The Gypsy Caravan 2023

Saturday, February 8, 2025

At Home: A Julia Child Road Trip

If I was having an "imaginary dinner party" and inviting people who have fascinated me over time, living or dead, Julia Child would be on the list. (That is, assuming I'd have the confidence to serve food to the Queen of the Kitchen! Maybe it should be a pot luck.) So, when a Julia Child exhibit came to Jackson, Michigan, about a half hour from home, my friend Kate and I decided that this would be our "Holiday Experience" (in lieu of presents, more or less!) I'm so glad we went!

I probably don't have to explain that Julia Child revolutionized cooking in America with the publication of her cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," in the 1961. She went on to write many more books and host numerous cooking shows on PBS, the first of which -- "The French Chef" -- was a joyful primer on not only cooking French dishes but being relaxed and joyful in the kitchen.


Julia's early life was privileged, growing up in Pasadena, California and on to college at Smith, a women's college in Massachusetts. Her family was conservative, her path should be that of a typical matron in the 1940s.

The early part of the exhibit focuses on family and her time at Smith College.


But life had other plans for Julia. She joined the OSS, a forerunner to the CIA, and was stationed in Asia, where she met Paul Child, ten years her senior.  

After the war, the couple married and moved to France where Paul was stationed. Those who saw the film "Julie and Julia" might recall that the day the couple arrived, they stopped at a restaurant in Rouen for lunch. That lunch, so different from any in America, inspired Julia to learn more about French cuisine. The restaurant moment is recreated in the exhibit with a set table and both screen and overhead projections that showed the restaurant and changed as each course was described. It was well done and very clever.


While Paul was working, Julia looked for ways to fill her time and decided on taking classes at the Cordon Bleu. When completed, she continued on with private lessons and met two women with whom she opened a small at-home cooking school. Eventually, they would partner on "Mastering the Art..." 

For me, one of the exhibit highlights was a massive installation, reaching almost to the ceiling, that flipped through pages of the book.

 The exhibit moves through Julia's life, telling viewers about her pen-pal friendship with Avis DeVoto, who was instrumental in helping Julia find a publisher. Fans of Julia's work can credit a fan letter from Avis' husband, which spawned the friendship and later, helped bring the book into being.


From there, it went on to television. After doing a demonstration on Boston's local public television station to promote the book, the station received an unprecedented amount of fan mail. Producer Russ Morash of WGBH decided to give this woman a try and "The French Chef" was born. This was in public television's early days. Julia wasn't the first to have a cooking show on television but she rapidly became one of the most popular. She shared wise cooking advice and recipes while also being down to earth, handling mishaps with a casual aplomb. (In later years, most probably remember the mishaps more than the recipes!)


A model studio is set up and we can see a bit "behind the scenes" (although the "studio" installation is far smaller than the original and far from being "to scale.) Paul's drawing gives a better idea of the set-up.

It's interesting to note that the drawers on the set were labeled so Julia could easily find things. We also learned that she and Paul set up their home kitchen like the set so the nervous host could practice her program staging at home.


I was interested in the opposite wall, where you could pull open drawers and cabinets for more displays and video.


And an original script from the series, fully marked up, was another bit I found fascinating.

 

Throughout the exhibit, we are reminded that Julia and Paul Child's relationship was one of great love, but also of great support. Julia may have been the "star" but Paul was there every step of the way, working with her, from those early days in Paris right through her television series. 

They were the ultimate valentine. (And yes, there was even a tub where you could recreate this pose!


Happy Valentine's Day this week! And Bon Appetit! 

(Future locations for this exhibit in 2025 are Cincinnati OH, Muskegon MI, St. Paul MN, and Charlotte NC. A gallery and video can be found HERE.) 

Sharing with:     Love Your Creativity   /   Friday Face-Off  

54 comments:

  1. Julia Child’s journey from the OSS to revolutionizing home cooking is so inspiring. I love how the exhibit recreated key moments, like her first meal in Rouen. Thanks for sharing—now I’m craving French food! Bon Appétit!

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  2. Julia Child’s original kitchen is now in the Smithsonian (though I’m not sure it is on view all the time). I just loved spending time there. And I love returning to the 60 year old TV episodes of The French Chef. Reading bios and memoirs about her is also fun. So is cooking her recipes (which I did this week).

    I see how you must have enjoyed this presentation.
    best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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  3. Wow! This is a very interesting post. I am so glad I stopped by to visit. Thank you for letting us tag along on your incredible adventure.

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  4. How wonderful to be a part of this exhibit. Julie and Julia was a favorite movie of ours. we saw a mock-up of her kitchen at the Smithsonian.

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  5. She is the queen for sure. I love her to bits. What a blaze!

