The Maison Natale de Pasquale Paoli Museum, in Merusaglia, Corsica, presents the exhibition “Maria Cosway 1760-1838: The Unique Path of an Artist” from May 18 to October 30, 2024.
About the Exhibition
This exhibition narrates the journey of a brilliant woman destined for a great career as an artist in high English society who, against all expectations, found her true emancipation by renouncing her initial vocation to dedicate herself to the education of young girls.
Pasquale Paoli, a faithful friend, was present at every stage of this singular life. His letters to Maria Cosway, like a common thread, punctuate the different sections of this exhibition.
The exhibition dedicated to Maria Cosway, the result of two years of work in collaboration with recognized British and Italian institutions, is accompanied by a richly illustrated and documented catalog in French and English, prepared by renowned art historians specializing in the 18th century, under the direction of Amandine Rabier, curator of the exhibition, and a doctor in art history.
This exhibition also provides the Merusaglia Museum with an opportunity to extend its local roots to the international stage, in accordance with its Scientific and Cultural Project.
About the Museum
The museum is located in the birthplace of Pasquale Paoli (1725-1807), a man of the Enlightenment and the General-in-Chief of independent Corsica (1755-1769). Pasquale Paoli’s significance in Corsican history, as well as in the formation of democratic states, remains largely unknown in France. While he is regarded as a hero on the island, his persona and political actions are misunderstood in France, where he is often reduced to an opponent of the French cause. However, Pasquale Paoli is considered a great man, especially in England and the United States, where the 1755 Corsican Constitution, based on the principles of separation of powers and universal suffrage, inspired the American Constitution in 1787, and where many American towns still bear the name Paoli City or Corsica in his honor.
On February 5, 1807, Pasquale Paoli, exiled in London, died at the age of 82. He was buried in St. Pancras Cemetery. More than 80 years later, a long and significant political and popular mobilization allowed the return of his ashes to his native land. In 1889, Jean-Baptiste Franceschini-Pietri, Pasquale Paoli’s great-nephew through his sister Chiara Maria and the then-owner of the Paoli house, agreed to transfer the property to the Department of Corsica under the conditions that “the oratory would serve as a tomb; the rest of the house would partly lodge the eldest of the Tomasi brothers who would be the caretaker, and partly to establish a small Corsican museum; a room would be given to the local Paoli school.”
On this occasion in 1889, the house became a museum that has held the title “Musée de France” since 2002 and was labeled “Maison des Illustres” in 2012.
More Information
Musée maison natale Pasquale Paoli
Hameau de Stretta
20218 Merusaglia
Contact: +334 95 61 04 97
