The Louvre works: paintings, statues, murals

The world-famous Louvre museum attracts millions of tourists every year. The works of the Louvre - it's a superbly composed collection that allows you to trace the whole history of art. There are undeniable masterpieces that every person who claims to be educated must know and see at least once in his life.

Founding of the Louvre Museum

August 10, 1793 for the first time opened its doors one of the most important museums in the world - the Louvre. The idea of creating a public museum with a display of works of art arose after the French Revolution, when it was decided to put royal values on public display. Since the day of the revolution, the national government has begun to confiscate works of art from the aristocracy, so it was the beginning of the museum's collection. For a few years, a large number of valuables were collected, for their exposure it was necessary to have a spacious building, which became the old castle.

The building of the Louvre

The works of the Louvre demanded a lot of space, and the views of the organizers of the museum turned to a large empty palace in the middle of Paris. This building has a long history. The heart of the Louvre is the Great Tower, built in 1190. Its purpose was purely utilitarian - from the height was observed the approaching Vikings. In 1317 Charles the Fifth made the castle his residence, here the treasury of Paris moves. Over the years of operation the old tower has decayed and been demolished, especially since the castle lost its defensive function and became a royal dwelling. Francis First in 1546 instructed this work Pierre Lescaut. Before him was the task of rebuilding the fortress, making it a real palace. The designer proposes to build a square courtyard, three sides of which are decorated with luxurious rooms, and the fourth - an open exit to the city center. During the life of the architect, only the western wing managed to finish the construction, which today bears his name. His project was realized by 1555 and became a splendid example of Renaissance architecture. In 1594, Henry the Fourth decided that it was necessary to connect the Louvre with the Tuileries Palace. In 1655-1670 Louis Prevost extends the palace and increases it fourfold. Under Louis the Fourteenth, the eastern facade is decorated with a colonnade, it attracts many well-known European architects, but in 1682 it cooled to the project and moved the residence to Versailles. For almost a hundred years, the Louvre is empty, dilapidated, and even the ideas of its demolition appear. Louis XVI thought about creating a museum in the palace, his idea was realized after the revolution.

Under Napoleon First, the northern facade is being rebuilt, and in 1853 the whole complex of the Louvre was completed. In 1891, the appearance of the palace developed, which we see today. The last significant architectural restructuring happened in 1989, when a glass pyramid was built in the courtyard by the American architect Yo Ming Pei - the main entrance to the museum.

Collections of the Louvre: history and principles of creation

The first works of the Louvre began to gather even under Louis the Fourteenth, who in the spirit of his time began to create an art collection. The basis of the collection were paintings of Italian artists, bought by Francis First. Louis the Fourteenth buys a large collection of paintings (200 paintings) from the banker Zhabakh. The king is constantly looking for an opportunity to replenish his meeting. He increased the fund of the future museum to 2500 canvases, acquired various art objects. After the revolution, the museum collection begins to replenish due to confiscated values. The fund of the Museum of Sculpture is transferred to the Louvre. During the Napoleonic conquests, the Louvre funds are actively replenished due to trophies, due to archaeological excavations in Egypt and the East. Also, the museum management, with its own funds, conducts work on the selection and purchase of art objects. The collection is not formed spontaneously, the choice of works is determined by artistic value, only masterpieces enter the Louvre. Many significant collectors bequeathed their collections to the Louvre. So, in 1936 the museum accepted a collection of graphics by Baron Edmond Rothschild in the number of more than 45 thousand exhibits. Also much attention is paid to the formation of the collection of French national art. Today in the Louvre there are about 400 exhibits, and the collection continues to form. In connection with the growth of funds in the late 20 th century begins an active redistribution of works of art between the museums of France. The Louvre limited the soviet assembly to the date of the year 1848, and all later paintings diverged in other collections.

Today, the museum's collection is conventionally divided into groups: the art of the Ancient East, Ancient Egypt, the ancient world, Islamic art, painting, graphics, arts and crafts.

The Art of the Ancient World

Most of the museum's funds are items of ancient art. The works of the Louvre in the Department of Ancient Art are represented by several regions. A huge part of the collection is made up of objects found during excavations in Egypt, including the famous figure of Ramses II, sculptures "Seated cat", sphinxes, sarcophagi, ceramics, ornaments and many other things, including wall paintings, bas-reliefs, interior elements. The art of the Ancient East is represented by collections of art objects from the cultures of Mesopotamia, Iran, the Mediterranean.