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  6. I would love to see this exhibit! I’ve never been much of a cook, but I used to like watching her show.

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  7. You turned valentine day into a cult classic.

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  8. I saw the movie and was fascinated. Thank you for sharing this! Good concept to practice at home like that.

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  9. É sempre bom conhecer figuras icónicas, neste caso do mundo da arte de bem cozinhar.

    Para um feliz Dia dos Namorados aceder a:

    4ª CELEBRAÇÃO DE S. VALENTIM

    A SETA DE CUPIDO


    Abraço de amizade.
    Juvenal Nunes

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  10. Hello, Jeanie
    It is wonderful you and your friend attended the Julia Child exhibit. She did have a popular cook show. I like to cook, but I would need to have her cookbook with the "down to earth recipes". Take care, enjoy your day and have a great week!

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  11. yes happy valentine's day to you. Julia Child is not well known here in australia but we have heard of her. probably cos of that film :)
    sherry

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  12. I know who Julia Child is, but I have never seen any of her shows, read her books or used her recipes. One might think I lived on a desert island, but that’s not true. For a good part of my life I simply never owned a television. I doubt that I would have watched cooking shows anyway.

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  13. I would have LOVED that!..I even loved the series Julia:)I loved reading books about her too!

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  14. Did I just miss you mentioning the show, Julia? Could be, it's early. It was a great series, or at least I thoguht so. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10975574/

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  15. I would love that exhibit. Thanks for sharing this with us. It looks like you had fun and how cool. Can you imagine having an exhibit about you? I bet Julia Child couldn't, but she became such an icon, didn't she? This exhibit looks very well done and had some great pieces. I'm reading a book right now (The Secret War of Julia Child) that pure fiction about her OSS days. However, it is a fun read as Julia's bubbly personality comes through and the atmosphere is well done. The events, well who knows what's true or not. Have a great rest of your weekend and start to the new week Jeanie. hugs-Erika

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  16. ...if she was with the CIA today, Trumpy Dumpy would fire her!

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  17. What a fun gift to each other to have this experience. I would totally enjoy this. Now I am going to be watching to see if it comes my way. Opening those drawers would indeed be fun too.

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  18. You know how few films I watch, but one I did watch -- I think on your recommendation! -- was "Julie and Julia." And in a post about my favorite Aunt T, I compared her boisterous personality to that of Julia. I'm not sure I'd be drawn to this exhibit, but it makes perfect sense that you would be. Thanks for sharing it with us!

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  19. oh this looks so cool, Jeanie! i'd love to experience this Julia exhibit. will see what i can find online. thanks for sharing!

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  20. How fascinating. I did not realize she was part of the OSS. Thanks for sharing.

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  21. Isn't Julia Child's kitchen, the one used for the show, at the Smithsonian? I think I've seen it there, but maybe I'm making that up. It sounds like a great exhibit and makes me want to watch "Julie and Julia" again.

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  22. How fun that you were able to attend. I love interactive exhibits. I'd love to see your recreation of the bubble bath Valentine!

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  23. That is so sweet! I enjoyed it.

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  24. So pleased you were able to go along to this exhibition.
    Great post and photographs Jeanie, thank you.

    Early Happy Valentines Day Wishes.

    All the best Jan

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  25. I haven't seen the movie yet. It's in a watch list somewhere--lol!
    I really enjoyed watching her show on TV. What an interesting exhibit to see! :)

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  26. I have read every book she has written, several written about her life, and we visited the Smithsonian exhibit on her life. I have her original French Chef videos, and her series The Way To Cook. I am a huge fan. She taught me to cook on her shows on PBS in the 70s. I am so excited to learn about this show, and it will be near me in Charlotte in October!! Woohoo!!!

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  27. Sounds like a great exhibit. I never watched her shows but I knew who she was. She had such a great following.

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  28. This looks like fun! I love the idea of seeing MTAOFC writ large. It was a great book, and projecting it into gigantitude seems just right. Also, there's something about Julia that makes me think she might prefer a lively party with lively conversation and lots of off-color jokes (even if it featured crudites with ranch dip, or corn chips and guacamole) over finer food (e.g., anything en croute) but more sedate and standoffish company...

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  29. I did enjoy that movie, which is my sum total exposure to Julia Child! What a lovely exhibition - you do describe my flavour of delight well.

