Italian Mob take over the Louvre

The mob of people headed to the Italian painting galleries to see her majesty.


The Louvre may be a French museum, but the massive crowds are there to see the Italians. And why not? Long after Marie Antoinette lost her head, there still remains an immortal Queen holding court in this former Royal Palace. And mon dieu, she's not even French! Her name is Lisa del Giocondo, and she has, one could easily argue, the most famous face in the world. I think the Mona Lisa is absolutely incredible, and that she deserves all the attention she commands. Unlike her fellow celebrities over in the New World who get photographed exiting limos whilst knicker-less, or videotaped cavorting with ill-bred commoners; Mona Lisa never loses her poise. And what poise! She shames the crowds who gawk at her, pushing cameras in her face, blasting millions of flashbulbs into her delicately rendered eyes. Through it all she sits calmly, smiling just so, in a way that suggests she has seen more and knows more than we could ever imagine. The kind of knowledge that only immortals know. And in some miraculous way, in spite of the seas of people in front of her, she can communicate with you directly, look into your soul, and give you only as much as you're willing to give her. Skeptics may disagree and instead focus on the size of her canvas, or get annoyed by the crowd's barbaric behaviour, or only look for clues to crack the fictional Da Vinci code (in fact, the Lourve rents out headsets based on the popular novel.) But if you approach her without an agenda, try to see her for what she is - versus the monumental myth built over a lifetime of multi-layered memories of billboards and magazine advertisements - she will not disappoint. In this picture, you can see how some people choose to perpetuate the myth by having their picture taken in front of her, as if they were standing in front of Niagara Falls or above the Grand Canyon. She is similar to these phenomena, in that a photograph cannot do her justice. But, she differs in that unlike the natural world, we actually know her maker: Leonardo (with whom we're on a first name basis), who, over 500 years ago took a brush, some pigments and oil, and created a legend.

The Less-Crowded Louvre

Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, Bather of Valpincon, 1808

Since the most asked question at the Louvre is "How do I get to the Mona Lisa?", it follows that all the routes to Lisa are jam-packed with tourists. The upside of this, is that on the upper levels, relative tranquility may accompany your visit to the canvases from France, and northern europe. As one might expect, the collection of French paintings is vast. Writing about them after a spending a month living in Italy - where Italian painting dominates the museums and churches, I can't help but compare. In the French, Dutch and German galleries of the Louvre I was certainly awed by the mastery of skill and illusion in many of the paintings. In retrospect, however, I must admit it was a fairly rational experience. It was quite possible to remain cool while standing in front of these paintings...identifying, admiring and acknowledging their greatness. This experience seems to pale when compared, for example, to how a single face looking out from a crowd of faces in a Titian has the power to throw the viewer into an immediate existential crisis! It is disconcerting in the most arresting and fantastical way. But, I digress. I was intending to show you some of the paintings at the Louvre, and instead have somehow directed you to Italy if you seek paintings and sculpture that will tear at your heart and soul. I beg your pardon.



This is one of many French canvases of epic proportions that you might have all to yourself to enjoy. In fact, I had to wait a bit for the woman in the background to enter the frame, so that she could unknowingly provide some sense of scale. Merci.



A small oil sketch for the massive Raft of the Medusa by the French painter Theodore Gericault. Not to be missed if you liked the full size version downstairs. The drawing beneath the painting visible in this image reveals much about the artist's working method and his mastery of anatomy and gesture. If you click on the image to see it bigger you will see how the character with the red headscarf is holding a lifeless man. It seems as if he is waiting, with growing boredom, for Gericault to add some colour (life) to his poor pale shipmate.



In addition to seeing the often reproduced, Hall of Fame artworks in the flesh, another wonderful thing about these massive museums is discovering little treasures that were previously unknown to you. Like this one where you can literally follow the light as in travels through the window, hits the floor, then illuminates the underside of the mysterious staircase.


In this famous Gericault from 1821, long before the science of stop motion photography revealed the truth, we can see how some people used to think horses galloped.