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New York Times
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
What's on Cupid's Mind at Versailles? AI Can Tell You.
Early one midsummer afternoon in the Palace of Versailles' gardens, a pigeon landed effortlessly on a masterpiece of French outdoor sculpture: a 17th-century statue of Apollo on a chariot, pulled by four horses. The statue, made of gilded lead, has stood in a vast fountain at Versailles in the three-plus centuries since Louis XIV was king of France — and it has now entered the digital age via a new feature on the historic site's app: Powered by the tech giant OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, an audio tool lets visitors (on or off site) converse with 20 outdoor statues in three languages. On that summer afternoon, I put the chatbot to the test. I asked Apollo a few obvious questions — who had put him there, what he represented — and received textbook answers, delivered in perfect English by a confident male voice. Then, spotting the pigeon still perched on Apollo's head, I opted for a bolder line of questioning: What if a pigeon took a toilet break on this peerless treasure? 'When pigeons show their affection on my chariot, it's hardly a grand moment. But the caretakers of Versailles are vigilant,' Apollo replied. 'They ensure I remain in shining condition, restoring my brilliance after such interruptions. So no lasting harm from those little birds!' Versailles receives 8.4 million visitors a year, according to France's culture ministry, more than any other French heritage site except the Louvre Museum. Yet 80 percent of them are international tourists, and their average age is 40. So the palace is engaging with OpenAI and other big tech companies with the hope of not just informing visitors, but also luring audiences that are younger and more homegrown. (The New York Times filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against OpenAI for using published work without permission to train its artificial intelligence. OpenAI has denied those claims.) Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Malaysian Reserve
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Malaysian Reserve
‘Fairytale' Neuschwanstein castle becomes UNESCO heritage site
Perched on a rocky, 200m-high Alpine crag, it is Germany's most visited castle, with almost 1.5m people flocking there every year THE Neuschwanstein castle in Germany's Bavaria, perhaps best known for inspiring Walt Disney's fairytale castles, has been named a World Heritage site, the United Nations (UN) cultural agency announced on July 11. Three other royal residences, also constructed in the late 19th Century under the famously arts-obsessed King Ludwig II of Bavaria, were also added to the coveted list: Herrenchiemsee, Linderhof and Schachen. Neuschwanstein, perched on a rocky, 200m-high Alpine crag, is Germany's most visited castle, with almost 1.5 million people flocking there every year. 'A fairytale comes true for our fairytale castles: We are # WorldHeritage!' Bavaria's governor Markus Soeder wrote on X after the announcement. Neuschwanstein combines an idealised medieval exterior with architectural techniques considered cutting-edge at the time. Its main rooms are adorned with paintings of German and Nordic legends, the same stories that inspired composer Richard Wagner, for whom Ludwig was a generous patron. The 3rd site in the UNESCO listing is the small castle of Linderhof, completed in 1878 Peter Seibert of the Bavarian Castles Administration (BSV) told AFP that the UNESCO listing 'is a very great responsibility, but also recognition…for the work we have done so far in preservation'. Philippe, a 52-year-old visitor from Canada, was surprised that the castle was not already a World Heritage Site. 'We're lucky to still be able to experience this,' he said, calling the listing 'a very good idea'. Herrenchiemsee meanwhile evokes a Versailles in miniature on a lake between Munich and Salzburg, an homage to absolute monarch Louis XIV of France, whom Ludwig admired. Indeed Ludwig nicknamed Herrencheimsee 'Meicost-Ettal', an anagram of Louis XIV's alleged aphorism 'L'Etat, c'est moit' ('I am the state'). Schachen is a royal house in the style of a large Swiss chalet The third site in the UNESCO listing is the small castle of Linderhof, completed in 1878, the only one to have been finished in Ludwig's lifetime. It mixes elements of French Baroque architecture from the reign of Louis XIV with touches of the Rococo style developed in southern Germany. Its park boasts an artificial cave inspired by Wagner's opera Tannhauser, 90 metres long and up to 14m high, which