Design Expert Reveals Influence of French Mistresses on Royal Palaces in Lecture, Getty Tour

Château de Loches. France’s King Charles VII gave the chateau, which was built in the 9th century, to his mistress Agnès Sorel (1422-1450).

“Darling, we must always have the champagne in the boudoir.”

Apparently, French mistresses wielded a lot of influence among French royalty, hence, their input was taken to pitter-pattering heart in the design of French palaces.

Eleanor Schrader Schapa of Beverly Hills – an expert on architecture, design and art history – will talk at UCLA about the Role of the Royal Mistress in the Design of Great French Palaces.

Eleanor Schrader Schapa, an award-winning Beverly Hills architectural and interior design historian, consultant and radio host, will lecture on the topic with a slide presentation Saturday, April 27, as part of UCLA Extension.

“The Role of the Royal Mistress in the Design of Great French Palaces” begins at 10 a.m. with a three-hour lecture, followed by a lunch break and a tour of French furniture collections at the Getty Museum.

“A taste for elegance and luxurious refinement created a world in which royal mistresses had at their disposal the best of their country’s painters and decorative artists to embellish their kings’ palaces and various residences,” Schapa said. “The collections amassed by the royal mistresses were made possible by their acknowledged position, which conferred almost unlimited spending power.

“I’ll be talking about the fascinating lives of influential mistresses such as Madame du Pompadour and Madame du Barry within the social and political surroundings of court life,” she said.

Schapa is an award-winning architectural and interior design historian and consultant who lectures worldwide on the history of architecture, interiors, furniture, and decorative arts.  Named a Distinguished Instructor at UCLA Extension, she teaches the history of architecture and interior design, served as a Design Review Commissioner for the City of Beverly Hills, and is a member of the boards of directors of the Beverly Hills Historical Society, John Lautner Foundation and Malibu Adamson House Foundation. Her radio show on design airs on VoiceAmerica.

The presentation will be held at the UCLA Extension Lindbrook Center, 10920 Lindbrook Dr., Westwood. To register, go to https://www.uclaextension.edu/pages/Course.aspx?reg=Z0870.