Tags
Architecture, Art Nouveau, Bee, Charles Heraud, Facade, Flowing lines, Jugendstil, Marseille, Snowdrops, Sunflower, Sycamore leafs, Symbolism
Determined to continue my series on Marseille’s Art Nouveau, I wanted to share a second building by Charles Héraud with you: ‘Hôtel Margirier’. However, since I already told you everything I know about Héraud in my post on 26 Cours Lieutaud, there really isn’t much left to tell… I have many photo’s though, which I don’t want to keep from you. So, not much text this time, but heaps of pictures!
Charles Héraud, born 1859, built ‘Hôtel Margirier’ at 46 Rue Jean de Bernardy in 1902. Like Cours Lieutaud, Rue Jean de Bernardy is not exactly a street where one would expect to find Art Nouveau gems. If you walk fast enough, you could easily overlook ‘Hôtel Margirier’. But that would be a shame, so slow down!
Google streetview: Rue Jean de Bernardy
The Art Nouveau manor house consists of two parts. The facade of the part on the left is set back a little which creates a small courtyard, closed in by a wrought iron gate. The second and taller part is built along the building line.
‘Hôtel Margirier’, 46 Rue Jean de Bernardy, Marseille
At first, Hôtel Margirier appears to be rather plain, but if you allow it to grow on you a little longer, you might actually detect some typical Art Nouveau ornaments.
Zooming in a little further…
… I can detect Snowdrops, Sunflowers, bees and Platanus (a.k.a. Sycamore / Plane Tree) leafs and fruits. And I am sure there are more symbols as I haven’t figured all of them out yet. Can you help me recognise any symbols I have not mentioned?
In a way, these symbols allow us to ‘read’ an Art Nouveau building. The snowdrops, for instance, mean ‘hope’. The sunflowers mean ‘pride and strength’. A bee stands for ‘hard work and diligence, thrift’. And the Platanus tree is one of the oldest species of trees on this earth. It is considered a symbol of strength, protection, eternity, and divinity.
There are a lot more flowers and plants that have a specific meaning in Art Nouveau. The Museum de l’Ecole de Nancy published a nice booklet about these symbolic meanings ‘Flora in Art Nouveau‘ for children, which I think is interesting for adults as well. And as this blog is about getting to know Art Nouveau I intend to find more publications about symbols used in Art Nouveau. Once I have gathered enough information I’ll prepare a blog about the subject and share my knowledge with you here. Would you please share any publications you already found with me?
Source
Art Nouveau and the psychology of interior space
Flora Book
Des chardons sous le balcon
Liste des Architectes célèbres de Provence
Reglement du PLU de Marseille
www.pss-archi.eu
About Art Nouveau 
Dear Olga,
Thank you once again for this interesting article, that I read with pleasure!
Just to let you know, the partners of the Network are currently working on a new educational booklet which will be developed as an “herbarium”, presenting some plants/flowers and their interpretation by the Art Nouveau artists… We hope that the booklet will be ready in the next months! You will be informed about it anyway (Website, News, Facebook page, Newsletter…) 🙂
Have you planned Summer holidays? Warm regards, Anne-Lise
Anne-Lise Alleaume Coordinatrice Reseau Art Nouveau Network Service public regional de Bruxelles Bruxelles Developpement urbain – Direction administrative et financiare
Musee Horta 25 rue Americaine B-1060 Bruxelles Belgique – Belgium T + 32 2 543 04 94 F + 32 2 538 76 31 Email annelise.alleaume@artnouveau-net.eu http://www.artnouveau-net.eu
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To view some photos of the interior of this mansion: https://twitter.com/davidlamars/status/1203932874900156416
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Hi Corwin13,
Thank you very much for sharing these pictures with us. I was a bit disappointed that the interior is not Art Nouveau. But still, it is a very nice and richly decorated interior. Lovely to be able to have a look inside!
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