FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF THE LOUVRE / 5 TIPS FOR ART AMATEURS
Call me naive if you want, but I did not realise how enormous the Musée de Louvre really is. The huge and beautiful set of buildings that make up the Palais actually contain most of the art, which certainly came as a shock to me. Some part of me really did think that the museum was underground and the size of the courtyard with the pyramids on, and in this version in my head, the Mona Lisa was placed right in the centre (underground, of course) of the biggest pyramid. I honestly could not tell you what made me think that, but after visiting the gallery for the first time last week, I now know just how wrong I was.
I'm clueless about art, and the history of the museum and its contents interests me less than seeing the art for myself and my initial reactions to it. So, my first impression of the Louvre was that its huge. And my second impression, once walking around for about half an hour, is that its even bigger than I thought even after I realised it was huge. Make sense?
I thought that the museum itself was so overwhelming, especially as I went with no real plan of what I wanted to see. I think I preferred the sculpture work to the art, a lot of which I found had a strong religious theme. This is due to the cultural and historical context of the artists, but I'm much more of a modern art fan.
That being said, going back a few thousand years, I really enjoyed the ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman sculptures as I find their lives truly fascinating.
To help you avoid the same confused state that I was in, I have a few ideas of how to make the most of your visit.
1. Visit the museum with a plan of what you want to see. All this requires is a quick google of the exhibitions, you could choose a favourite artist, time period, theme (for example religion or aristocracy), or location (ancient Egyptian or Greek art ?) and decide to tackle that. You could easily spend a whole day at the museum to see everything, but being stuck inside for a full day of your trip might not be making the most of the city. Planning a few things you'd like to see will help you once you get inside.
2. Find and save a floorplan onto your phone, there are maps but you can only get them at the information desks so that's no good if you've misplaced yours. The signal and 3G is diabolical inside a lot of the rooms, and there's no wifi - so save this before you go. The museum is really difficult to understand, it took me 10 minutes to even find an exit! Hence having a map is handy. Alternatively, they offer an app with a floorplan for free.
3. Go and see the Mona Lisa, but pay more attention to the painting opposite her. I had heard that the Mona Lisa was anticlimactic, and that opinion is not wrong. Extremely popular, but she was small and difficult to really see for all the crowds. There is an enormous canvas opposite her called Wedding at Cana by Paolo Veronese which depicts an abundant banquet, and in my opinion is much prettier than Mona. Sorry, gal.
4. Try and find a side entrance to avoid queuing for ages at the Pyramids - there is more than one entrance! Google this or ask a security officer stationed at the Pyramids entrance.
5. Don't forget to look up! The ceilings in the Palais, as with a surprisingly large number of stately homes, Chateaus and Palaces, are ornately decorated and are breathtaking. Seeing the paintings work together on the biggest canvases that the museum offers, the ceilings, is a chance to see the art interspersed with gold trimmings, wood carvings and chandeliers.
6. BONUS TIP! A miniature (compared to the real thing) Arc de Triomphe acts almost as an entryway to the beautiful Jardin des Tuileries, which are also worth a visit. A gentle stroll through these beautiful gardens will take you from the Louvre, up to Place de la Concorde, and a little further up and you'll be in shopping territory on the Champs Elysées.
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