houses a grotto of Venus and was designed as a personal retreat for Ludwig. The electric lighting system used in the cave was state-of-the-art at the time, with glass discs used to illuminate the grotto in different colours. The last of the four sites on the list is Schachen, a royal house in the style of a large Swiss chalet, where Ludwig liked to celebrate the saint's day of his namesake St Louis on Aug 25. It is located at 1,800m above sea level, not far from Neuschwanstein. The four castles have become 'part of Bavarian identity' said Seibert, 'iconic and perfectly embedded in a beautiful landscape'. Ironically, while Ludwig's architectural legacy is today a source of pride in Bavaria — not to mention tourist revenue — they were part of the reason for his own downfall. The ruinous construction costs of the lavish residences led the Bavarian government to depose him, declaring him insane. Interned in Berg Palace, he died shortly afterwards in mysterious circumstances at Lake Starnberg. — AFP This article first appeared in The Malaysian Reserve weekly print edition
The Star
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Fairytale' Neuschwanstein castle becomes Unesco heritage site
Neuschwanstein Castle is said to be the inspiration for Walt Disney's earlier castles. — Photos: Pixabay The Neuschwanstein castle in Germany's Bavaria, perhaps best known for inspiring Walt Disney's fairytale castles, has been named a World Heritage Site, the United Nations cultural agency Unesco announced recently. Three other royal residences, also constructed in the late 19th century under the famously arts-obsessed King Ludwig II of Bavaria, were also added to the coveted list: Herrenchiemsee, Linderhof and Schachen. Neuschwanstein, perched on a rocky, 200m-high Alpine crag, is Germany's most visited castle, with almost 1.5 million people flocking there every year. 'A fairytale comes true for our fairytale castles: We are #WorldHeritage!' Bavaria's governor, Markus Soeder, wrote on X after the announcement. Neuschwanstein combines an idealised medieval exterior with architectural techniques considered cutting edge at the time. Its main rooms are adorned with paintings of German and Nordic legends, the same stories that inspired composer Richard Wagner, for whom Ludwig was a generous patron. Linderhof Castle, a neo rococco building in Bavaria, is now a World Heritage Site. — AFP Peter Seibert of the Bavarian Castles Administration (BSV) said that the Unesco listing 'is a very great responsibility, but also recognition ... for the work we have done so far in preservation'. Philippe, a 52-year-old visitor from Canada, was surprised that the castle was not already a World Heritage Site. 'We're lucky to still be able to experience this,' he said, calling the listing 'a very good idea'. Herrenchiemsee meanwhile evokes a Versailles in miniature on a lake between Munich and Salzburg in Austria, an homage to absolute monarch Louis XIV of France, whom Ludwig admired. Indeed Ludwig nicknamed Herrencheimsee 'Meicost-Ettal', an anagram of Louis XIV's alleged aphorism 'L'Etat, c'est moit' ('I am the state'). Herrenchiemsee is nicknamed 'Meicost-Ettal'. Bavarian identity The third site in the Unesco listing is the small castle of Linderhof, completed in 1878, the only one to have been finished in Ludwig's lifetime. It mixes elements of French Baroque architecture from the reign of Louis XIV with touches of the Rococo style developed in southern Germany. Its park boasts an artificial cave inspired by Wagner's opera Tannhaeuser, 90m long and up to 14m high, which houses a grotto of Venus and was designed as a personal retreat for Ludwig. The electric lighting system used in the cave was state of the art at the time, with glass discs used to illuminate the grotto in different colours. The last of the four sites on the list is Schachen, a royal house in the style of a large Swiss chalet, where Ludwig liked to celebrate the saint's day of his namesake St Louis on Aug 25. It is located at 1,800m above sea level, not far from Neuschwanstein. The four castles have become 'part of Bavarian identity' says Seibert, 'iconic and perfectly embedded in a beautiful landscape'. Ironically, while Ludwig's architectural legacy is today a source of pride in Bavaria – not to mention tourist revenue – they were part of the reason for his own downfall. The ruinous construction costs of the lavish residences led the Bavarian government to depose him, declaring him insane. Interned in Berg Palace, he died shortly afterwards in mysterious circumstances at Lake Starnberg. – AFP Schachen does not look like your typical castle as it is styled like a chalet.
