Chambord Presentation pack NATIONALwww.chambord.org ESTATE OF CHAMBORD - PRESENTATION PACK 1 Chambord Table of Contents 20 Presentation of 36 Publications for 500 years the chateau 3 Introduction 22 The gardens and 38 The communication the park of Chambord campaign 6 Nine projects for 2019 24 Visiting the château 40 500 years of Renaissance in Centre-Val de Loire 8 Chambord, 1519 – 2019 : 26 Recreational activities 41 Sponsors and partners Utopia at work (exhibition) on the estate for the 500th anniversary 11 Decor of the itinerant court 28 The agenda 44 Groups, space rental, filming, accommodations 13 Landscaping of the Cham- 30 Chambord 46 Key figures for 2018 bord vegetable gardens internationally 16 Journey of stones 31 The “Chambord” brand 46 Chronology along the Loire 18 9th Festival of Chambord 32 Products for 500 years 47 Practical information in 2019 2 PRESENTATION PACK - NATIONAL ESTATE OF CHAMBORD Introduction Chambord is an exceptional work of art. Placed as early as 1840 on the initial list of French historic monuments, since 1981 it has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Surrounded by a vast forest reserve, protected by a 20-mile-long enclosure, with an area of 13200 acres (5440 hectares) Chambord is the largest walled park in Europe. It is a radically unique achievement, one of the crown jewels of the human heritage. Its vocation is symbolic, esthetic and spiritual. At once affirmation of royal power and evo- cation of an ideal city, the monument remains an enig- ma that has yet to unveil all its secrets. Conceived by François I and Leonardo da Vinci, Chambord is a monu- ment epitomizing a marriage of beauty and intelligence. It is the emblematic expression of the Renaissance and its abiding symbol throughout the world. As an architectural masterpiece, it is comparable to Mona Lisa as a painting. It is not only the most imposing civil building of its epoch but also, in its design and symbolic import, an expression of the idea of perpetual renewal, cycle of life, place of man in the cosmos and, ultimately, a form of eternity. VISITING CHAMBORD, YOU ENTER A WORLD APART, SUFFUSED WITH MYS- TERY, OPENING THE DOORS OF GENIUS. Under public ownership since 1930, in 2005 the National Estate of Chambord became a state-owned establishment of industrial and commercial character placed under the high patronage of the president of the French republic and under the joint tutelage of the national ministries of culture, agriculture and ecology. The Board of Directors is chaired by Augustin de Romanet. Since 2010, the public institution of Chambord has been directed by Jean d’Haussonville. NATIONAL ESTATE OF CHAMBORD - PRESENTATION PACK 3 A year of celebrations The aim of the celebrations is to offer keys to reading Chambord as it was originally conceived by François I, its founder, and Leonardo da Vinci, its architectural inspirer. Throughout 2019, an extensive celebration program is being proposed in association with an exhibition retracing its genesis: “Chambord, 1519-2019: Utopia at work”. Major projects have been undertaken to offer the visitor a radically transformed and magnified Chambord. 4 PRESENTATION PACK - NATIONAL ESTATE OF CHAMBORD “Contrary to common percep- tion of Chambord as originally a hunting pavilion, it was in fact conceived as an ideal city. Along with the monument, the estate in Exposition : its entirety is that city. At heart, our project today is part and par- cel of the idea of utopia at work” The ideal city Jean d’Haussonville 1519-2019 In 2019, the half-millennium of the commencement of the building of the world’s largest Renaissance castle is being celebrated. Five hundred years after 1519, Chambord continues to arouse admiration and fascination. With the deceptive symmetry of an equation with several unknown fac- tors, Chambord is the most intriguing and mysterious of the royal palaces. The rereading of an enigmatic monu- ment and the conservation of a huge estate are commingled in celebration of the five centuries since construc- tion got underway. NATIONAL ESTATE OF CHAMBORD - PRESENTATION PACK 5 Nine projects for 2019 FOLLOW THE NINE 500-YEAR PROJECTS www.chambord.org/500-years/ 1. Decor of the itinerant court #500ansChambord Following restoration in 2017 of the French gardens, Chambord is presently endeavoring to recreate the at- mosphere permeating the château on arrival of the king. 2. Exhibition Redesign and reconfiguration have been entrusted to the well-known decorator and scenographer, Jacques Chambord, Garcia. 