Jard in Majorelle
The garden adored by global fashion designers and artists alike. T he Jardin Majorelle (Majorelle Garden) is a stunning two-and-a-half acre botanical garden and artist’s landscape garden in Marrakech, Morocco. It was created by the French Orientalist artist Jacques Majorelle over almost forty years, starting in 1923. The garden adored by global fashion designers and artists … Continued
The garden adored by global fashion designers and artists alike.
T he Jardin Majorelle (Majorelle Garden) is a stunning two-and-a-half acre botanical garden and artist’s landscape garden in Marrakech, Morocco. It was created by the French Orientalist artist Jacques Majorelle over almost
forty years, starting in 1923.
The garden adored by global fashion designers and artists alike.
For those not in the know, Jacques Majorelle (1886-1962) was a French orientalist painter and son of the famous Art Nouveau furniture designer Louis Majorelle. He arrived in Morocco in 1917, invited by the French Resident-General, Marshal Lyautey. Majorelle was enchanted by Marrakech. In 1923, he decided to live there, purchasing a vast palm grove that would become the Jardin Majorelle we know today.
“FOR MANY YEARS, THE JARDIN MAJORELLE HAS PROVIDED ME WITH AN ENDLESS SOURCE OF INSPIRATION, AND I HAVE OFTEN DREAMT OF ITS UNIQUE COLOURS.”
–Yves Saint Laurent
In 1931, he commissioned the architect, Paul Sinoir, to build an artist’s studio in the Art Deco style; its walls were painted in “Majorelle Blue”. Around it, he designed a garden, a living work of art composed of exotic plants and rare species collected during his worldwide travels.
He opened his garden to the public in 1947, but it fell into abandon after his death in 1962.
Fortunately though, four years after the death of Jacques Majorelle, French fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent and long-term business partner Pierre Bergé visited Jardin Majorelle and instantly fell in love with it.
So, when they heard of the plans to bull- doze the entire place and turn it into a hotel complex, they decided to purchase Jardin Majorelle and restore it.
They were careful to stay true to Majorelle’s vision, concentrating on enhancing the gar- den’s features rather than changing them. They also introduced an additional 165 plant species, installed an automatic irrigation system and employed a team of 20 gardeners to help maintain the grounds.
The Gardens Today
After the death of Yves Saint Laurent in 2008, Pierre Bergé donated the Jardin Majorelle to the Foundation Pierre Bergé Yves Saint Laurent. The Foundation Jardin Majorelle
was established at this time. In addition, a memorial to the world-renowned French fashion designer was built in the garden.
The foundation’s resources were then used to establish the Berber Museum, this was inaugurated in December 2011, and the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Marrakech, opened in October 2017. The foundation’s profits are entirely reinvested in Morocco to finance cultural, educational and social initiatives.
Today, the garden and villa complex is open to the public. The villa houses the Berber Museum, and in 2017 the Yves Saint Laurent Museum opened nearby. The Jardin Majorelle also includes a bookstore, café and boutique. When Yves Saint-Laurent died in 2008, his ashes were scattered in the rose garden at Jardin Majorelle, and two years after his passing, the road on which the gardens are located was renamed the ‘Rue Yves Saint Laurent’ in his honour.
Musée Yves Saint Laurent Marrakech
The Musée Yves Saint Laurent Marrakech, which opened its doors in the fall of 2017, is a vibrant cultural centre built around a central exhibition hall that permanently showcases the renowned couturier’s work. Much more than a simple retrospective of the iconic dresses YSL designed, one is led on a journey, with its focal point in Marrakech, through the many themes that inspired him.
The fifty or so magnificent garments displayed, many rarely seen by the public, offer us an original reading of Yves Saint Laurent’s oeuvre and his importance to the history of fashion. The dresses and other haute couture pieces are rotated every ten months to ensure their conservation and offer the visitor a panorama that evolves regularly.
The mYSLm also includes a hall for temporary exhibitions, a photography gallery, an auditorium, a research library, a bookshop and a café-restaurant. The basement of the building houses the mu- seum’s collection and a state-of-the-art preventive conservation centre.
The hall used for temporary exhibitions at the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Marrakech was conceived as a cultural and artistic showcase. It is where the museum displays talent from all over the world, with a special emphasis on contemporary Moroccan artists. [ V ]
For more information, opening hours, and tickets, visit: www.jardinmajorelle.com