Masterpieces of ancient sculpture

The basis of the collection of sculpture was the acquisition of Louis the Fourteenth. Today in the museum collection there are true masterpieces, such as "Venus de Milo" - a sculpture that attracts a lot of visitors. Often, in order to see this masterpiece, tourists come to the Louvre. Another significant work of the times of antiquity is the sculpture "Nika Samothrace", which the French archaeologist Shampoizo found and brought to Paris. The Roman period is represented by a huge number of statues, bas-reliefs, pedestals. The courtyard of the ancient sculpture in the Louvre, bathed in the sun through the glass roof, allows you to immerse yourself in a world of harmony and perfection.

The Legacy of Leonardo da Vinci

A special attraction for tourists and art lovers is the painting "Mona Lisa". Many people come to the museum solely to see her mysterious smile. But besides this, the Louvre can be proud of four more works of the great master. No less significant, but slightly less famous is the work "Madonna in the rocks." This work, created in the eighties of the 15th century, has been in the royal collection since 1625. It is distinguished by a superbly prescribed landscape behind the backs of the characters, here the author tries those techniques, which later will fully apply when writing "Gioconda". "Madonna in the rocks" - this is the first version of the work on this story, the second version is in the London Museum. Also, the Louvre is justly proud of such works as "Portrait of a Young Woman", "Madonna and Child with St. Anna "and" John the Baptist ".

Masterpieces of world classics

The Louvre Museum is one of the greatest museums in the world, and its fame, of course, is a masterpiece of a planetary scale. These include, first and foremost, the "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo da Vinci, but also here you can see the landmark work of Theodore Gericault "The Raft of Medusa", several works by Jacques David, in particular, "The Coronation of Napoleon". The rare work of I. Bosch "Ship of Fools" is also the pearl of the museum collection. The Louvre is the happy owner of the paintings of S. Botticelli, Raphael Santi, H. Memling, A. Durer and many other authors. In the department of sculpture undoubted hits are two works by Michelangelo: "The Dying Slave" and "The Risen Slave".

French Art

The collection of national art in the Louvre represents all periods and types of creativity. There are many masterpieces in the collection, for example, Eugene Delacroix's picture "Freedom leading the people". It accurately conveys the mood that reigned in the country during the Revolution. It became a symbol of the new art and the Republic. The plastic art of the country is represented, among other things, by the figure of a Greek athlete made of marble. "Milton of Crotone with a lion" - a significant work of the French sculptor Pierre Puger in the style of ancient masters. The work is amazing with the expressiveness and power of emotions. "Milton of Crotone with the Lion" shows the scene of incredible human suffering, the strength of the athlete and his spirit.

Graphic arts

In the graphic collection of the Louvre there are more than 130 thousand exhibits. These halls are mostly not accessible to tourists, true connoisseurs of the beautiful go here. After all, in the Louvre collection there are a lot of books, drawings, prints of the best authors of the world. Including drawings by H. Rembrant, J. Chardin, E. Delacroix.

Decorative and applied arts

A special pride of the museum is the collection of arts and crafts. Items of decoration, decorations, costumes, utensils of different eras are represented in several halls of the Louvre. First of all they draw attention to the apartments of Napoleon the Third. There is a complete furnishing and decoration of the main hall in the style of Louis XIV and Fifteenth. Here you can see luxurious furniture, dishes, interior items. But the museum also possesses excellent examples of weapons and ornaments from the times of the Restoration and the reign of Napoleon the First. Of great interest is a collection of utensils, decorations and ornaments of the Gothic, Baroque, Italian and French Revival times. The collection of furniture in the Louvre is one of the best in the world.

What to see

To see all the exhibits of the Louvre, not enough for a few months, and if you look carefully, then a few years. But, when it is not possible to give the museum so much time, you need to think about the route and answer the question: what can not be missed? There is a developed tour of the Louvre, which will allow you to see the most important thing. For hurrying tourists in the museum, the masterpieces are placed in the first halls at the entrance, and there are special indexes to avoid getting lost. But some works worthy of attention are placed in the relevant sections, so, the picture of Eugene Delacroix "Freedom, the leading people", is in the collection of French art. Therefore, you need to navigate the scheme of the museum and find the right room. Schemes are issued at the entrance free of charge in several languages, including Russian.

In order not to get lost in the vast space and see the most important thing, you can use a special list of major masterpieces, which include: the statue "Venus of Milo", the sculpture of antiquity - "Nika Samothrace", paintings "The Great Odalisque" J. Ingra and "Lacemaker" J. Vermeer, the work of Leonardo da Vinci, the statue of Ramses II.