Paris Art Museums

I'll make a two quick notes before getting into the art museums that I have visited in Paris so far.

• Google took some of the photos that I posted last year and automatically turned them into a video review of 2014. The video displays the photos out of order and flips through them very quickly, but the interesting part is that Google's algorithm to build the video somehow correctly deduced that my trips to Belgium and Luxembourg were less significant than my trips to Munich, Barcelona and Rome, because the photos of the former two are hardly seen at all. (It probably goes by number of pictures.) The video can be found here: https://plus.google.com/photos/113839059947437389971/yearinphotos2014?authkey=CL6roaDsxbGyYg.
• I am well and in good health; the terrorist attacks in Paris have led to heightened security in and around many office buildings in the area, and have also led to various rallies around Paris, but the only other noticeable change in the city was the long lineups of people trying to buy Charlie Hebdo publications at the local newsstands during the following two weeks. 

On to the subject of art museums. I've been visiting art museums in Paris at a clip of about once per month which, when combined with my visits to an art museum (or equivalent) on most of my trips to other cities, has actually made me a little weary of fine art (even masterpieces at this point). So I'll be taking a break from the Paris art scene for a while. However, for the art lovers out there, I thought I should at least quickly summarize the places that I visited over the past few months.

The Louvre

The most famous art museum in the world. The Louvre is very large, divided into three wings that could each stand on its own as a great museum. After two long visits to the museum, I feel that I've seen approximately 85% of the museum, and I tend to view art quicker than most, so it would probably take most visitors three to four days to see everything. The Louvre has collections of ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman art, Islamic art, Renaissance and Impressionist paintings, and even some works from various aboriginal cultures (including Canada). In other words, it has a wide variety and a lot of it.

(I have more pictures at an earlier post: http://paullivinginparis.blogspot.com/2014/10/a-day-at-louvre.html)

The Venus de Milo, by Alexandros of Antioch.

One of personal favourites at the Louvre: Les Plâtreries, près de Fontainebleu, by François-Auguste Biard. The use of contrasting colours to display brightness in the background reminds me of the luminist works of Colonial American art.

The Louvre is the most visited museum in the world, so as expected it is very crowded in the areas featuring its most famous art works (particularly the Mona Lisa, the halls leading to the Mona Lisa, and the Venus de Milo). However, the areas displaying lesser known works, especially at the far ends of each wing, were much less crowded (and sometimes even felt deserted). This gave me the feeling that a significant portion of the visitors were tourists on a limited timetable, who were focusing their efforts on seeing the most famous works. However, my experience may not be indicative of the museum on most days, as my two visits were both on the first Sunday of the month, when admission was free and the crowds were larger.

In any event, the Louvre is a must-see for anyone visiting Paris, whether you're a casual tourist taking a beeline route straight to the famous pieces or an art buff repeatedly making day-long viewings. (Hint: if you buy tickets in advance or go on a free admission day, you can use the Porte des Lions entrance and skip the long lines in front of the pyramid.)


Musée d'Orsay

Musée d'Orsay is a large museum featuring Impressionist art (e.g. Monet, Renoir, Manet) but also including other famous artists from the 19th century Post-Impressionist era (e.g. Van Gogh, Cézanne). While most of the collection is comprised of paintings, there are also a few sculptures to balance out the display.

One of the museum's best known works, Starry Night (over the Rhone), by Vincent Van Gogh.

The center hall of Musée d'Orsay, containing most of the museum's sculptures.

The museum is located along the Seine, near a harbour where a lot of tour boats make regular stops, so d'Orsay gets a lot of tourist traffic. However, the museum is housed in a former train station (Gare d'Orsay) which is large enough to accommodate the traffic and avoid the crowded feeling that you get in the Louvre. I would recommend visiting the museum to any art lover, although a more casual tourist would prefer either the Louvre or a smaller (i.e. less time-consuming) museum such as Rodin or l'Orangerie.