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  30. Hello Jeanie - thanks for sharing this fun exhibit. I grew up watching her early show (we lived near Boston). My Mom loved her, and I would sit with her and watch the show after school while I did my homework. She also loved 'The Galloping Gourmet' - does anyone remember him? Lol! I continued watching her later shows, too. I read a wonderful bio on her not too long ago in a news feed when her sweet little French cottage was put up for sale. She did live an interesting life and inspired so many to take the plunge and jump right into cooking. She inspired me as a young wife and mother. I wish the exhibit could come to Seattle! Hope you are getting through these cold winter days. Spring will be here before we know it! Sending hugs x K

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  31. What an exhibit. I use to watch her on tv back in the day. Janice

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  32. When I saw Julia and Julia that made me want to blog. I have watched a lot of shows on Julia she is a very interesting person
    Cathy

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  33. This post delights me today! I am a giddy fan of Julia Child; I'm pretty sure she and I would have been friends. Thank you so much for sharing this exhibit, Jeanie!

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  34. Thank you for sharing all this information and photos from the exhibit about Julia Child. So interesting and fascinating. I had no idea. Sounds like a perfect holiday gift to yourselves!!

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  35. Well you know how much I love JC so this post was right up my alley. I was really inspired by JC since she learned to cook later in life. I'm sure you remember the JC nights we used to host. We hosted the last one when I was pregnant with Paul and then that tradition came to an end. The events got too big and unwieldy. Maybe we will bring back a scaled down version some day, though!

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  36. What a great exhibit to have visited, Jeanie, and thanks for taking me along through this post. I have one of Julia Child's cookbooks, but will admit to not having tried any of the recipes in it. I have only seen some of the TV shows through YouTube videos, but she very much looked like she was having a fun time in the kitchen. That Valentine's Day image of her and Paul and the poem were lovely ❤️

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  37. What a fun adventure..She was a character for sure..Thanks for sharing that interesting exhibit,,

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  38. I never saw or heard a thing about this exhibit, and even looking online I can’t find anything except that tickets to see it in Cincinnati are over $50. WOW! Can’t do, but I’m glad you were able to see it and enjoy it. Thanks for sharing!

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  39. I don't think I've heard of Julia Child, but her name does sound somewhat familiar. Either way, it looks like an interesting place.

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  40. I watched her tv shows as well as that movie. She truly was amazing.

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  41. That looks like such a fun exhibit!

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  42. Jeanie, that must have been a fun and fabulous exhibit. I would have loved it.Thank you for sharing so we could all enjoy it through your camera lens!

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  43. I would have loved seeing this and am so glad I did thanks to you. They have a kitchen of hers in one of the Smithsonian Museums. We were big fans of Julia, watched her shows on TV and still occasionally on YouTube. She was such an interesting lady and had an amazing life. Thanks for sharing this Jeanie, much enjoyed.

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  44. What a wonderful exhibit to see! I am old enough to remember watching Julia Child cook on TV! I loved watching her, and later in years, Paul Prudhomme, and I believe they instilled a kove of food and cooking in me! I have Julia's first and second cookbooks among my collection.

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  45. Hello Jeanie :)
    You are such a fan of Julia Child that I am so glad you got to see the exhibition. I had never heard of her until I saw the film with Meryl Streep. However I do like french cooking:
    Allthe best
    Sonjia.

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  46. Interesting.. I hadn't really heard of Julie Child until the movie.

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  47. How fun! I would love to go to this exhibit. I still enjoy watching some of her shows on Create TV. She was/is a big influence to Susan Branch.
    What a fun gift to yourself and to go with a gal pal!
    Thank you for taking us along!

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  48. How wonderful to have something like this happen so close to home. Too bad I seem to have missed it. Thank you for the wonderful writeup--it was almost like I WAS there :)!

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  49. What a great post. I think I'd have loved this exhibition. I knew of Julia Child but very little about her or her cookery, as she never made it to British TV even though she was known about here. Maybe it's that cups vs ounces thing ...or possibly that in the 1950s Britain was still struggling with austerity and limited varieties of foods. We had a lady called Elizabeth David who pioneered "proper" french cookery but but she didn't seem to have Julia's popular fun approach.

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  50. What an experience that must have been. I read a book that I now can't recall the title of that followed her career, and it was fascinating. So then of course I had to see the various movies. I never saw Julia on TV, but I remember my mother saying dismissively, "Oh, that woman has the most annoying voice!" Well, Mom was English and could be quite snooty when she had a mind to!

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  51. Hi Jeanie, nice to be back at your place! I'm sure I c ould paint a good meal, but cooking is not my thing....Have a great weekend, hugs!

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  52. I can see how you would love this exhibition. It looks like it is very well made - I like that restaurant scene. You have me confused with one sentence, though - you wrote "While Paul was cooking, Julia looked for ways to fill her time" - so he was a cook as well? I thought he was a diplomat. The image in the bathtub is hilarious. Happy Valentine's Day to you!

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  53. This is an amazing exhibit. My mom and I watched her show. We loved her. Thank you for sharing this with FFO.

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