- Ferdinand Cheval
Ferdinand Cheval (1836 – 19 August, 1924), was a French
postman who spent 33 years of his life buildingLe Palais Idéal (the "Ideal Palace") which is regarded as an extraordinary example ofnaïve art architecture.Origins
Ferdinand Cheval lived in
Châteauneuf-de-Galaure , in theDrôme "département" of France. He had left school at the age of 13 to become a baker's apprentice but eventually became a postman.Palais idéal
Cheval began the building in April 1879. He claimed that he had tripped on a stone and was inspired by its shape. He returned to the same spot the next day and started collecting stones.
For the next 33 years, during his daily mail route, Cheval carried stones from his delivery rounds and at home used them to build his "Palais idéal", the Ideal Palace. First he carried the stones in his pockets, then a
basket and eventually awheelbarrow . He often worked at night, by the light of anoil lamp .Cheval spent the first two decades building the outer walls. The Palace is a mix of different styles with inspirations from the
Bible toHindu mythology . Cheval bound the stones together with lime, mortar andcement .Burial
Cheval also wanted to be buried in his palace. However, since that is illegal in France, he proceeded to spend eight more years building a mausoleum for himself in the cemetery of
Hauterives . Cheval died on August 19, 1924, around a year after he had finished building it, and is buried there.Recognition
Just prior to his death, Cheval began to receive some recognition from luminaries like
André Breton andPablo Picasso . His work is commemorated in an essay byAnaïs Nin .In 1969
André Malraux , the Minister of Culture, declared the Palace as a cultural landmark and had it officially protected. Cheval's palace is open every day except Christmas Day and New Year's Day.Cheval may have been the inspiration for the character of Denny in
Chuck Palahniuk 's 2001 novel "Choke", who gathers a collection of stones which are eventually used, in similar fashion, to build his 'dream home'.Gallery
ee also
*
Simon Rodia
*Justo Gallego Martinez External links
* [http://www.aricie.fr/facteur-cheval/ "Le Palais Idéal du Facteur Cheval"] fr icon (requires Flash)
* [http://www.facteurcheval.com/news/exposition?LANG=en "Le Palais Idéal du Facteur Cheval"] (requires Flash)
* [http://perso.wanadoo.fr/arimaj/expo.htm Expo.htm ] at perso.wanadoo.fr" Expo Coco Peintre du Facteur Cheval-1987 Hauterives France
* [http://www.claudetravels.altervista.org/VdR/PalaisIdeal/gal.html Hauterives and Palais Idéal Photogallery]
* [http://animulavagula.hautetfort.com/album/mon_cheval/ "Album Mon Cheval"] a French's blog photogallery
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