1519-2019: Detailed presentation of the project on page 11 and in the press kit downloadable at chambord.org. Utopia at work The exhibition has been placed under the double com- missionership of the architect Dominique Perrault and the philosopher Roland Scheer. It is the first exhibition in 3. Restoration of the Chambord on the architecture of the château and, more precisely, on the involvement of Leonardo da Vinci in the surrounding wall of drawing up of the original plans. Detailed presentation of the project on page 8 and in the the estate through a press kit downloadable at chambord.org. job integration program 4. Creation of In and of itself, the wall is a monument. There exists no equivalent property enclosure in France a winery for the or the world. While the 32 kilometers (20 miles) of stone fencing used to have a decidedly practical Chambord vineyard function as boundary of the hunting reserve and the estate, from the very outset it was endowed with an exalted symbolic function, that of tracing out the limits of utopian territory, of the ideal City. The “500-year” vendange will take place in September 2019. Today’s restoration program is also a work project Five centuries after his reign, Chambord is about to reco- of social interest; vocational training will facilitate ver the grape vines appreciated by François I. The interna- transmission of skills and know-how in the buil- tionally renowned architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte has been ding trade. entrusted with construction of a vinification cellar, which will be part of the first architecturally designed winery in Val de Loire. Elaboration in the estate of a wine bearing the name of Chambord is an element essential to a strategy dedicated to defending and upgrading of the Chambord brand and the surrounding territory. 6 PRESENTATION PACK - NATIONAL ESTATE OF CHAMBORD 5. Creation of the Chambord vegetable gardens in the stables The Chambord Jardins-Potagers project reflects per- manent commitment to an approach privileging protec- tion of the environment and biodiversity, in keeping with the plantation of the vineyards and the development of eco-grazing. 6. A colloquium Detailed presentation of the project on page 13 and in under the auspices the press kit downloadable at chambord.org. of UNESCO Save the date: 26 June 2019. The goal of the colloquium is 7. Illumination to underline the importance of heritage in the capacity of communities to live together. Participants will dwell upon of the château our endangered common heritage, which is imperiled not only during armed conflicts or by terrorist actions, but also by wear and tear and … a lack of adequate financing. Contrary to what one might imagine, heritage preservation is not carried out by turning in upon oneself, but rather Ever since 1952, Chambord has been a pioneer in sound and through our opening ourselves to the world. light shows. Illumination has become integral to its tradition. This event is being organized by the writer Daniel Rondeau. A new lighting system will soberly yet elegantly brighten the night-time monument. Circadian illumination of the facades will suitably punctuate restoration of the outskirts and, most notably, the French gardens. Magnifying the château, like 8. A journey of unto a giant romantic theater set it will diffuse moving light similar to the natural light of the sun and the moon. stones along The National Estate of Chambord gratefully acknowledges the Loire the support provided by EDF, the French electricity behe- moth, for the château project. A royal ordinance dated 6 September 1519 and de- signating a superintendent of Chambord is consi- 9. 9 edition of the dered as the official kickoff to its being built. A sym- bolic journey of stones from their original quarry Chambord festival along the Loire will be carried out over several days. On the way to Chambord, stops in the ports of in 2019 call of Tours, Amboise, Chaumont-sur-Loire, Blois and Saint-Dyé-sur-Loire will offer an occasion for shows, displays and get-togethers open to one and all. And finally, on 6 September 2019, as a prelude This year’s festival will present an Italian and utopian “co- to an itinerant digital extravaganza offered by the loration” in honor of the monument’s half-millennium and Centre-Val de Loire region, a concert featuring the the exhibition open during the Festival. From 28 June Republican Guard and the horns of Chambord will through 13 July, Italian composers and references to Italy take place in front of the monument. will cross paths with modern and contemporary utopias, with an emphasis on youth and on projects off the beaten Detailed presentation of the project on page 16 track. and in the press kit downloadable at chambord.org. Detailed presentation of the project on page 18 and in the press kit downloadable at chambord.org. NATIONAL ESTATE OF CHAMBORD - PRESENTATION PACK 7 Exhibition Chambord, 1519-2019: Utopia at work During the year of celebrations of its 500th anniversary, the National Estate of Chambord is proposing a truly exceptional exhibition, the most important in its long and storied history, on an unprecedented subject: Chambord in the past and the future. September 2019 was marked by the laying of the first stones of what was later to become, under the impetus of François I, the most awe-inspiring construction of the French Renaissance: the château of Chambord.