When entering the front gate of the National Museum of Korea, what first meets its visitors is a wide-open space full of emerald greenish trees and stone pillars. The floor is paved with white-greyish stones. In the center, a small lake is placed with a summerhouse nearby. All these surroundings provide people with peaceful resting moments. Then, there are stairs at the west and the east side of the lake, all leading to the exhibition buildings. The current main exhibition here is Beyond Impressionism — Masterpieces from the Musée d'Orsay.

▲ Provided by tourists360.com

Paris, the capital of France, is one of the most sought-after tourist cities. The city impresses with myriad of wonders, as it is “a moveable feast” as Ernest Hemingway described it. Indeed, Paris has always had plentiful artists and writers dwelling within. Being an artistic city, many world-famous museums are located in Paris. Out of all, Musée du Louvre and Musée d'Orsay are two representatives that let the city prosper as a cultural powerhouse.

The Louvre used to be a palace, the Palais du Louvre. It was the residential place for royalty in the past, so the place itself is rich in history. After some remodeling and the completion of the glass pyramid, the present Louvre exists. The consisting art pieces are mostly classical art. For instance, “Mona Lisa,” one of the most famous paintings, is kept there. The Orsay, another fabulous Paris sight, is probably less recognized than the Louvre. However, the Orsay also holds an abundant historical value and most of the works kept are from the modern era. So, naturally, Beyond Impressionism is about modern art.

Journey to Modern Paris

After buying the ticket at the outdoor booth, a white square signboard with Beyond Impressionism written in elegant handwriting can be found. It leads the spectators to the exhibition’s entrance and the first room features the explanation of how and why the Orsay was constructed.

Late 19th century Paris was a place full of modernity. Renovations that started from the reign of Napoleon III were still ongoing. Plus, the city was also the center of colonialism where many cultural properties from other parts of the world were brought. To show off the development of modern technology and the prosperity of economy and culture, the powerhouses at the time held a large public exhibition, the Universal Exposition.

A station building was built for the grand event. The audience members at the time were awed by the building’s glass ceiling, as such architecture was not possible until then. The artists too were deeply inspired by the largely enhanced glass and steel technology. So, many artists sketched the building, which became one of the most recognized museums in the world. The remaining sketches are the first things seen when people enter the exhibition.

Then, artwork of initial impressionists is shown. “Impressionists” were named by one of the critics at the time. The term had the intention of mocking the artist group, ridiculing them as a laughingstock. Nowadays, impressionists’ works are sold for millions of dollars.

Unlike the academism pursued by most artists in that era, the impressionists sought the opposite. Their main objective was to use pure colors and try to capture the light within daily lives of Paris. Eventually, they ignored the golden ratio and the utilization of perspective. The impressionists even used rough brush marks and dots, which seemed very childish. Naturally, they got on the nerves of the critics and the powerful art authorities at the time.

Despite the unwelcoming social response, impressionists developed their style with endurance. The most famous three—Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, and Edgar Degas— were in the lead. Obviously, these artists’ works take up large portions of the exhibition room. Indeed, “Study of a figure outdoors: woman with a sunshade turned to the right,” drawn by Monet, is the representative exhibitive painting. Within the painting, brush touches are roughly done, showing the wilderness of grass floor. Figurative blurriness and intense colors dominate the mind of the viewer.

One of the fun features in viewing impressionists’ works is that the great artists each developed individualistic styles though they are often grouped together. They each specialize in different fields. Degas, for instance, focused on sculpting bronzes. Usually the subjects of his artwork were dancers. At the time when Degas stayed in Paris, a new class in the place of aristocrats had emerged. The bourgeois had enough money and time to enjoy cultural life. Operas and ballet performances thrived and the city seemed so alive. Yet, the lives of dancers were not the prettiest, and Degas reshaped the dark side of Paris into his artwork.

Then the next generation, neo-impressionism, governs the following exhibition rooms. Georges Seurat, Paul Signac, and Camille Pisarro are included and this group holds very different techniques compared to the previous generation. The neo-impressionists combine small dots and pure colors to make it look like mixed colors. While the initial impressionists drew impromptu, the later impressionists applied scientific optical theory into their works.

Henri Edmond Cross’s “Hair” is a beautiful illustration of the new style, with purple and pink dots aligning to depict a mistress with beautiful hair. Unlike preceding impressionists, he used smaller dots that are the same size as each other. What is really significant is that the dots are arranged in regular intervals.

After viewing all the impressionists, next come the paintings of Paul Gaugin, Vincent Van Gogh, and Paul Cezanne. About two rooms have their artwork hanging on the wall. Sometimes explanations of the artisans’ lives or their pieces are written. Moving further, there are pictures of the Eiffel Tower and the Parisian Street. The reason and the purpose of the Eiffel Tower construction are explained in detail. In this sense, The Orsay is not just a display of modern artwork. It shows the whole modernity of Paris—architects, constructions, paints, sketches, pictures, and sculptures.

The finale of the exhibition is decorated with Henri Rousseau’s “The Snake Charmer.” The painting entails a black-colored woman with snakes all around her body. The snakes, rather than posing danger, unexpectedly get along harmoniously with the woman. The curator chose the painting for the ending since the woman appears to be staring at the viewers. Her glaring eyes seem to say good-bye to spectators who have long journeyed through the Paris of the modern era.

Overall, the exhibition takes its participants back to modern Paris. Going through Beyond Impressionism is not just a cultural activity. Just by paying off a reasonable price, people can experience Paris. It is a good idea to stroll over to the exhibition to enjoy a fabulous Parisian life!