Rendez-vous aux Jardins 2024: family workshops at the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud (92)

Rendez-vous aux Jardins 2024 takes place on June 1 and 2 at the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud, with guided tours and artistic installations on the program.

Did you know? The Domaine National de Saint-Cloud, which belonged to Philippe d'Orléans, the brother of Louis XIV, lost its château during the Franco-Prussian war of 1870. Fortunately, the 460-hectare site has been preserved as a fine example of classical garden design, with its terraces, perspectives, green carpets, bosquets, green rooms, fountains and basins.

The bas-parc stretches along the Seine, below the château's terrace, from the Pont de Saint-Cloud to the Pont de Sèvres. Here you can admire the grand cascade, the upper section of which is almost 90 meters long, a skilful 17th-century composition by Antoine Le Pautre, later enlarged by Jules Hardouin-Mansart, and the neighbouring grand jet, over 30 meters high. They are precious testimonies to the traditional techniques used by fountain-makers.

The grand-parc was partly cut through by the railway line under Louis-Philippe, then by the freeway in the late 1930s. It has essentially retained the layout of the avenues and wooded squares designedby Le Nôtre in the 17th century. To the west, the wooded areas of La Brosse and the Plaine des Quatre Cèdres have a wilder, more rural feel. North of the freeway, in the Parc de Villeneuve, attached to the estate in 1852, the pond, in its natural green setting, contrasts with the well-tended garden surrounding the Escadrille La Fayette memorial .

Since 1823, the Trocadéro garden has occupied the former Montretout hill. A private garden designed for the entertainment and education of Charles X's grandchildren, it was conceived as a veritable"living herbarium". The Rendez-vous aux Jardins is a golden opportunity to discover it from top to bottom, on the first weekend in June!

The program for Rendez-vous aux Jardins 2024 at the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud :

Work by Laurent Pernot - Je me souviens
Saturday, June 1, 09:00
As part of the Mondes nouveaux artistic program, the Centre des monuments nationaux is presenting Laurent Pernot's Je me souviens at the Domaine national de Saint-Cloud.
Created for the estate, Je me souviens is a sculpture of letters in natural Haims stone, a material whose temporality is similar to that of the surrounding nature of the estate's park and former château.
Laurent Pernot uses words to propose a thought experiment on our relationship with time and memory. The work can be interpreted in several ways. It may evoke the submergence into oblivion of the past of the former princely residence, or foreshadow what will become of human beings in the future.
Free access during opening hours
Discovery tour of the estate on the theme of the 5 senses in the garden
Saturday, June 1, 2:30 p.m.
Discover the estate through the prism of the five senses. Discover the Trocadéro garden. This tour invites you to use your senses to explore the garden with the estate's head gardener.
Information 01 41 12 02 95 or https://www.domaine-saint-cloud.fr/
In bodies, sets...moving and being moved...in the space of photography.
June 1 and 2
This school project, initiated by photographer and visual artist Nathalie Magrez, in collaboration with the Direction des Services départementaux de l'Éducation Nationale du Département des Hauts-De-Seine (DSDEN92) and the Domaine national de Saint-Cloud, brings together 6 classes from the Hauts-de-Seine department, working on the practice and construction of scientific and plastic art objects. The results will be on display in the gardens and in the historic museum of the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud.

Free access during opening hours of the estate and the historical museum on Saturday and Sunday (2:30 - 6:00 pm).
Touching the garden
Saturday, June 1, 4:00 p.m.
Can you recognize what you're touching blind? Discover the garden by touch (bark, leaves, sand, gravel....)

Information
01 41 12 02 95 or ateliers.saint-cloud@monuments-nationaux.fr
Nordic walking tour of the Culture Valley
Sunday, June 2, 10:00 a.m.
Accompanied by a sports educator, the route starts at La Tour aux figures, to reach the Musée de la Céramique - Manufacture de Sèvres.
After a rest period for a picnic (not included, please bring your own) in the Domaine national de Saint-Cloud, you'll visit the Musée départemental Albert-Kahn, before finishing this sporting walk at the Fondation GoodPlanet.

The program for your day is as follows

10:00 am - Welcome of participants

10:30 am - Start of activities on Ile Saint-Germain (visit to La Tour aux figures and introduction to Nordic Walking)

12:00 pm - Sèvres- manufacture and museum

1:00 pm - Lunch break

1:50 pm - Domaine national de Saint-Cloud

3:00 pm - Musée départemental Albert-Kahn

3:45 pm - Fondation GoodPlanet

You'll cover 12km of circuits and enjoy 30-minute visits to these 5 different cultural sites!

Practical information: Don't forget to bring your own picnic as well as closed shoes, a backpack and a bottle of water.
Water games
Sunday, June 2, 3:00 pm, 4:00 pm, 5:00 pm
As you follow the park's paths, you'll discover numerous basins, waterfalls and fountains, brought to life by water features that perpetuate the skills of 17th-century Florentine fountain-makers, who inspired André le Nôtre to design the estate and its park.
Please note that the large waterfall is undergoing restoration work and will not be flooded.

Behind the scenes of water games
Sunday, June 2, 2:30 p.m.
Water features transform the garden into an ephemeral stage. Take a stroll along the water's edge, and discover what goes on behind the scenes, the ingenious use of topography and the techniques used by fountain-makers to stage the gushing waters.

Please note: the Grande Cascade is undergoing restoration work and will not be flooded.

Please note: the watering of the basins and jets is subject to cancellation depending on the state of water resources.

Great discoveries at the Domaine National de Saint-Cloud!