cimaises

19:57 Dec 18, 2016 

Ok so I looked over the French museum equipment site, and they also use the word "cloison" as a synonym for cimaise. And the images show something more wall-like than what I was thinking of. So I poked around English-language sites and found all sorts of options: display walls, wall panels, gallery walling, walling panels, museum panels, walling systems, exhibition partitions, and of course display panels as mentioned by Charles. But thinking of these cimaises more as walls (or indeed very large panels - when I visualized panels I had imagined something much smaller) helps a lot. So I'll figure out some way to fit in the notion of panels/walls and greenery/foliage (though probably not real...). Thanks to all for your contributions to this thought process!

18:51 Dec 18, 2016 

@lizaskew, no I hadn't looked at "green walls", but just did and it's an interesting suggestion. Seems possible... Thanks!

18:50 Dec 18, 2016 

@ph-b, thanks for these suggestions, I hadn't thought of the other definition of verdure. Since this was in the promenade section imitating a walk through the gardens I was stuck on the pretty literal sense of greenery. Hard to know without being able to see the space. But thanks also for the link to the museum equipment, interesting to see that the panels can indeed be quite large and free-standing. Lots to think about! I might make a couple of suggestions to the client and/or ask them to describe what they mean since there are definitely a few possibilities.

16:55 Dec 18, 2016 

You’ve already said that one of the definitions you found is ‘exhibition panel’. This is confirmed by this website specialising in museum equipment. Here is the cimaises page : http://www.promuseum.fr/recherche/multi-criteres.php When you click on the individual photos, you’re told cimaises are cloisons modulaires légères et rigides, some of which can be quite tall.

<p>With regard to verdures, you say you’re thinking of ‘greenery hung from…’, which I understand to mean ‘real hanging plants’. However, have you seen this entry for verdure in ATILF : "P. méton. Tapisserie à verdure(s)/de verdure ou, p. ell., verdure (de Flandres, etc.). Tapisserie représentant principalement un ensemble de végétaux. Tendu de verdure(s)."

<p>Could it be that your text speaks of tall exhibition panels covered with tapestries (?)/wallpaper (?) with a flower-inspired design/pattern?

16:53 Dec 18, 2016 

Have you also looked at "green walls"?

15:54 Dec 18, 2016 

Thanks for these suggestions! @Charles, I didn't really understand the Le Nôtre reference either at first, but after re-reading it with your interpretation it makes a bit more sense. I perused images of the gardens of Versailles to see what your article was referring to, and it sounds like it's something like this: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grande_Commande#/media/File:Qu... Basically there are a number of hedges in the gardens that Le Nôtre likely trained to either form a solid background for the statues, or in the case of this picture, to create an arched space to fit the statue into.

So it almost sounds like my text is referring to these hedges, though not sure I can take the liberty of just using that word. Maybe "tall walls of greenery" or something like that, if I stick with the notion of Le Nôtre training the hedges to showcase the statues?

11:13 Dec 18, 2016 

Not usually, no; "cimaise" doesn't inherently carry the sense of delimitation. But maybe that idea is involved here.

11:03 Dec 18, 2016 

Doesn't this mean that an area is surrounded, defined, enclosed?

10:50 Dec 18, 2016 

Very tricky. I think the relevant meaning of "cimaise" is probably "[Dans une galerie d'art, une exposition, etc.] Place de choix, à hauteur de vue", rather than "Boiserie à moulure placée à hauteur d'appui sur les murs d'une pièce et plus particulièrement sur un meuble" (quoting the Trésor). In other words, display space or perhaps display panel. But I'm far from sure.

The expression "cimaises de verdures" is used here, in relation to an exhibition, referring to the gardens of Versailles, and appears to refer to a kind of display panel or display space of greenery for displaying statuary (though I may be misunderstanding it):

"Le Nôtre et les jardins de Versailles : du land art avant l'heure
[...]
Jardinier, oui, mais pour élaguer des dénivelés, tailler des allées majestueuses, planter des parterres d'eau dans l'axe des perspectives, bouturer des fontaines au détour d'un bosquet, palisser des cimaises de verdure destinées à mettre en valeur les statues."
http://www.telerama.fr/scenes/le-notre-et-les-jardins-de-ver...

10:00 Dec 18, 2016 

http://www.wordreference.com/fren/cimaises
http://www.wordreference.com/fren/cime

I believe the author is comparing the natural environment to a museum with its green and leafy picture rails and wall hangings .... you will have to find a way to blend the two in English.