The Louvre

Being in Paris I just had to go to the Louvre, the biggest art gallery in the world. Located in a former royal palace, the building itself is stunning. The entrance is through the glass pyramid you can see in the photo. The pyramid was built in 1989 and mighty controversial at the time!

The Louvre

One of the first things I saw was a series of famous French historical paintings. My favourite was the famous 'Liberty leading the People' by Eugene Delacroix - painted to commemorate the French Revolution. Despite being 190 years old, this painting is still controversial with some monarchists! My other favourites included the 2,200 year old masterpiece 'Winged Victory of Samothrace', the sculpture was originally from the Island of Samothrace in the Aegean ocean, and was devoted to the goddess Nike. The sculpture was originally created to commemorate a battle at sea, and was placed in a temple where the winds came off the sea. It was sculpted in marble to capture the effect of the wind on the folds of the goddesses gown. The neoclassical sculpture 'Psyche revived by Cupid's kiss' is also super beautiful.

Liberty leading the People. 1830. by Eugene Delacroix

Winged Victory of Samothrace. Est. 200 BC

Psyche revived by Cupid's Kiss. 1787 by Antonio Canova

Any trip to the Louvre would not be complete without seeing the Mona Lisa of course. There were little signs pointing the way there. The sight of the crowds of people looking at/taking photos of/getting selfies with the Mona Lisa is just as noteworthy as the painting itself! It has it's own room, it's own special guards, bullet proof glass. Sure, its a nice painting, and an early example of atmospheric perspective (where the hills in the background grow bluer as they recede into the distance), but there are plenty of other great paintings nearby that don't get a tenth of the attention. Such is fame I suppose! 

The Mona Lisa

Huge crowd in front of the Mona Lisa!

Me at the Louvre!

The history of art is a pretty clear depiction of who was powerful at the time. Artworks from the middle ages are nearly all religious due to the wealth of the church, Kings and Queens were also depicted, but later on so were wealthy merchants. Some of my favourites were the paintings of actual people. I would love to be able to time travel, but as that is impossible, the next best thing is history, and these paintings are a way at peeping back at the past. 

If you get a chance, visit the Louvre. There is room after room of incredible art works from all parts of the world. Just be sure to wear comfortable shoes!

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