Musée
du Louvre, Hall
Napoléon, Paris . Tél : 01-40-20-53-17, jusqu'au 15 mai 2006.
This
amazing exhibition has been the first world retrospective devoted
to Ingres for forty years. Drawing from its richness, the
Louvre joined several private museums and collectors to build an almost
exhaustive event who surrounds practically the whole of the work of
Ingres. The life of the painter of Montauban is cut out
in six chronological steps covering 70 years with its life. One
discovers how much Ingres is strange and eclectic purpose in the choice
of his subjects. Mythical subjects faces the Queen Caroline
Murat, its sensual "odalisques"alternate with the wealthy portraits of
Napoleon. Common
signature of these varied paintings, each detail is
carefully by a sharp-edged eye which does
not let fray the least embroidery of official costume. Each
painting is photographic until the hyper realism. The preparatory
drawings
testify even more concern of perfection which reinforces the veracity
of the portraits. Three showrooms are devoted to the
portraits. The
prestigious contemporaries people of the artists there are found but
also and
especially, Madeleine, his wife, favorite model. Several images
became universally known icons : the Turkish bath and its
mosaic of braided women, his Large Odalisque, Oedipus and Sphinx, the
ingenuous portrait of the young Miss Rivière (opposite) among
others. This retrospective is the opportunity to present to the public
the last acquisition of the Museum: A Portrait of
Ferdinand-Philippe of Bourbon-Orleans, duke of Orleans, carried out in
1842, bought due to the patronage of AXA insurance. Important
object shown in thus retrospective : The famous Ingres violin, Hobby,
of which he
liked to play between two creations.
