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LACMA opens Daily Pleasures. French Ceramics From the MaryLou Boone Collection

LACMA presents Daily Pleasures. French Ceramics From the MaryLou Boone Collection, an exhibition on view October 6, 2012–March 31, 2013.


Narcissus Scene Cup and Saucer Set, 1746, Vincennes Porcelain, Vincennes, France, soft-paste porcelain, The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Gift of MaryLou Boone, photo © Susan Einstein / Leda and the Swan scene Sugar Box (part of a déjeuner service), 1746, Vincennes. Porcelain, Vicennes, France, soft-paste porcelain, The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens, gift of MaryLou Boone, photo © Susan Einstein.

Daily Pleasures: French Ceramics From the
MaryLou Boone Collection features more than 130 pieces from the finest
collection of French faience and soft-paste porcelain on the West Coast.
The ideal fusion of the useful and the beautiful that is found in these
French ceramics of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries is the essence
of what inspired MaryLou Boone to assemble her outstanding collection from
the foremost manufactories of the era. Although originally made to emulate
Asian hard-paste porcelain imported into Europe, faience and soft-paste
porcelain ultimately became distinctive and sought-after ceramics in their
own right. The collection includes wares for dining and taking tea, for
storing the many toiletries necessary for a stylish appearance, and for
preparing mixtures that comforted in time of sickness. Emphasizing myriad
aesthetic influences, chronicling advances in technology, and reflecting
the rhythms of domestic life, these objects provide a unique view of
French customs and culture and continue to bring pleasure to daily life.

The exhibition and catalogue not only bring together years of MaryLou Boone’s discerning acquisitions but also recognize a substantial gift to the two institutions that Mrs. Boone and her late husband, Dr. George Boone, have generously supported and passionately championed. The Boones established a longstanding relationship with LACMA, where Dr. Boone served as a life trustee and the couple endowed the popular Boone Children’s Gallery. Similarly, the Boones have been benefactors of the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens, where Marylou served as a trustee. In 2010, MaryLou gave approximately twenty-five pieces from her collection to both LACMA and the Huntington, significantly enhancing their holdings and bringing new life to their permanent collection galleries. – lacma.org