To the Greatest Masters of Art, from the Louvre - A Eulogy......

Chronologically, this post should‘ve come after the travelogue of our Paris getaway, but frankly, how does it matter?!

It isn’t that I’m an art lover, but somehow, I find it simple to relate to any form of art and creativity in many ways than one. Personally, I am at times at a loss to understand how people could be untouched by paintings ,poetry , sculpture , dance ,music ,photography  or just any form of art – I’m sorry if I sound judgemental, but honestly , it does surprise.. Last evening, I happened to watch yet again, Tom Hank’s ‘’Da Vinci Code’’ and couldn’t but go back and revisit The Louvre of my memories…

So after the movie, I went about making a list of my personal favourites at the Louvre-Speaking of which, I’m sure you know that the Louvre is the world’s most visited museum and one of the largest as well. Seated right at the heart of Paris in the Palais du Louvre, the Musee de Louvre was opened to public in 1793. As of 2010, the collection is divided among eight curatorial departments: Egyptian Antiquities; Near Eastern Antiquities; Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities; Islamic Art; Sculpture; Decorative Arts; Paintings; Prints and Drawings.

It surely takes more than a few random hours to appreciate all the art at the Louvre. It is said that it would take months to view the museum’s entire collection, allowing a person  30 secs for each of their dispalys – 30 seconds?????? I mean, some of the paintings were so astounding that I couldn’t take my eyes of them until V literally dragged me along to the next J Honestly, as a tourist, It’d be really hard to do justice to the museum, unless you take a week’s pass or so and visit the Museum every day and spend the entire day in there J J But believe me dears, there were many art lovers who actually were doing just that! In an entire day, we had to simply skim past most of the sections so that we could dally a bit more in the department for paintings, which we were most keen on. Later on, we were to realize how sensible we’d been in doing so, as we could see quite a few disappointed tourists who actually couldn’t manage to even see their favorites before closing time for the day. That’s The Louvre for you!

Without much ado, let me list out my personal favorites of the lot – I reiterate on the word ‘’personal’’ as I’m a trained art lover by no means and the views expressed are entirely of my own, without any disrespect to any of the talented artists whose collections , the museum showcases.

1.       The Lacemaker by Vermeer:

The painting somehow endeared itself to me through its sheer simplicity – a young woman sewing away busily with a quiet concentration. With her head bent over her sewing, the young lacemaker’s is at work intently. The theme of this painting is that of traditional domestic virtues of the medieval women. Caught in an intimate, impalpable moment, in a world removed from ours, in a clear, gentle brightness that seems to cling to the objects in soft specks of light,this timeless painting captivates your senses.

2.       The Wedding feast at Cana by Veronese:

This huge painting,graces an entire wall in the Louvre and at first sight literally took my breath away, in its sheer vividness, rich interplay of colours and light and the decpiction of even the most smallest details.The setting for the painting is the wedding feast where Jesus’s first miracle took place. The clear blue sky in the background, the lovely costumes and jewelry and the depiction of the sumptuous wedding feast were a visual treat to the eyes. Definitely, a not- to- be- missed masterpiece!

3.       Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci:

Forget all the hype,all the controversies, debates surrounding this  timeless painting and look deep into her shining eyes and you’ll actually see her half smile widen and hear her break out into lovely laughter!! I could swear that no other painting could look more life-like or make hearts tremble, by its sheer subtlety.  No surprises then, that the room holding this work is crowded all through the museum opening hours J J J

Tip:  The best way to view the MonaLisa is to hold one’s patience,wait at a corner of the room for the most excited (read ‘loud’) tourists in the crowd to leave ,and then join the (less agitated) group and enjoy the painting to the heart’s fill..

4.       Balthazar Castiglione by Raphael Santi:

This is a very simple and natural portrait of Balthazar Castiglione, a famous writer of the time and one of Rafael’s close friends. More than anything,it really is the natural immediacy, freedom of attitude, the vivacity of expression in the clear blue eyes,that make  this life-size portrait extraordinary.

5.       The Cheat with the Ace of diamonds by Georges la Tour:

This LOL painting is quirky and sarcastic, as in - the theme is that of a young rich man being cheated in a game of cards by another guy , who noticing that the young chap is engrossed in his cards, tries to pull out an Ace of diamonds card from beneath his belt discreetly, while a voluptuous courtesan looks on!!! So remindful of the Bollywood movies of the 80’s huh?!!!The oddness of the composition, and the comical aspect of the subject matter tickles your imagination and makes this painting stand out from the rest.

6.       Death of the Virgin by Caravaggio:

As the name denotes, the theme is the death of Virgin Mary and was commissioned by the Church to Caravaggio. But it was rejected on the grounds that it was unfit to decorate the church… The reason being, the innate rawness of the scene was in conflict with the traditional iconography that was generally used to depict divine characters. Caravaggio's brutal view, very realistic and virtually devoid of holiness, provoked strong reactions in the public of his time. The painting is a stark contrast to the others on the same theme and hence stands out as one of my personal favourites.

7.       The rebellious slave by Michaelangelo:

This marble sculpture (along with another ‘’the dying slave’’) is really a thought provoking one, because of the undertone conveyed by the figure. A young slave is engaged in a violent struggle for freedom – whether Michaelangelo intended to represent the struggle as that of the soul trying to getfree from the body or the struggle of enslaved passions is a million dollar question!!

8.       Venus Di Milo:

This highly sensual greek statue of Aphrodite is an epitome of female grace and beauty.The goddess's air of aloofness, the harmony of her face and her impassivity stand out. Its a fine example of tastefully done female nudity. The statue appears to be arrested in time, frozen for eternity…

I could go on with a dozen more of my favourites from the Louvre , but I do respect your time too :-) ;-) :-p But you could always check out the  official Louvre Museum website, to browse through their collections, if not for anything else! Its  http://www.louvre.fr/llv/musee/alaune.jsp?bmLocale=en

And at the end of it all, I wouldn’t be surprised if you feel  you’re Robert Langdon in the closing scene of the Da Vinci Code, when you consider going down on your knees in reverence to these resplendent , timeless masterpieces tucked away in their galleries within the magnificent monument to Universal  Art – THE LOUVRE…..

Pic Courtesy - Wikimedia.