For some reason, I have never been to this museum, so last Thursday after my French class, I hopped off the metro, and checked it out. This is the museum with Monet's large murals of water lilies and weeping willow trees. When Monet donated The Water Lilies to France he wanted to give Parisians a peaceful haven for relaxation. And as has been true almost everywhere in the past two weeks, there were very view people at the museum, so I had the murals almost all to myself.
Monet is fine, but the murals were not my favorite. I much preferred some of the paintings in the other galleries. Paul Guillaume has paintings hung in L'Orangerie, along with Cezanne, Renoir, Rousseau, and Picasso.
And some of my favorites....................
Henri Matisse -----
Amedeo Modigiani -----
Chaim Soutine -----
Another typical French look...
It is forbidden to take photos (you can't even sneak when you don't know how to turn off the flash!) so I purchased these postcards and took pictures of them. That explains the bright flash in all of them.
On Friday..................
I went to another of the City of Paris' museums. There are fifteen museums in the city that you can enter free (and there isn't much in Paris that is free.....we usually plan 20 euros every two blocks!)
The Musee Cognacq-Jay is in my neighborhood.
This museum houses the collection of Ernest Cognacq and his wife Marie-Louise Jay. These two were the founders of what was once one of Paris' grand department stores, La Samaritaine. Originally the collection was displayed in an annex of La Samaritaine, but when the store closed in 1981 (the building is now being turned into luxury condos) the museum sought a new home in the Marais district at Hotel Donon ("hotel" doesn't necessarily have the same meaning in French and in English). There are many paintings depicting French life in the 18th century, and the added benefit is getting inside the old mansion. The furnishings (the writing tables are exquisite) and of course, the architectural details are fascinating. The Hotel Donon is a typical French Renaissance private dwelling, but the interior has been altered; some of of the interior decor comes from the original museum. But it is still grand!
On Satruday....................
I took the metro (too lazy to walk and the weather was iffy) to Louvre-Rivoli and went to Les Musees des Arts Decoratifs. It is adjacent to the Louvre. It displasy the history of the decorative arts from the Middle Ages to the present day. It was a very difficult museum to tour. Although in all fairness............if I had taken the free audio-guide or even read the "museum plan" which I am looking at now.......it probably would have been easier. But I was having trouble finding things, and I was starving so I gave up rather quickly.
At the museum I did visit the special exhibition of Jean-Paul Goude, considered to be a "brilliant image-maker". The collection includes his photography, drawings, films, music, and objects related to advertising, the "live event", and fashion. Here's an example....
I liked his drawings............
And I loved the special exhibition on the history of Babar. Babar is the hero of a series of children's books about a small elephant who flees the jungle for the city after a hunter kills his mother, written by Jean de Brunhoff and first published in 1931.
The exhibition tells the history of Babar and displays original drawings, paintings, toys, animated features, etc.
We had Babar books (in English) when I was a kid and I loved them.
There is one more museum that I went to when Nicholas, Courtney Anne, and Charlotte were here. I have no photos because when Courtney is around, I leave the picture-taking to her. The Musee Marmottan-Claude Monet was not on my list of things to do, but it was on Courtney's. And I'm so glad it was. The four of us, Nicholas, Courtney, Charlotte, and I took the metro to the neighborhood where the museum is located, and I have to admit, I would probably not have made the trip on my own.
The museum inhabits the old mansion of Paul Marmottan, who left his house and his art collection to the Institut of France. Later Michel Monet donated 65 original paintings that his father had created, including Impression Sunrise. Once again it was a thrill to get in one of those old mansions which still contains the original craftmanship and furnishing that Marmottan had collected.
A busy week, but there is only one left......................
Great post, Laura!! I'd love to get inside those old mansions, too. And you know I love Babar.
ReplyDeleteHope you are feeling better soon.
Cass