{"id":4722,"date":"2022-01-17T12:46:10","date_gmt":"2022-01-17T11:46:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.voyagesimpressionnistes.com\/preprod\/uncategorized\/musee-de-lorangerie\/"},"modified":"2026-01-06T11:55:39","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T10:55:39","slug":"musee-de-lorangerie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/voyagesimpressionnistes.com\/en\/paris-montmartre\/musee-de-lorangerie\/","title":{"rendered":"Mus\u00e9e de l’Orangerie"},"content":{"rendered":"

The name of the Mus\u00e9e de l\u2019Orangerie derives from its original function \u2013 before becoming a museum, the place was designed, back in Napoleon III\u2019s day, to protect the orange trees normally displayed in the Palais des Tuileries gardens from the winter cold. Only after the 1st<\/sup> World War was this orangery, by then owned by the French State, converted into a gallery to display contemporary art, along with the neighbouring Jeu de Paume building.<\/p>\n

Hence how the newly-created museum would come to house the largest ensemble of murals of Nymph\u00e9as<\/em> (Water lilies) by Claude Monet, the artist having offered this particular series to the French State in 1918. The eight compositions, consisting of 22 panels measuring 91m in total, were placed in two oval galleries bathed in natural light provided by skylights. Designed by architect Camille Lef\u00e8vre, consulting closely with Monet, the building helps you feel transported by the art, just as the great painter wished. According to surrealist artist Andr\u00e9 Masson, the Mus\u00e9e de l\u2019Orangerie thus became \u201cthe Sistine Chapel of Impressionism\u201d.<\/p>\n

On the Seine\u2019s north bank almost opposite the Mus\u00e9e d\u2019Orsay<\/a>, handily connected to the latter by the L\u00e9opold S\u00e9dar Senghor footbridge, the Mus\u00e9e de l\u2019Orangerie is also home to the splendid Walter-Guillaume Collection. Known too as \u201cLes arts \u00e0 Paris\u201d, this was acquired by the French State in the 1960s. The galleries housing this collection were renovated in 2020-2021, offering a brand-new presentation of the works. These consist of 146 pieces, notably covering the Impressionist period, with 25 works by Renoir, 15 by C\u00e9zanne, and one each by Gauguin, Monet and Sisley.<\/p>\n

The new museum trail is organised around themed galleries focusing on major so-called \u201cprimitive\u201d exponents of Modern art, including Picasso, Le Douanier Rousseau, Derain, Modigliani and Matisse. It provides visitors with a fresh, more comfortable, closer view of the artists\u2019 works.<\/p>\n

Two new galleries, one entitled \u201cFocus sur la collection\u201d (honing in on three pieces a year), the other \u201cContrepoints contemporains sur les Nymph\u00e9as\u201d, complement the already dynamic, frequently renewed presentations of this prestigious collection immersing you in the Impressionist world.<\/p>\n

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