswithaseriesofsculpturesknownas
ReinesdeFranceetFemmesillustres.Clotildeisamedievalqueen.MargueriteofAngoulême,
Queen of Navarre, who lived in the 16th century, is sometimes referred to as the first
modern woman, being patron of humanists and artists; incidentally, she is also the
grandmother of le bon Roi (Fig. 4). Eighteen other sculptures of regal women or saints
embracethebasin.
Asafinalreminderofthefeminineenergy,a2012modelofBartholdi’sfemaleStatue
of Liberty stands in the Garden’s west side (Fig. 5). This is a model of the original replica
made by Bartholdi for the 1900 World Fair or Exposition Universelle, held in Paris. The
replicaitselfnowtodaystandsattheentranceofMuséed’Orsay.
Imaginethatyouarevisitingthisgardenforthefirsttime.Or,ifyouknowit,recall
your first visit – try imagining re-visiting it as a novice. How would you find your way
around?Wouldyoustareatthescreenofasmartphonerunninggeolocalizationsoftware,
findalocalphysicalmap,askpeople,orjustwalkaroundsemi-randomly?Therearevarious
options.
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“MappingFemininityofLeJardinduLuxembourg”
Focusonthesecond.Actualphysicalmapssitbytheentrancestothegarden(Fig.6).
Buildings, fountains, and statues can be located by inspecting these maps. Paths can be
constructedinimagination,andthencarriedoutinthephysicalworld.Furtherlargemap
stations are scattered throughout Le Jardin du Luxembourg in case you get lost. It is as if
therewerealargesemioticsystemofway-findingsignsembeddedinthisgarden,forboth
sightedandblindpeople(Fig.7).
Areyoutryingtofindfriends?Doyouwanttofindafavoritestatue?Wouldyoulike
toseetheStatueofLibertyreplicamodel?Dependingonwhatyouseek,youwouldinspect
differentpartsofthemap,anduseitinapluralityofways.Thenextpersonwouldlikelynot
useitasyouhave.Thereisadiversityofagents,eachwitharelativelyconstrainedsub-set
ofallpossibledesiresandreasonsforusingthephysically-embeddedLuxembourggarden
maps.
But why not just use your geolocalization software or ask people, in your quest to
explore the femininity permeating this garden? You could, but the level of information
resolutionofthefirstwouldundoubtedlybelimited.Forinstance,singlestatueswouldnot
beindicatedonGoogleEarth.Second,youmaynotspeakFrench,orthepeopleyouaskmay
notknowlocationsandbearings.Evenworse,theymaybelievetheydo,butthenyouare
leftdiscoveringthattheyweremistakenasyouwanderlostthroughoutthegardens.(Full
disclosure:beinglostinthisgardenishardlyonerous!)
Ofcourse,whilethereisnothingwrongwithusingapluralityofinformationsources,
the physical maps are anchored in the body of the gardens. They are even part of the
scenery,partandparcelofthegardens.Whynotprofitfromthiscorporealfeature,akindof
ring or finger of Le Jardin du Luxembourg? They help you in orienting yourself in, and
wayfindingyourwaythrough,theselovelygardens.
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Fig. 1 Location of Le Jardin du Luxembourg in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. The
Observatory fountain is at the very bottom tip of the Marco Polo gardens, extending
southwardsfromthegardenproper.LuxembourgPalaceisindicatedwithanicon,andthe
basin is shown in blue. Source: http://www.geo-trotter.com/europe/france/map-franceparis-jardin-du-luxembourg.php
Fig.2.GardenfaçadeofLuxembourgPalace.
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Fig.3.TheObservatoryfountain(Fontainedel’Observatoire).
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Fig. 4. Marguerite d’Angoulême, Reine de Navarre, as she stands in the Luxembourg
Gardens.ShewassculptedbyJoseph-StanislasLescornéinthefatefulyearof1848.Source:
http://www.urban-bushmen.com/vingt-femmes-dans-le-jardin-du-luxembourg-et-dans-lesens-des-aiguilles-d-une-montre.html
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Fig.5.The1900replicaasitsatintheJardinduLuxembourgpriortoitsdisplacementto
theMuséed’Orsayin2012.Source:Wikipedia.
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Fig.6.Partpicture,partplan,part3-DscalemodelmapoftheJardinduLuxembourg.Areas
and games are clearly indicated. The actual maps stand by almost all of the garden
entrances.Manyvisitorscanbespottedstudyingthesemaps.
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Fig. 7. Braille Map of the Luxembourg Garden. The map shows the entire garden grounds
(left),theLuxembourgPalacebuiltbyMariedeMediciintheearly17thcentury(topright),
and a close-up of the garden grounds sensu stricto (bottom right). Its raised surfaces are
ratherworn,fromuseandcuriosity.
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