Lovin' the Louvre (groan)
Written: Jul 12 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: You won't find a more perfect collection...
Cons: ...crowds, but they're manageable.
The Bottom Line: Its big and overwhelming, but unmissable.
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| munkus's Full Review: Musée du Louvre |
You should think of the Musee du Louvre like a big fifteen course gourmet French meal. If you try to gobble up everything on offer in a couple of hours you'll end up with indigestion.
The Louvre, quite simply, is perhaps the world's finest museum. It is undoubtedly one of biggest, being 750m long for a start and probably one of the most avoided by tourists, especially those on shorter stays, due to intimidation and worry about crowds. The collection began in 1793 with the conversion of the building from a pre-revolutionary palace to public space with 2,500 paintings. Nowadays, that figure is around 30,000 paintings alone- not including objets d'art, sculpture or the other bits and pieces dotted around the place. If you have even the slightest interest in Western art or human history, visit the Louvre you must.
Since its gazillion dollar renovation, you have to hand it to the French for their organisation. Pre-revolutionary French may have been great at designing palaces, but they had no concept of people flow. Yet the modern French have somehow overcome this. The main entrance is via IM Pei's fantastic glass pyramid- surely one of the late 20th century's architectural masterpieces- and you'll probably have to queue for the security check. If you don't have a bag you'll move through a lot quicker. I arrived mid-morning and probably only queued for around twenty minutes to get inside. Once you're under the pyramid, you descend to the basement. Pick up one of the free maps that are available in ever major language.
Whilst you're queuing to buy your ticket (at around 10 euros- a bargain considering what's on offer) peruse your map and work out what you really want to see. Even more helpfully the superstars of the Louvre's collection are pinpointed on this map so if you wanted to do Art Lite you can whirlwind around the most famous pieces (its do-able but I don't recommend it). Automated ticket machines accept major credit cards and euros, and you'll only have to queue around ten minutes. Considering the popularity of the Louvre, a total queue time of thirty minutes isn't bad.
This central concourse also features a shopping mall of around thirty overpriced shops and is quite beautifully designed- though is so busy it often feels like a rather stylish airport concourse as opposed to the lobby of one of the great treasures of human civilisation. There is direct access to the Metro Palais Royal (line #1) here (probably one of the few subway stations in the world where you can admire Egyptian statues whilst waiting for your train).
There are stacks of places to eat in and around the Louvre, but expect to queue during lunch hours. The food is quite acceptable, probably a bit pricey, but when you've got several tens of thousands more art pieces to look at, you're not fussy. All Louvre staff are multi-lingual, but I earnestly recommend you at least try some French first as you'll be treated much better.
From this central concourse, the galleries are divided into three wings- Denon, Sully and Richelieu. Each is more or less self-contained and you'll find it considerably easier on your geographical orientation if you visit each independently then return to the concourse to access the next. I'm a fan of ancient stuff, so I made a beeline for the Denon wing first.
On the Lower Ground, the access level, you'll find 11th-15thC Italian/Spanish Sculpture, Roman Egypt, Coptic Egypt and Pre-Classical Greece. All of which are quite interesting in their own, rare, way but not really worth your time if you're on a strict deadline. Up a floor you start hitting some of the moneyshots. In 16th-19thC Italian Sculpture you'll find Michelangelo's Dying Slave and Canova's breathtakingly delicate Psyche and Cupid. Next door are Greek, Roman and Estrucan antiquities. Pride of place is given to the magnificent Winged Victory of Samothrace on a grand staircase that magically ensures it never gets crowded. I don't know why I found this particular sculpture so grand, or why anyone finds it so grand, but nonetheless grand it is.
You climb these stairs, paying your respects to headless Victory, to see the Crown Diamonds and the first of the Louvre's painting galleries. The Large Format French Paintings are awe-inspiring- including Gericault's The Raft of the Medusa but visitors make the dash for Italian Paintings 16th-18thC because this is where da Vinci's Mona Lisa is, in new digs with a room designed better for the crowds who swarm it. Give it a fleeting glance over the bobbing heads and supposedly prohibited camera flashes then explore the Spanish Painting galleries.
