Charles-Antoine Cambon (21 April 1802 – 22 October 1875) was a French scenographer, theatrical production designer, who acquired international renown in the
Romantic Era
Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
.
Career
Little biographical information exists on Cambon's early years, other than that he would have been active as an aquarelle and sepia artist before studying with Pierre-Luc Charles Ciceri. At Ciceri's workshop Cambon made acquaintance with Humanité-René Philastre, who would become his first long-term associate.
As a stage design for a "Salon" at the Bibliothèque-Musée de l'Opéra testifies, Philastre and Cambon started collaborating in 1824 at the latest. From that time until 1848, Philastre and Cambon accepted numerous joint commissions for theatrical interior decorations and stage designs. Thus, they decorated the interiors of venues in Angoulême, Antwerp, Beaune, Brest, Choiseul, Dijon, Douai, Ghent, Lille, Lyon, Paris and Rouen, often providing complete machineries as well. Philastre and Cambon also designed productions – or portions thereof, as was customary back then – for Paris (
Académie Royale de Musique
The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be k ...
Comédie-Française
The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...
Porte Saint-Martin
The Porte Saint-Martin ( en, St. Martin Gate) is a Parisian monument located at the site of one of the gates of the now-destroyed fortifications of Paris. It is located at the crossing of Rue Saint-Martin, Rue du Faubourg Saint-Martin and the '' g ...
Liceu
The Gran Teatre del Liceu (, English: Great Theatre of the Lyceum), known as ''El Liceu'', is an opera house in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Located in La Rambla, it is the oldest running theatre in Barcelona.
Founded in 1837 at another ...
) and Ghent ( Grand Théâtre) that created the blueprint for ''
grand opéra
Grand opera is a genre of 19th-century opera generally in four or five acts, characterized by large-scale casts and orchestras, and (in their original productions) lavish and spectacular design and stage effects, normally with plots based on o ...
'' and romantic scenography in Europe. Notable stagings to which Philastre and Cambon contributed are the world premieres of Auber's '' Gustave III, ou Le bal masque'' (1833), Berlioz' '' Benvenuto Cellini'' (1838), Donizetti's ''
La favorite
''La favorite'' (''The Favourite'', sometimes referred to by its Italian title: ''La favorita'') is a grand opera in four acts by Gaetano Donizetti to a French-language libretto by Alphonse Royer and Gustave Vaëz, based on the play ''Le com ...
'' (1840), Halévy's '' La juive'' (1835), and Hugo's ''
Les Burgraves
''Les Burgraves'' is a historical play by Victor Hugo, first performed by the Comédie-Française on 7 March 1843. It takes place along the Rhine and features the return of Emperor Barbarossa. The play failed commercially and was the last of Hugo ...
'' (1843).
Cambon separated from Philastre in 1848 as the latter emigrated to Spain. He found a new associate in an extremely talented student, Joseph Thierry, with whom Cambon would design epoch-making productions for the Châtelet,
Opéra
This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names.
"Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most c ...
Les Troyens à Carthage
''Les Troyens'' (; in English: ''The Trojans'') is a French grand opera in five acts by Hector Berlioz. The libretto was written by Berlioz himself from Virgil's epic poem the ''Aeneid''; the score was composed between 1856 and 1858. ''Les Troy ...
'' (1863), Gounod's ''
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540).
The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroa ...
Le prophète
''Le prophète'' (''The Prophet'') is a grand opera in five acts by Giacomo Meyerbeer, which was premiered in Paris on 16 April 1849. The French-language libretto was by Eugène Scribe and Émile Deschamps, after passages from the ''Essay on the ...
'' (1849) and ''
L'Africaine
''L'Africaine'' (''The African Woman'') is an 1865 French ''grand opéra'' in five acts with music by Giacomo Meyerbeer and a libretto by Eugène Scribe. Meyerbeer and Scribe began working on the opera in 1837, using the title ''L'Africaine'', bu ...
'' (1865), Verdi's ''
Jérusalem
''Jérusalem'' is a grand opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The libretto was to be an adaptation and partial translation of the composer's original 1843 Italian opera, ''I Lombardi alla prima crociata''. It was the one opera which he regarded ...
'' (1847) and ''
Don Carlos
''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Fried ...
