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Musée du Louvre - Notes
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Notes and facts about the Louvre
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Musee De LouvrePeople misjudge the Louvre, often associating the Pyramid shape with Egypt which seems
almost stereotypical. It seems as though these people are almost too narrow minded to
understand the concept of art and how it can mean and relate to different things in different
concepts, situations, places etc.
It’s only the viewers of the art, the audience that determines what each piece of art
represents, each and every person will interpret it in a different way depending on what they
see, how it speaks to them, what it represents for them personally.
It also varies from person to person, what they are doing at the Louvre and why they decided
to visit. Some will love the historical background of the museum and where it is situated, of
course some will simply go to say they have seen the Mona Lisa, because it is perhaps one
of the most famous artworks in existence, however that is still a valid reason. As a lover of
art, you appreciate less known pieces too, but to say you’ve seen the Mona Lisa in person,
in my opinion, is something every art lover/artist wants to be able to say. Some might just go
to say they’ve been in the greatest art gallery that exists and to them that also holds
meaning.
Of course it is the curators, the taste pickers, who determine what the people get to see, but
still even they pick the best of the best, which makes the Louvre even more magnificent and
more appealing to the eye. They pick the best examples of beauty, the best structured and
most innovative, history defining pieces.
The history of the building and where it is located, is one of the most appealing things to me
personally about the Louvre, it’s simply cool to be able to step inside a place where you
know “Many dramas in French history” unfolded while it was still part of the palace. The
Louvre isn’t just about the works of art it holds inside, the building itself is a work of art, and
it’s surrounded by marvelous, rich history. The architectural side of buildings and places like
the Louvre, are often overlooked and underrated in my opinion, which is a shame because
it’s a fun thing to have some background knowledge and spark up a conversation about the
Louvre building rather than the museum. ”It would take another 250 years for the project to
be completed.” I’d be drawn into that conversation immediately, who would have known it
took so long to get to the Louvre we know now!
Napoleon commissioned his architects to complete the grand plan but it was left incomplete
until his nephew seized control of the government in 1851 ultimately declaring himself
Emperor Napoleon III. By 1866 the Louvre was finally complete but it all ended badly of
course with Napoleon's defeat in the Franco-Prussian war 1870-71 when the Tuileries and
several other buildings were gutted by fire. Their ruins stood for ten years but in the end the
royal palace was pulled down. And it remained this way for 100 years until President
Mitterand announced a plan to dedicate the entire building to the museum - project Grande
Louvre.
When teh British decided to cut off King Charles I’s head, his finest paintings were sold off
by Oliver Cromwell and somehow found their way to the collection of Louis XIV - so most of
these paintings are not in a British museum, but in the Louvre.
, When the french cut of their kings head, they decided to form the national art museum out of
the royal collection because while they wanted to end the era of royal tyranny, they
considered it the right of free men and women of France to have access to the great works
of art of the past.
Some of the most famous paintings in the Louvre were collected by Francis I. He acquired
Raphael’s La Belle Jardiniere painted in 1508 - now generally considered one of the most
important works in the Louvre. Paintings like this became a valuable asset shown off to
visiting dignitaries as a sign of the King's culture.
Da Vinci also came from Italy to France where the King gave him his own Chateau and is
thought to have brought the most famous painting of them all with him: The Mona Lisa.
What Francis was collecting, was at the time modern art.
paintings collected by Francis I formed the core of the most prized selection of works, which
were displayed in the Salon Carré from 1840 onwards. In the Salon Carré were also
paintings that had originally belonged to Charles I of England, and had been acquired by
Louis XIV.
Francis I was also a keen collector of antique sculpture. He had this antique statue of Diana
repaired. We can see that Diana was originally holding a bow, but the restorer added a deer,
to make associations with Francis’s favorite sport - hunting - even more obvious.
In the next century, Louis XIV’s wealth and power allowed him to extend the royal collection
of antique sculptures. An antique type much favored by the court, was the Crouching
Aphrodite. This is one that was discovered in Vienne in France in the seventeenth century.
The kings collection of antique sculptures provided models for his artists. This sculpture was
commissioned by the king for Versailles in 1685 and was signed by Coysevox, with the
signature in imitation of Phidias, written in Greek lettering.
part of the point of collecting antique and Renaissance art was to train up artists to use their
skill in the service of the crown. From 1600, for two hundred years, the kings painters were
given lodgings in the Louvre.
In 1648 the Royal Academy of Painting was founded to give these artists a proper training,
and this too was housed in the palace of the Louvre. Now artists received into the academy
were guaranteed a job for life.
Comparing the skills of different artists at composition, drawing, color and expression,
became a staple form of debate which informed current art practice.
In 1622, Rubens had been commissioned to paint a cycle of huge paintings,
commemorating the achievements of Marie de Medici, mother of King Louis XIII.
Having ready access to these works in the Royal Collection formed the basis of an artists
education.
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