Friday, August 31, 2012

Art Tour Series VI: The Pompidou

I know I'm going to lose some of you with my art museum post, but I am passionate about art, so I will be true to myself.  One of my favorite ( I say that every time) museums is the  Centre Pompidou in Paris, France.  My son is about to spend some time between Italy and France where the most glorious examples of art on the planet live and breathe.  I am so envious.  We went to Paris in 2010, and Im still reeling.

The Pompidou is a refreshing contemporary art museum.  After spending 4 hours at the Louvre viewing classic, Renaissance, antiquities and XVII century art, we had to 'cleanse our palettes' with some modern art. 









The Centre was founded by President Georges Pompidou and designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano and British architect Richard Rogers.  It's doors opened in 1977 to provide a cultural art center that coincided with  theater, music, literature and fashion centers in the heart of Paris.  The 'constraint-free' architecture enables one to view the interior of the museum from the outside, and color coded ducts and architectural elements flank the exterior windows.  The interior was designed without rooms, but more of an open exhibition concept that allowed natural light in from all sides.  The views from the Pompidou reach from the quaint neighborhoods, rooftops,  and cathedrals to the far reaching Sacre Coeur in the hilltop of Montmartre.









They have 30 exhibitions per year.  We saw an exhibit on Lucien Freud , one of our favorites, while we were there.  

Some other artists of note were Lee Bontecou,




Kristin Baker,



Christina Iglesias,



Annette Messager,



Henry Moore,



Marc Chagall,



 Frank Stella,




Yaacov Agam whose work was interactive and kinetic,



Max Ernst,




There was a model of sculptor Constantin Brancusi's (1876-1957) studio. I loved the rudimentary tools he used.



Viewing museums gives me a more worldly perspective of art.  I can appreciate every style and genre, and see into the soul of an artist.  The Pompidou is up there with my top five museums of all time.  Do you have an art  museum, an artist or a any museum for that matter that has made a lasting impression? Do tell.

Nancy

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9 comments:

  1. I stuck with you. Lovely pictures. You really can take away so many different ideas from this.

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  2. I love art museums. My fave is the Uffizi in Florence.

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  3. What a fun thing...can never get enough art!

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  4. I love them in small doses! :) Have a wonderful weekend, sweet friend!

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  5. I stuck also. Gorgeous pictures and I envy your appreciation for art!

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  6. Oh how gorgeous! Beautiful, beautiful art. I think Chagall is my fav--no--maybe the 3-d sculptures--love the shadows of the hanging pieces. THANKS for the mini tour. I LOVED IT!

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  7. I have never been to this museum and hope to be able to get back to Paris in the next year or so and this one is on my list! Thank you for the tour!! Have a wonderful weekend!xo

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  8. Amazing art and very interesting tour and post!

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  9. Very nice! Thank you for the tour - this is one of the places I really want to see i PAris someday!!!

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