2020 is coming to an end and we can’t help being worried as we don’t know what the future will be made of. And yet we had been so optimistic at the beginning of the year as the villa was more and more a success. Our Association des Amis de la villa Cavrois was getting well-known and we had various projects among which an « art nouveau » trip to Brussels ; so many people were interested in it that it had been planned to go there twice ! Besides we intended to visit Amiens and to organize conferences dealing with the main types of architecture presented during those trips. We aimed to set up an exhibition to display the works of art by the Martel brothers. We wanted to think about the villa Neutra. Unfortunately all those beautiful projects had to be put aside and postponed because of the Coronavirus. Moreover our general meeting which was supposed to take place in March finally took place last September.
From now on we can see that our organization’s members are still willing to work and to go ahead. The status have been updated ; the board of directors has welcomed newcomers in greater number – people who will bring new skills with them. They constitute a new team who wishes to be active and to make the year 2021 synonymous with new proposals, suggestions, answers to our missions. They also want to see our organization have a greater influence not only on its members but also on external partners.
I was elected president of the organization by the new board of directors and I am particularly grateful to them for showing me their confidence. Therefore I am willing to do my best- no doubt you will remember how passionate I was when I was a director, to make the villa one of the masterpieces of the French Monuments nationaux and lately one of the favourite monuments of the French people.
Who could have imagined such a thing twenty years ago ?
What a historical twist ! And such a gratification for our organization.
I rely on you to remind me of the great favour you did me.
2019-2020
We had said we would do it ; we did it or nearly managed to …
To mark the centenary of the founding of the Bauhaus, we organized two trips to Germany. We went to each of that movement's former locations in Weimar, Dessau and Berlin. In the following days two conferences dealing with the Bauhaus movement gathered nearly 300 people.
An exhibition, where some graphic works which had been inspired by Robert Mallet Stevens’ own work were displayed, took place in November and December 2019 at the villa Cavrois. It was made possible thanks to the help of some generous donators such as P Martineau and the Dalkia society. The works of about fifteen artists were exhibited on that occasion, a testimony of their talent and of the influence of modern art in graphic craft.
We had planned to visit Brussels so as to discover the architectural and decorative mark left by the Art Nouveau in that capital so close to us. Unfortunately it had to be postponed because of the coronavirus crisis. However, this is just momentary as our members are quite eager to go there.
Lastly, our trip to Amiens in order to admire the architectural work of Auguste Perret and Renzo Piano had to be postponed too.
In 2021 we intend to …
Organize conferences which will be dedicated to the visits mentioned above and to study the work of Mallet Stevens as a whole.
The exibition displaying the work of the Martel brothers, which happens to be of a great interest, should be maintained.
We mustn’t forget that various changes occurred in 2020 ; Carine Guimbard was appointed curator of the villa Cavrois and our own board of directors saw some changes. Thus we will have the opportunity to re-consider our relationship with Mrs Guimbard in 2021 , after a year during which we had to face unexpected obstacles due to the Covid 19 crisis.
Besides we will endeavour to develop the role and the place our organization can have so as to defend modern architecture in our region where one can see a great number of remarkable domestic buildings, such as the house designed by Richard Neutra for instance.
Here is, dear friends and members, what I wanted to tell you in a few words. But however, we must keep in mind that nothing will be made possible without your financial and active support. Please renew your membership and fill the form which is enclosed.