The Museum of Decorative Arts
Better circulation
101 years ago, Parisians discovered, in the Marsan wing of the Louvre Palace, the Museum of Decorative Arts : a set of everyday and beautiful objects representing the French way of life. Since then, collections have grown considerably, reaching 150,000 pieces today. It was time to give them new visibility.
To better appreciate them, the main work has been to simplify their access. It was therefore decided that the visit would be in chronological order: the Middle Ages (with particular Gothic periods and the Italian Renaissance), the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (architectural vocabulary, chinoiserie, goldsmith ...), the nineteenth century (the taste of the Empire, blacks and pearls, the phenomenon of universal exhibitions ...), Art Nouveau, Art Deco, arts modern and contemporary (from the 40s to today), then the news gallery.
Another tip to ease the course: the "Period room". These eleven thematic rooms punctuate the visitor's journey of moments of reverie, with works placed in their context of time.
A renovated building
Second development: the walls have a new look. They have recovered their original appearance, then have been painted in certain places, in sober colors. To better present the architecture of the building, the windows and windows were clear of anything that could hide them. Thus, not only natural light penetrates better, but in addition visitors can enjoy the views of the Carrousel du Louvre, Tuileries and Rue de Rivoli.
Numerous showcases have been added, either by giving them their own architecture, or by integrating them with that of the rooms. Those in the toy gallery, for example, hang in the middle of the rooms.
The restoration of works
To close the place some time allowed to take care a little of the objects. Exactly, many of them needed a little refreshment. Thus was launched the largest campaign of restoration of the history of the Museum it lasted more than six years.
The main difficulty came from the diversity of materials, almost as vast as the objects (and there were nearly 5,000 to rework). Wood, ceramics, textiles, paper mache, lacquers, paints, mother-of-pearl, parchment, leather, stained glass ... each subject implies a clean restoration technique. A hundred professionals are getting on the job.
For the cabinetmakers of the seventeenth century, for example, it was necessary to repair the fixings of veneers or marquetry (drawings made by gluing pieces of wood or leather of different colors). On the other hand, it was necessary to add to the seats of the eighteenth, covered with fabrics, the least new materials possible, and to archive all the elements that could not remain on the furniture.
It is therefore in their second youth that you will be able to admire the art objects of the Museum.
