The Louvre

If you are in Paris for more then a couple of days then it is sheer madness to try and do the Louvre in just one day, but you have to start some time and today seemed like the day to begin.  I know I will go back when Jim comes, but I was glad to go today so I could get the lay of the land and be more prepared to go together; and for Brittany and Kelli, this was also just the beginning, as they are planning on going again in another week. To start the day, Kelli’s camera ran out of battery and Brittany forgot her card, so I just gave them my camera and put them in charge of pictures. They took pictures of  anything they wanted to and I came home with well over a 140 pictures, but I’ve tried to pair it down a bit for this blog.

There are two things that made today a really great museum day.  The first is, that since I knew I would be coming back and covering the same ground, I made a conscious effort not to do what I usually do at museums, and that is get too caught up in the details, the history of each piece, the story behind it, the science involved in making it, or even the name of the piece and the artist.  I just very consciously walked around looking for pieces I liked, and letting myself wander to things I was attracted to.  I would frequently see things I know we studied in Art History and I would start to get frustrated because I couldn’t remember what I knew about them, but then I would pull back and remind myself just to enjoy it, and it honestly made a difference.

The second thing that made today fun was going with Brittany and Kelli.  While I was working hard not to work hard (and trying not to miss Jim), they were just totally caught up in the wonder of being at the Louvre.  They would gasp every time we turned a corner, or every time we saw something they had studied in school.  Brittany just took a Humanities Art class and would throw her hands up to her face every time we saw something she had studied.  Kellie, who has not taken a class, was fascinated by how the presentations and the grandeur of the Louver just command your respect.  She observed that, even if you don’t love art or understand it, when you come here, you are compelled to respect the creation and the creators. She was completely blown away. I loved being able to see it through their eyes.

I’m just going to include a bunch of pictures of beautiful and or dramatic art works.  I won’t comment much, just browse through the pictures and see if there is anything you like. 

Lunch before starting, we knew we needed our strength.

Feeding the birds our bread ends.  We actually save parts of our sandwich everyday, because no matter where you are you can usually feed birds.

One of dozens of Madonna's, I just loved her face and the baby Jesus

Every Mom understands this statue!!

The Louvre just knows how to put together a display.  This is one of several halls of statues.

Just cool!

Look at this guys face!!!

Real friends!!

I couldn't decide which grandchild specifically, but I instantly thought of all my great kids when I saw this!

Not only is the art on the walls and floors great, but the building is it's own piece of art.

No explanation needed...

Brittany and Kelli in the corner trying to catch their breath, they were in a constant state of disbelief.  Every new room took a moment!!

AJ, this is for you!!  Even the gods do it!!

What would you do here!!

This painting always makes me grateful for Cheryl Hughes.  She taught us about it on the first day of class and I was mesmerized! 

I guess you have to see this, but honestly, it's not very big and there are upwards of 200 people gathered around it all day.

Another favorite from class!

Loved this detail from a large picture of a husband and daughter who have just lost their wife and mother

We also saw some really short skies there...

Is this a painting?? or sculpture??

Some people just gave up!

The Louvre has the biggest pieces of art an the smallest.  Check out these 2000 year old buttons

It was a perfect day!!