Musée Jacquemart-André

Musée Jacquemart-André is a former mansion containing the private collection of Édouard André and Nélie Jacquemart. Like most private collection museums converted from former residences, Jacquemart-André is small compared to design-built museums like the Louvre or l'Orangerie, and it does not permanently exhibit any world famous paintings (although there was a temporary exhibit of Perugin, Master of Raphael when I visited), but the mansion itself is an interesting site with numerous salons and courtrooms each having their own unique mood and colour scheme. I viewed the entire museum in about two and a half hours.

One of the first salons that I saw in Jacquemart-André. I guess this would have been their foyer.

The workshop.

The museum is located in the 8th arrondissement, but out of the way of major tourist routes, so it had the advantage of being tranquil and less crowded, with none of the commercialized touristy vibe that nearly everything else in Paris has. However, half the paintings in the museum were portraits of relatives and wealthy friends of the collectors, and the collection could be considered mundane compared to other museums in the city. I would only recommend Jacquemart-André for art fanatics who have already seen the other big name museums around Paris.


Musée Rodin

The Musée Rodin focuses on the works of sculptor Auguste Rodin, although it also contains a few Renoir and Van Gogh paintings that belonged to the sculptor. Most of the sculptures are outdoors, in the gardens of Rodin's former home, so the viewing doubles as a pleasant walk in the park. Many of Rodin's famous works are on display here, including the Gates of Hell, the Kiss, and the Thinker.

 

The Thinker, by Auguste Rodin, and another thinker.

The Gates of Hell, by Auguste Rodin. This sculpture incorporates many of Rodin's other sculptures. The Thinker can be found at the center, just above the doors; while The Three Shades can be seen at the very top. The full version of the Three Shades are also at the museum, about 15 meters away, facing the Gates of Hell.

The museum is small enough that everything can be viewed in under two hours. Given the high quality of works and the small size of the museum, I would recommend a visit for anyone on a short visit to Paris who only wants a small sampling of fine art.


Musée de l'Orangerie

The Musée de l'Orangerie is also a relatively small museum (it can be viewed entirely in about two hours). Their collection focuses on Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art, and contains an impressive array of works from famous artists of that time period, including Renoir, Monet, Matisse, Cézanne, and Picasso. There are about six to seven works of each major artist, enough to get a sampling of their style but not too much to allow any one artist to dominate the collection.



Nympéas, by Claude Monet, one of his several water lily murals on the top floor of the museum.

Fruits, serviette et boite à lait, by Paul Cézanne. The asymmetry of the table is often used as an example of how Cézanne abandoned plausibility for aesthetics.

I felt that l'Orangerie had artwork at the same magnitude as d'Orsay, but the former is tucked away in a corner of the Tuileries Garden so it doesn't get the same attention (or tourist traffic) of the latter. The other downside is that it contains more still life paintings than I would have liked (landscape paintings are much more compelling), although still life seemed to be a popular subject for 19th century artists. Nevertheless, I would recommend visiting l'Orangerie, particularly if you're a fan of Cézanne or Renoir.


Musée du Luxembourg

My visit to this museum was a fluke. I happened to be in the area, walking through Luxembourg Gardens, and noticed that the Musée du Luxembourg was holding an exhibition of Impressionist art by Manet, Monet, and Renoir (from the private collection of Paul Durand-Ruel). While the exhibition of about 30 pieces was impressive, it ended up representing the entire museum, so I was disappointed, especially given the 14 Euro price of admission.

The Musée du Luxembourg changes their exhibition about every five months, so it could be displaying something completely different by the time you visit Paris, but given that there are so many other great art museums in the city, I would not recommend this particular museum unless you are here on a very short visit (i.e. pressed for time) and happen to be at the Luxembourg Gardens (which is a park I would recommend visiting, even on a short trip).

Les Filles de Paul Durand-Ruel, Marie-Thérèse et Jeanne, by Pierre Auguste Renoir. This painting was displayed in a dark room with a spotlight that accentuated the vivid colours of the trees and dresses.

So those were the six art museums that I have visited in Paris so far. I also plan to visit the Musée Marmottan, the Musée National d'Art Moderne, and the Musée Nissam de Camondo over the next year and a half, but am taking a break from the Paris museums for a while. Hopefully, my next post will be from a city on the Mediterranean coast, although I am waiting to book one of three cities pending the first one to have warm weather.