The Petit Palais was built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition. It is located on one corner of the intersection of the Champs Elysée and the avenue Winston Churchill. The Grand Palais is on the other corner and was built at the same time. And while the Grand Palais is a huge, undercover temporary exhibition space, the Petit Palais is exactly what it was designed to be - the city of Paris' exquisite Fine Arts Museum.
So when the air warmed a little and the sky showed glimpses of blue, we hit the Metro and visited the beautiful Petit Palais.
The main entrance from avenue Winston Churchill. Of course the avenue wasn't called that in 1900 at the time of the Exhibition.
The staggeringly beautiful entry foyer, entirely coloured marble with decorative murals inserted in the ceiling panels.
The light comes from all angles in the front galleries. The lustrous floor is Italian mosaic.
An ornate enamel chest - about 30 cm square. Glorious colour.
A fabulous vase or urn from the 1920's We saw a similar thing in Rodin's gallery so it is a universal theme - strong guys holding up the world.
All of the ground floor galleries look onto either the intenal garden or the gardens of the Champs Elysée.
The main entrance gate and the banisters for the two internal, circular staircases are wrought iron.
This fabulous statue, as well as a whole side gallery of pieces, is by the French sculptor Carpeaux a contemporary of Rodin.
The Petit Palais building has an internal garden surrounded by a colonnade in old Italian style.
The colonnade is beautifully tiled with mosaic, traditional columns and a frescoed ceiling.
Looking across the garden from the colonnade to the rear of the entrance lobby with its cupola.
Having stopped for a break, the sun kindly came out, so I made sure I soaked up some warmth.
This is the view of the Petit Palais and its symmetrical galleries, viewed from the steps of the Grand Palais across the road.
No comments:
Post a Comment