A heroic reader suggested that we visit the Fondation Louis Vuitton in the Bois de Boulogne and was kind enough to pick us up and drive us there. Frank Gehry designed the building in 2006 when he was 77 years old. In other words, he did a few sketches and let a platoon of nameless architects and engineers figure out how to make it happen. Some of the sketches are shown in the museum and they look like a 3-year-old’s art.
The museum is a triumph of form over function. There’s a building and then a bunch of decorative glass is attached to the exterior, supported by a frame. The galleries inside are chopped up so that a recent show was spread over 10 separate galleries for no reason other than each gallery is fairly small. A prefab aircraft hangar would actually work better for the required function of designing an art exhibit.
The exterior is striking and includes a staircase waterfall.
The museum lacks a permanent collection so it is all-special-exhibitions-all-the-time. We visited during a visit comparing Claude Monet, whom most people have heard of, and Joan Mitchell, who never met Monet and whose name is unfamiliar even to art nerds.
From the signage I learned that Monet cranked out 400 paintings from 1900 through 1926 and 300 of them were of water lilies at Giverny. Here’s a triptych that had been scattered to three different museums in the U.S., reassembled on a long wall:
What does Joan Mitchell’s work look like?
Tickets are timed, but the museum was jammed.
Note that a fair number of folks had elected to stay safe from an aerosol virus by voluntarily entering a crowded indoor public environment while wearing surgical and cloth masks. There aren’t enough books and movies featuring Monet’s art so it was impossible to stay home and #StopTheSpread?
My favorite part of the building, though unlikely to be of much use in typical Paris weather, was the series of outdoor terraces.
(Note the Heroes of Faucism, wearing their masks while outdoors.)
When you leave the museum, whose restaurant gets terrible reviews on Google Maps, you’re in the Jardin d’acclimatation:
From 1877 until 1912, the Jardin Zoologique d’Acclimatation was converted to l’Acclimatation Anthropologique. In mid-colonialism, the curiosity of Parisians was attracted to the customs and lifestyles of foreign peoples. Nubians, Bushmen, Zulus, and many other African peoples were “exhibited” in a human zoo. The exhibitions were a huge success. The number of visitors to the Jardin doubled, reaching the million mark.
The Fondation LV is not part of the Paris Museum Pass system and the trip out to the park might not be cheap or simple. I give this place a thumbs-up on a beautiful day and a thumbs-down if the weather is less than perfect.
I wonder if Joan Mitchell spent half her life pissed that there was a certain dulcimer-playing Joan Mitchell who was much more famous and talented than her?
I guess it’s unavoidable without having a strange name. “There’s a Paul Simon who’s a painter…there’s a Paul Simon who’s a politician…”
They’re still wearing masks in Calif*. About time for a blog post about covid now officially being a man made virus.
While you were in the neighbourhood, hope you checked out the nearby Musée Marmottan Monet – my favourite museum in Paris. Its much less grand (its a former house/mansion) than the Louis Vuitton Foundation, but it has the most spectacular collection of Monet’s. Its the home of the quintessential impressionist painting, Monet’s “Impression, Sunrise”.
I agree that the Musée Marmottan is a gem. Had benefit of being walkable from central Paris where I was staying end-October. Never made it to Fondation LV, so glad my brother posted this review! If you’re a Monet aficionado, l’Orangerie museum near le Louvre (served as hothouse for royalty for their citrus needs) as you probably know has two impressive rooms of Monet. Surfeit of museums in Paris — in many ways Picasso, Carnavalet (Paris history, totally renovated & reopened in 2021) and l’Orangerie were our favs, but Orsay & Marmottan were wonderful, too. Most moving for me was a tour of Drancy internment camp, where a museum opened in 2012. (about 30 minutes to northeast of Paris — shuttle bus from the Shoah museum dans le Marais each Sunday at 2 pm (14:00)) Fortunately, I speak French as the two-hour guided tour is only offered in French. (but exhibitions, open every day except Saturday, are in both English & French)
Where is Mike? This is serious Mike bait. I guess he got fired at Twitter.