New York Times
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Echoes of Versailles at a Downtown Department Store
Good morning. It's Monday. Today we'll look at a $185-a-ticket immersive production whose director sees parallels between Louis XIV's Versailles and 21st-century New York. Tonight, after closing time in a luxury department store in Lower Manhattan, they're going to party like it's 1679. There will be actors and singers in velvety waistcoats and breeches, or in opulent gowns with puff sleeves. The Louis XIV look won't be the only allusion to the Sun King's court during a three-hour immersive performance. Attendees will be given vials of powder. Don't worry, says the director of the event, Andrew Ousley — the vials won't be filled with poison, as they were in a notorious incident at Versailles. These vials will contain nothing more than food coloring and the powder that puts the pastels in Parisian macarons. But the ringleader distributing the powder will be sentenced to death, as the original provocateur was 345 years ago. Ousley built the performance piece, 'The Affair of the Poisons,' around one of the most sensational scandals of 17th-century France, one so overwhelming that Louis XIV shut down the investigation after his favorite mistress was implicated. Ousley is staging the production with opera singers and the Versailles Royal Opera Orchestra, which was formed in 2019 for the French premiere of John Corigliano's opera 'The Ghosts of Versailles' in — where else? — the opera house that Louis XIV had commissioned at the palace itself, outside Paris. Now the orchestra is on its first tour of the United States. And, as 'The Affair of the Poisons' unfolds, the audience will encounter members of the Brooklyn dance troupe Company XIV, including a candelabra-balancing belly dancer. Ousley did not know about the scandal until he began doing research for the piece that became 'The Affair of the Poisons.' 'Everything I read about it made me more astounded, not only by how over-the-top wild it was but how relevant it was to the present day,' when New York is struggling with issues of affordability and income disparity, he said. But back to 17th-century Paris. Arsenic — 'untasteable and untraceable' — had come into vogue, and 'people were poisoning their spouses or mistresses,' he said. 'Louis's favorite mistress was plotting to poison him as well as a newer mistress who had gained his favor.' The poison came from Catherine Deshayes Monvoisin, a midwife and fortune teller known as La Voisin who had apparently counted the favorite mistress, Madame Athénaïs de Montespan, as a client for years. Worried that Louis's affection was waning, Montespan had tried to poison the newer, younger mistress, who was a teenage lady-in-waiting at Versailles when Louis noticed her. La Voisin, who will be portrayed in 'The Affair of the Poisons' by the drag opera artist known as Creatine Price, did more than traffic in poison: Ousley said that Montespan would lie nude while La Voisin poured blood over her. After the poison scandal broke, a special tribunal was convened, and more than 30 people were sentenced to death. But Louis suspended the proceedings once Montespan was implicated. 'The scandal got a little close to home,' Ousley said. The setting for 'The Affair of the Poisons' will be Printemps, the French department store that opened in March at 1 Wall Street. Ousley called it '55,000 square feet of some of the most intentional, thoughtful luxury.' The audience members will be served hors d'oeuvres prepared by Gregory Gourdet, the store's culinary director, and wine from Bouchaine Vineyards, whose proprietors, Gerret and Tatiana Copeland, underwrote the tour for the orchestra. (The tour includes another performance on Wednesday at L'Alliance New York, the French cultural center in Manhattan.) Ousley runs a nonprofit called Death of Classical, which puts top-flight performers in unusual places like crypts and catacombs around New York. But he said, 'even by my standards this is one of the most insane things we've done.' It is also one of the most expensive, at $185 a ticket, which, he acknowledged, is a lot of money. 'There's no question that New York City is in the midst of a massive affordability crisis, not to mention ever-increasing income disparity,' he said. 