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Francis I, the first monarch to
build the Louvre, was a great connoisseur and collector of art. The work was
carried on during the reign of Louis XIII. Under the rule of Henry IV the Grande Galerie (Grand Gallery), now the main picture gallery, was completed. It
borders the Seine and dates back to the early 17th century.
Napoleon’s rule saw the addition of two wings to the museum – the Cour
Carree and one on the northern side along the rue
de Rivoli.
Major additions were made in
the 19th century. The chief minister of Louis XIII took a lot of
initiative in acquiring and planning the display of art pieces in the palace. In
fact a committee was formed consisting of authorities in the subject and the
part of Louvre that is known as the Colonnade materialized.
Louis XIV shifted his court to
Versailles and the Louvre ceased to be used as the royal residence. Then the
idea of using the Louvre as a public museum was mooted and accordingly efforts
were made to acquire more works of art. The year 1793 saw the Louvre being
thrown open to the public as a museum of art.
After all the additions were
made, the completed Louvre was a
majestic complex of buildings – 48 acres in area. Two main quadrilateral and
two large courtyards formed an imposing home for works of art that had been
painstakingly handpicked through the years. In 1848, the Louvre was declared a
state property. Napoleon made additions to the collection by depositing works of
art seized during his conquests. Many of these however found their way back to
the original owners after his downfall. During the two world wars, the priceless
pieces housed in the Louvre were removed to safe places to avoid any damage to
them.
The
visual feast
The entrance to the Louvre is
crowned by an imposing structure – a steel and glass pyramid designed by the
Chinese born American architect I. M. Pei.
The painting collection that the Louvre houses represents all periods of
European art. Masterpieces by Italian Renaissance painters can also be found
here.
As for works from other
countries, some excellent works of Flemish and Dutch painters can also be found
here. The main attraction of the Louvre is the paintings by Italian Renaissance
painter Leonardo da Vinci. His famous Mona Lisa can be seen here. The credit for
bringing them to the Louvre goes to Francis I. Cardinal Richelieu and by
Cardinal Mazarin were two others who added greatly to the collections. It was
under their guidance that many works of art belonging to Charles I of England
were purchased. The Victory of Samothrace
and the Venus de Milo, famous
sculptures of the ancient world, can be seen here. Raphael, Titian, Peter Paul
Rubens and Rembrandt are some of the other great artists whose works can be seen
here.
The
museum’s administration
Seven curatorial departments have
been formed to oversee the smooth functioning of the museum. The departments
have earmarked areas like Egyptian antiquities, Oriental antiquities, Greek,
Roman and Etruscan antiquities etc. One department takes of the objects de art and drawings and print, and there is a Department of
paintings too, which is considered to be the authority on paintings on the
world. Additions were made quite extensively in the 1980s and 1990s to ensure
that the museum was able to accommodate modern needs like vehicle parking, bus
depots, restaurants, shops, etc.
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