Louvre Museum of Art Visit - Essay Example

My Visit to Louvre Museum of Art Traveling through history is overwhelming. The very thought of the visit to Louvre enlightened my spirits. I was waiting for a long time to visit “one of the oldest, largest, and most famous art galleries and museums in the world.” (Louvre, 2007) it was the former residence of the kings of France. My friends Allen, McLean, and Susan shared their feelings and thoughts with me. We already acquired some basic details about the history of the museum Louvre: The first Louvre was a fortress built at the beginning of the 13th century by Philip II Augustus to defend the Seine below Paris against the Normans and English…In 1564 Catherine de Médicis had her architect, Philibert Delorme, build a little château in a neighboring field to the west called the Tuileries. It was then decided to create a grandiose royal residence by joining the Louvre and the Palais des Tuileries by a series of buildings….In the 17th century Louis XIII and his minister Richelieu extended Lescots west wing northward by adding the majestically domed Pavillon de lHorloge (clock pavillion) by Jacques Lemercier and recreating Lescots building beyond it. (2) After the Revolution in 1789, Napoleon I and other kings lived in Tuileries. Then, the Louvre was forming slowly when France’s victorious armies brought back artworks from all over the Europe. Their aim was to establish the greatest European Museum. Later additions were made when art works from Italy were brought later. The last program of renovation started in the late 1980s by the plans of Chinese-American architect Ieoh Ming Pei. The glass pyramid in the central courtyard is constructed by him. “The present Louvre departments include Oriental (ancient Mesopotamian) antiquities; Egyptian antiquities; Greek and Roman antiquities; sculpture from the Middle Ages to modern times; furniture and objects dart; and paintings representing all the European schools. A section of the museum is devoted to Islamic art” (2) Everyone enters the museum through the glass pyramid, but my friend Alan had told us that the main entrance will be crowded. So, we entered the museum through Rue de Rivoli entrance, and then went to the underground shopping area, and this helped us save one of the two lines. At the entrance, we found automated ticket machines. Unfortunately, on that day, those machines were out of order. Still, we managed to secure tickets without waiting for long time in the queue, from one of the shops. Ticket cost was E8.50 per person, and that provided access to all exhibits, except the temporary exhibits for which additional payment was needed. Since the museum was so large, it was very difficult for one to travel through and find out the halls without the help of a map. One map was given with the admission ticket. Looking at the map we began our journey through each hall. I felt that Louvre Museum offers at least something for everyone. We were a part of a large group. Our group leader has suggested the idea of dividing ourselves into sub-groups. So, we became four. Otherwise, it would have been very difficult to enjoy the splendor and magnificence of the museum. The Louvre is not just a collection of paintings; it is a huge storehouse of sculpture, artifacts from different cultures and Napoleon’s Apartments. Moreover, the building itself is an architectural attraction having a big history. One of our friends, who visited Museum Louvre, told us before our journey that it would be very difficult to see all the attractions at one visit. Even if we have time, we may not have the stamina to walk for hours through all the places. “Spanning eight thematic departments and 35,000 pieces of artwork dating from the antiquity to the early modern period”, Louvre covers a big area. (3) So, first we went to the Denon wing, which is considered as the main attraction of the museum. The world famous pieces of art such as Mona Lisa (and the Wedding Feast at Cana across from it), the Winged Victory and the Venus DeMilo made this wing famous in the Louvre. We decided to start from Mona Lisa. In order to see Mona Lisa, we went to the 13th-15th century Italian paintings section on the first floor. On the way, to Mona Lisa, we managed to see some other Italian works also. The grand gallery had some other DaVinci paintings too. We walked through the way where the murder takes place in “The DaVinci Code”. The huge crowd elbowing their way before us was an indication that we have reached near the classic in the history of art. There were probably about 200 people surrounding Mona Lisa, and it took for us about 19 minutes before we could see it. I had downloaded the Da Vinci Code Sound-walk from audible.com. The French police officer from the movie narrates the tour, and he gives us details of the paintings. He also points out to us the small details that we fail to notice. It was a new experience for me. The most cherished moment came to me when the immortal painting was visible to me through the glass protection. I stared at Mona Lisa’s face and smile for a long time, as if waiting for her to say something. The officials were trying their best to stop viewers from taking photos, but it was found that many were taking snaps. I got about 3 minutes in front of the ‘mysterious lady’ before the official pushed me off. On the opposite side of that small rectangle, we could see paintings such as The Raft of the Medusa and Liberty Leading the People. Our next destination was Venus. “The Aphrodite of Milos, better known as the Venus de Milo, is an ancient Greek statue and one of the most famous works of ancient Greek sculpture. It is believed to depict Aphrodite (called Venus by the Romans), the Greek goddess of love and beauty.” (Venus De Milo. 2007). The crowd around Venus was comparatively less, and I got more time to spent around the handless Venus de Milo. The statue was absolutely amazing, and I walked around it more than five times to enjoy its beauty to the maximum. Venus is sculptured in marble, and has a larger than life size. Its arms and the original base have been lost. The brochures tell us that we are not allowed to take photos, but I found everyone taking photos, so I too took some photos that I didn’t do with Mona Lisa. Another major attraction was The Winged Victory of Samothrace, which is one of the most celebrated sculptures in the world. The crowd was no less here also. That is a marvelous marble sculpture of the Grek goddess Nike. The other works I enjoyed there are The Wedding at Cana, The Virgin and Child with St. Anne and The Virgin and Child with Saint John the Baptist. It was amazing to travel through all those eternal representations of art and culture. It was so hot and humid inside the halls, which made some uneasiness throughout my appreciation of the paintings. Richelieu Wing is situated on the opposite side of the old palace, which is decorated with the works of old masters. It was so stimulating to see all those fascinating displays there. We could see there some other antiquities such as the stone with Hammurbai’s Code. After spending a lot of time there, we felt hungry. Susan suggested the Richelieu Café on the second floor. The service that we received there was excellent, and we were surprised to see that the prices were as reasonable as we could find in any museum cafeteria in the States. But the difference we could find here was the warmth of the atmosphere at the Richelieu. Outdoor dining is also provided here, but we found it good to have it inside the café itself. After the tasty dish from the café, we made no specific plans but roamed around to see other surprises. It was fascinating to see the Egyptian exhibits and the Assyrian artifacts. When we exited from the museum, we went to the decorated shops to buy the unbelievably luxurious pieces of glass shaped to small and beautiful works of art. The place outside the Louvre, Les Jardins, was so beautiful with many statues and flower gardens. We got a marvelous view of the Eiffel Tower from there. The thing I disliked about the visit was that I got really very little time to roam around the museum, so I missed many other famous paintings and sculptures. Four hours was not enough to see even a quarter of the exhibits there. Still my mind wishes to go back there, see it again, and enjoy it more. References Louvre. (2007). Wikipedia. Retrieved December 9, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre Retrieved December 9, 2007, from http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/Paris/Museums-Paris/Louvre.shtml Retrieved December 9, 2007, from http://goparis.about.com/od/parismuseums/a/Louvre_Museum.htm Venus De Milo. (2007). Wikipedia. Retrieved December 9, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_de_Milo Read More