Page 148 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Paris

146  P ARIS AREA B Y AREA

o Musée d’Orsay

In 1986, 47 years after it had closed
as a mainline railway station, Victor
Laloux’s superb late 19th-century
building was reopened as the Musée
d’Orsay. Commissioned by the
Orléans railway company to be its
Paris terminus, it avoided demolition
in the 1970s. During the conversion, The Museum, from the Right Bank
much of the original architecture Victor Laloux designed the building as a railway
was retained. The museum was set station for the Universal Exhibition in 1900.
up to present each of the arts of the
period from 1848 to 1914 in the
context of contemporary society
and the other forms of creative
activity happening at the time. Chair by Charles
Renovations to the upper levels Rennie Mackintosh
The style developed
have expanded exhibition by Mackintosh was an
spaces to improve the attempt to express
display of works. ideas in a framework of
vertical and horizontal
forms, as in this
tearoom chair (1900).

. The Gates of Hell (1880–1917)
Rodin included figures that he had already
created, such as The Thinker and The Kiss, in this
famous gateway.

Key to Floorplan Gallery Guide
Architecture & Decorative Arts The collection occupies three
levels. On the ground floor, there
Sculpture
are works from the mid to late
Painting before 1880
19th century. The middle level
Impressionism features Art Nouveau decorative
Neo- and Post-Impressionism art and a range of paintings
Naturalism and Symbolism and sculptures from the second
half of the 19th century to the
Art Nouveau
early 20th century, as well as The Dance (1867–8)
Symbolism (small formats) Neo-Impressionist art. The upper Carpeaux’s sculpture
Temporary exhibitions level has an outstanding caused a scandal when
Non-exhibition space collection of Impressionist art. first exhibited.

146-147_EW_Paris.indd 146 03/04/17 10:56 am
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Starsight template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2)
Date 3rd September 2012
Size 125mm x 217mm