The musee Carnavalet

History of Paris

Dear Readers,

Since my earliest childhood, I have a passion for sculpture. I still remember me, in my parents’ living-room, drawing which, I hoped for, will become sculptures. As I could, I modeled, carved, trained, aspiring to become a famous sculptor. Years later, I am not became a famous sculptor, but an architect designer, and my passion for sculpture is still present in my life. Looking for inspiration, again and again, new ideas that life offers us, I love to visit and revisit expositions about sculptures, to observe the work of artists, the buildings’ architecture.

Last week, by a day pretty melancholic which dived me in autumn, I decided to go to the musée Carnavalet of Paris. I‘ve already knew the museum, but I like to go there, because I have always the impression to discover new things at each visit. This is how, Saturday afternoon, I went to the 3^rd district to see the masterpieces that the museum offer us.

Colors, shapes and materials

With a light step and the joyful heart, I walked, ready to rediscover the museum’s collection. Plenty of departments are present here: archaeology, painting, furniture, sculpture… This is for this last one that I came, for this reason, I went to this department. The reduced model of La Bastille, Louis XIV terrassant la fronde, the bust of Antoine Barnave… All those masterpieces fascinated me. Colours, shapes, materials, interested me. I looked for inspiration sources in several details that artists could have sculpted. I approached myself, I observed the details, I postponed, keep contemplating each masterpieces. I tried to put myself in the skin of these artists. I imagined their creative process: they closed their eyes and they could imagine the result in the blocks of stone, still virgin. I saw them mallet and chisel in their hands, sharpen the stone, modulate it, as they wanted to. Give shapes to the material and precisions to the stone. I stayed in the museum all the afternoon, passionate by the exposition.

At the end of the day, I came out of the museum. I went to the hotel Le Monna Lisa where I particularly like the sculptures. On my way, I felt a light breeze and I saw the leafs which start to fall: Autumn was coming. I was at the reception of the hotel to warm me up and I observed the masterpieces, reproducing the same pattern as in the museum: contemplating the details, and observing by far, admiring their allure. At this time, this is the words of François-René de Chateaubriand which resonated in my head: “ Sculpture gives soul to the marble ”.

See you soon!