'The problem isn't luxury in and of itself, but rather luxury as an end unto itself.' Still, he said, Death by Classical's programs are value propositions. Tonight, he said, attendees will leave with a goody bag. Among the items inside will be 'a small candle by Trudon from, wait for it, their Versailles collection.' The candle sells on Amazon for $70. Weather It's going to be a bright one! Prepare for a sunny day with temperatures nearing 84. Tonight will be clear with a low around 66. ALTERNATE-SIDE PARKING In effect until Aug. 3 (Tisha B'Av). The latest Metro news Mamdani travels to Uganda: Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate for mayor, took a break from campaigning to fly to Uganda, where he was born. He said he had made the trip to Africa with his wife, Rama, to celebrate their five-month-old marriage with family and friends. Meanwhile, in New York, Mayor Eric Adams criticized Mamdani for taking time off, and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been making appearances across the state. Health care union endorses Mamdani: Local 1199, the city's most powerful health care union, rescinded its support of Cuomo and is now endorsing Mamdani. Since his win, Mamdani has continued to gain support from unions who had first endorsed Cuomo. Can Washington warm to Mamdani? While Mamdani has charmed much of New York City, he has yet to charm Washington. National Democrats are grappling with how much to embrace him and whether they should endorse him. Habba's tenure may be running out: Alina Habba, President Trump's choice to run the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey, pursued investigations against Democratic political figures, damaged morale among prosecutors and was declared unfit to serve by the state's two senators. She offered a pre-emptive farewell in a staff meeting last week after acknowledging that the state's district court judges, who have the power to extend her tenure, were unlikely to do so. New York agrees to settle with ex-Cuomo aide: New York State agreed to a $450,000 settlement with the former executive aide, Brittany Commisso, who accused Cuomo of groping her in 2020. The state did not admit wrongdoing. METROPOLITAN diary Mornings with Mom Dear Diary: Our mom, Deborah, died in 2011. She was a New Yorker. After 14 years, upon my leaving the military, my sister and I finally had the time to go through her stuff. Plus, I am studying law at Columbia now, which means we can visit the storage unit in Bedford-Stuyvesant once a week. We call it Mornings with Mom. It's not cheap to keep the unit, so the goal is to empty it out as quickly as possible. But our progress is delayed by nostalgia and curiosity. It's hard to simply save our mom's journals. We get caught up in reading the entries aloud to each other. We reminisce over what we remember: family photographs, clothes our mom loved to wear that still smell like her closet, and other trinkets. We find some gems we never knew existed: Mom's application to law school, newspaper clippings she saved that are still relevant today, some truly fabulous shoes. We reread our favorite children's books and vow to read them to our cousins' children. We save the M.R.I. scans of the masses in her breasts, though we are not sure why. We find names of her friends in a Filofax from the 1980s. Some still live in New York. I call one of the numbers. 'This is Deborah Edelman's daughter,' I say. 'She passed away in 2011, but my sister and I found your contact. Do you remember her? If so, would you like to meet?' We meet for drinks, swap stories and become friends. This summer, box by box, my sister and I are working our way through the collection. When we finish going through enough for the day, we call it quits and get a drink. — Julie Roland Illustrated by Agnes Lee. Send submissions here and read more Metropolitan Diary here. Glad we could get together here. See you tomorrow. — J.B. P.S. Here's today's Mini Crossword and Spelling Bee. You can find all our puzzles here. Davaughnia Wilson and Ed Shanahan contributed to New York Today. You can reach the team at nytoday@ Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox.
Epoch Times
16-07-2025
- General
- Epoch Times
Snap, Shell, or Snow, Peas Are a Summertime Staple
Peas have a special place in French culture and cuisine. One of the earliest cultivated food crops, they achieved a special status at Versailles in Louis XIV's court, where peas were considered 'potager du roi,' or royal fruit. King Louis liked to eat his peas raw. Peas should be finger food, especially those delightfully plump sugar snap peas from farmers markets. These are peas you don't want to cook. So sweet and crunchy, they often don't make it into any dish because I've finished the bag on the drive home.