Return to the central concourse for a quick caffeine fix before moving on to Sully.
Medieval Louvre, on the Lower Ground, was closed on my visit but some of the old foundations could still be seen near the shopping mall. Upstairs you'll find more Greek Antiquities including my personal favourite Venus de Milo which is another one of those works that is spectacular yet you're not sure why. Keep moving and you'll hit Pharaonic Egypt which can be followed chronologically and you'll stumble upon a number of perfectly intact sphinxes and the like. Eventually you'll hit Antique Iran, the Levant and Mesopotamia which have some massive Winged Bulls and the most famous piece, Code of Hammurabi, some of the earliest recorded laws in existence. Up on the top floor is 17th-19thC French painting, which does not particularly interest me so I skipped it. This is by no means a judgement call on the quality of the works, as I'm sure they're magnificent if they're you type of thing.
Return again to the basement for another restorative tonic, probably a double caffeine fix, and hit Richelieu. On the Ground and Lower Ground floors you'll find French Sculpture. Of this collection, you absolutely not miss the Cours Marly and Cours Puget. These two courtyards, under more glass pyramid action, are not only architecturally wonderful they're filled with dynamic sculpture- including the famous Horses of Marly by the largely forgotten Coustou. Up a level are French Sculptures 5th-18thC. By this point my feet were beginning to steam, so I headed up to Napoleon III Apartments on the 1st Floor. They're not easy to get to- though you do pass through some rather neat Objets d'art galleries- but are immensely rewarding. Seven or eight complete rooms are exactly as they were when Napoleon left them (though presumably there has been some light cleaning since) in all their gilded and red velvet glory. The gorgeously opulent State Dining Room was my favourite- with the long table set as if for a meal.
I was absolutely exhausted by this point so I didn't head up to the 2nd floor for 14th-19thC Flemish, French, Dutch and German Paintings though if your tastes lie in this direction you won't find a better collection of Vermeer, Rubens and Durer so I've been assured.
The Louvre is massive- no matter how many times you'll hear this you won't truly understand until you've tried to plot an itinerary that covers everything in under a day. Don't waste valuable art time in the sizeable shops and gift stores- you can access them another time as you don't need to pay for a ticket just to shop.
Also in the building are the Musee de la Mode, Musee de la Publicite and Musee des Arts Decoratif. These are on a separate, cheaper, ticket and aren't as rewarding. The first doesn't exhibit a permanent collection but rather does temporary exhibits either focusing on a theme or a designer. During my visit it was Yohji Yahmamoto. The frocks were interesting, but information on my M. Yahmamoto was deserving of such a homage was scant. Most of the Arts Decoratif was closed for refurbishment, but there was a beautifully presented exhibition on jewellery. I didn't bother with the Publicite (advertising) though I admire the unique concept. The shop for these three museums is one of the best museum shops I've ever seen.
The downside of being the world's most popular museum in the world's most popular tourist city is that crowds can be overwhelming. Yet the Louvre is so massive that it can comfortably absorb the numbers of bobbing heads from every corner of the globe. Around the moneymakers, Mona Lisa in particular, can be a bit annoying but you'll also find whole galleries almost entirely to yourself. You can purchase tickets in advance to cut back on a bit of queuing, but I personally didn't find queues that unbearable here as they kept moving.
The Louvre is one of those sights that everyone on the planet should see at least once in their life. Just one visit is woefully inadequate obviously, but the treasures within are so outstanding you can overlook any crowding. Plus, those modern French sure have improved on their revolutionary ancestors in people flow.
Wear very comfortable shoes.
Recommended:
Yes
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munkus
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Location: Ruritania
Reviews written: 205
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About Me:
Munkus now lives in America. He is the size of a house.
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