'' (1867), and Wagner's ''
Tannhäuser
Tannhäuser (; gmh, Tanhûser), often stylized, "The Tannhäuser," was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and ...
Opéra
This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names.
"Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most c ...
and Vaudeville), decorating a.o. the world premieres of Delibes' ''
Coppélia
''Coppélia'' (sometimes subtitled: ''La Fille aux Yeux d'Émail'' (The Girl with the Enamel Eyes)) is a comic ballet from 1870 originally choreographed by Arthur Saint-Léon to the music of Léo Delibes, with libretto by Charles-Louis- ...
'' (1870) and of Thomas' ''
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
'' (1868), next to a large number of the Palais Garnier's first-generation productions (a.o. ''Don Giovanni'', ''Faust'', ''La favorite'', ''Guillaume Tell'', ''Hamlet'', ''Les Huguenots'', ''Jeanne d'Arc'' and ''La juive''). Cambon was to co-design the premiere of Verdi's ''
Aida
''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 Decemb ...
'' (1871), but dropped out of the production due to unknown circumstances.
Cambon taught many pupils at his scenic studio at 3 rue Neuve-Samson (currently rue Léon-Jouhaux, Xme Arrondissement). Students of note are Antoine Lavastre and
Eugène Louis Carpezat
Eugene is a common male given name that comes from the Greek εὐγενής (''eugenēs''), "noble", literally "well-born", from εὖ (''eu''), "well" and γένος (''genos''), "race, stock, kin".Angelo II Quaglio.
Cambon was named 'Chevalier de la
Légion d'honneur
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
' in 1869. He was a friend of
Prosper Mérimée
Prosper Mérimée (; 28 September 1803 – 23 September 1870) was a French writer in the movement of Romanticism, and one of the pioneers of the novella, a short novel or long short story. He was also a noted archaeologist and historian, and a ...
and Stendhal. Cambon's funeral service at Saint-Denis-du-Sacrement and subsequent burial at
Montmartre Cemetery
The Cemetery of Montmartre (french: link=no, Cimetière de Montmartre) is a cemetery in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, France, that dates to the early 19th century. Officially known as the Cimetière du Nord, it is the third largest necropolis ...
Émile Perrin
Émile-César-Victor Perrin was a French painter, mainly known as a theatre director and impresario, born in Rouen on 9 January 1814, died 8 October 1885.Dean W. ''Bizet.'' London, JM Dent & Sons, 1978. His son-in-law was Camille du Locle.
Bio ...
and Édouard Thierry, as well as by the complete crew of the Opéra.
Style
Although Cambon, like most contemporary scenographers, created scenery of various types and styles during his long career, it was in architectural settings that he achieved true excellence. In keeping with the romantic need for ''couleur locale'' and ''couleur historique'', Cambon aimed at the illusionistic rendering of architectural space, the character and atmosphere of which he enhanced through the use of dramatic points of view and clair-obscur. Cambon's designs and scale-models in Conté crayon, sepia or pastel furthermore reveal an exquisite draughtsmanship in its own right. Though lacking the rich palette of most contemporaries and successors, Cambon's interiors and exteriors are characterized by precise, delicate lines that belie a solid sense of architectural composition and knowledge of each play or opera's spatial needs.
Preserved works
On 17 May 1877, 2,000 designs by Cambon were sold by his widow at the Hôtel Drouot in Paris. Two hundred of these were acquired by the Bibliothèque-Musée de l'Opéra, which would also preserve Cambon's maquettes for the Académie Royale de Musique from 1866 onwards. A number of scale-models predating 1866 have also been preserved. Other stage designs by Cambon are held at the Archives of the Comédie-Française.
Authentic, large-scale artifacts of Cambon's activity survive at
* the
Bourla Theatre
Bourla Theatre (also known as Bourlaschouwburg) is a theatre located in Antwerp that seats around 900. The building is designed in a neoclassical style on the site of the former Tapissierspand tapestry market. The theatre was designed on reque ...
of Antwerp (B): five levels of authentic stage machineries and foyer decorations designed and executed by Philastre and Cambon in 1834. Notwithstanding being protected, the machinery might still disappear in the near future due to the need of modernization by the venue's current user, Het Toneelhuis—it was listed by
Europa Nostra
Europa Nostra (Italian for "Our Europe") is a pan-European Federation for Cultural Heritage, representing citizens' organisations that work on safeguarding Europe's cultural and natural heritage. It is the voice of this movement to relevant inte ...
