A PLEASUREABLE WANDER

septembre 27, 2015

On Monday I was looking at an Art Application on the iPhone. What to go and see? As is often the case at the « Rentrée » as we call it here - back to school/work or what have you, not too much opens at the beginning of September, more like mid September. Then I had a minor brain wave. Let’s just go and wander around in the Louvre. I have been in France for nearly 45 years and must have been to the Louvre as often or even more times and yet, I’ve always gone with the purpose of seeing something in particular. This time it would be without a purpose - and that is rare for me.

Of course there was one. The Winged Victory of Samothrace

It was unveiled in July 2014 after nearly a year of restoration. The stairway where she was shown in all her glory has looked very empty all that time.

This monumental statue of the winged goddess of victory (also known as the Nike of Samothrace), standing in the prow of a ship set on a low plinth, was offered to the great gods of Samothrace following a naval victory. It was discovered in 1863 by Charles Champoiseau in a temple on the island of Samothrace in the northern Aegean Sea. The monument was dispatched to the Louvre, where it has since experienced various stages of conservation.

The fourth rennovation "treatment", which has just been completed, and revealed the splendid colors of the marble providing a new insight into the way the statue was conceived and presented. In fact it really looks too clean for its age!

For some reason I knew the name of the staircase where she was situated and also remembered that whenever I wanted to find the statue « on purpose » - I inevitably got lost. Difficult to believe isn’t it that when I asked for instructions to get to the Daru staircase, no-one knew where it was. Then I asked for the Winged Victory and couldn’t get further than that before I was drowned in instructions…..

So that is where the wandering began.

Called "Le Tibre" between 80 and 140 After J.C.

Called Pupien

Have to be tall to see

Through the Italians and this is what was in front of the Mona Lisa -

Now it was my eye that made me stop in front of something. Certainly not too many of the religious propaganda but paintings where the faces of those portrayed showed fear, astonishment, amazement and so on…..

From the Italians

SASSETTA "The Happy Ranieri letting prisoners out in Florence : Between 1437 and 1444

GIOVANNI Thétis and Pelée's wedding around 1490

From a tryptique by BRACCESCO - The Annonciation around 1478 - She looks a little alarmed don't you think?

Caravage - The Fortune Teller - 1595-98


Le Dominiquin Saint Cecile with angel holding the music - 1617-18

It looks as if I am looking at the back of the statue ! I'm in the mirror

LAURI - Apollon skinning Marsyas Date ?

then to the French

GROS - Napoleon in the Battle field 1771-1835

Géricault - The Raft of the Medusa- 1818-19

DELACROCHE - Bonaparte crossing the Alps - 848

and further onto the Spanish

GOYA - Still Life with Sheep's head - 1808-12 (Soutine must have seen this)

EL GRECO Saint Louis, King of France and a page 1585-90

This time I was looking in a general way at the different galleries and then suddenly, something would catch my attention.

FUSELI Lady Macbeth 18thC

PARMIGIANINO "Ste Catherine's mystic wedding" around 1527

Mother and child but a strange position 15th C

DELAROCHE - part of the painting. King Edwards children look like old men. 1797-1856

This certainly did. It’s rare today to see a nun in her religious Habit. When my aunt (who is a nun in the Sister of Mercy Order) came to Paris and wore Bermuda shorts to visit a local church, she was given very short shift….

There were those we know too but I seemed to « fall upon them » and looked at them in a different way.   It was a lovely couple of hours and I must do it again.