Photo by: Alyssa Weeks
Attention anyone interested in France, history, art or finding an enjoyable adventure downtown: The Denver Art Museum is showcasing a new exhibit, “Artisans and Kings: Selected Treasures from the Louvre.”
This new exhibit features a fine, assorted selection of paintings, sculpture, tapestries, silver, porcelain, statues and furniture from the famous French museum, the Louvre.
Quotes by French kings are written on the walls and museum signs describe the nature of the exhibit.
One such poster reads, “In the French Royal Court, life was not simply lived; it was staged. Splendor meant power, and objects were designed to dazzle.”
The exhibit displays just this. Brought from the Louvre, the exhibit is comprised of many large paintings in ornate frames, statues that were once in the garden outside the palace of Versailles, giant, intricate tapestries, porcelain busts, sculptures of famous kings that demonstrate their character and look to the public, and furniture that once adorned kings’ homes, even chairs that once belonged to Marie Antoinette herself.
The exhibit is two floors of selected treasures. Each artifact has a small plaque that describes what the object is, who the artist was (if known) and who the object once belonged to. The audio tour is complimentary, and some displays have audio which give a detailed description of what the object is and its historical context.
There are also narrative timelines that outline the history of certain artifacts and kings, for example King Louis XIV. Downstairs there is also a live demonstration of various artisan works, such as gilding.
Tickets can be purchased for the exhibit at the museum, online, or by phone. Student tickets cost $15 (with student ID), and adults cost $18. If you happen to go on the first Saturday of the month, admission to the rest of the art museum is free.
French revolutionary leader Abbé Henri Grégoire, on the foundation of the Louvre Museum once said: “Previously visible to only a privileged few [these treasures] will henceforth afford pleasure to all.” Same is this extraordinary exhibit, which will run through January 6, 2008.