Ghent
Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded i ...
(B): interior decorations by Philastre and Cambon from 1841.
* the Théâtre of
Montbéliard
Montbéliard (; traditional ) is a town in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France, about from the border with Switzerland. It is one of the two subprefectures of the department.
History
Montbéliard is ...
(F): ceiling painted by Cambon and Thierry in 1857.
* the Château des Princes in Chimay (B): interior decorations and act curtain designed by Cambon between 1860 and 1863. The curtain was altered in modern times into a backdrop with newly added flats to create a 'garden' set.
Bibliography
* Marie-Antoinette Allevy, ''La mise-en-scène en France dans la première moitié du dix-neuvième siècle'' (Paris: Droz, 1938).
* Germain Bapst, ''Essai sur l’histoire du théâtre: la mise en scène, le décor, le costume, l’architecture, l’éclairage, l’hygiène'' (Paris: Hachette, 1893).
* Peter Beudert, ‘Stage Painters at the Paris Opéra in the Nineteenth Century’, ''Music in Art: International Journal for Music Iconography'' 31/1-2 (2006), 63-72: 64-65.
* Sylvie Chevalley, ‘L’atelier Philastre et Cambon et la Comédie-Française’, in ''Anatomy of an illusion: studies in nineteenth-century scene design'' (Amsterdam: Scheltema & Holkema, 1969), 13-18.
* Pierre De Clercq, ‘Humanité-René Philastre (1794-1848) en Charles-Antoine Cambon (1802-1875): decorateurs van theatergebouwen’, in ''De Opera van Gent: het ‘Grand Théâtre’ van Roelandt, Philastre en Cambon. Architectuur-interieurs-restauratie'', ed. Luc Demeester and Birgit Waeterloos (Tielt: Lannoo, 1993), 51-68.
* Nicole Decugis and Suzanne Reymond, ''Le décor de théâtre en France du Moyen Age à 1925'' (Paris: Compagnie française des arts graphiques, 1953).
* Bruno Forment, ‘Staging Verdi in the Provinces: The ''Aida S''cenery of Albert Dubosq’, in ''Staging Verdi and Wagner'', ed. Naomi Matsumoto (Turnhout: Brepols, 2015), 263-286: 266.
* Catherine Join-Diéterle, ''Les décors de scène de l’Opéra de Paris à l’époque romantique'' (Paris: Picard, 1988).
* Catherine Join-Diéterle et al., ''L’envers du décor à la Comédie-Française et à l'Opéra de Paris au XIXe siècle'' (Montreuil: Gourcuff Gradenigo, 2012).
* Eugène-Oscar Lami, ed., ''Dictionnaire encyclopédique et biographique de l’industrie et des arts industriels'' (Paris: Librairies des dictionnaires, 1881–91), II, 109.
* Jerome Maeckelbergh, ‘The ‘Bourla’ in Antwerp: Machinery from 1834 on the Brink of Dismantling?’, in ''Theatrical Heritage: Challenges and Opportunities'', ed. Bruno Forment and Christel Stalpaert (Leuven: Leuven University Press, 2015), 149-164.
* Princesse de Chimay, ‘Le théâtre de Chimay’, in ''Actes du colloque international « Théâtres de cour - théâtres privés » organisé les 18 et 19 octobre 1996 au musée national du château de Compiègne'', ed. Jacques Kuhnmunch (Paris: Éditions du Mécène, 1998), 62-65.
* Madeleine Manderyck, ‘De bouwgeschiedenis van het Théâtre Royal Français’, in ''De Bourla Schouwburg: een tempel voor de muzen'', ed. Madeleine Manderyck and et al. (Tielt: Lannoo, 1993), 41-75.
* M. V., ‘Ch.-Antoine Cambon’, ''Le monde illustré'' 19/968 (1875), 278.
* Nicole Wild, ''Décors et costumes du XIXe siècle. Tome II: théâtres et décorateurs'' (Paris: Bibliothèque nationale de France-Département de la Musique, 1993), 286-291 ''et passim''.
* Nicole Wild, ‘De decors van Philastre en Cambon’, in ''De Opera van Gent'', 68-75.5.