The Pyramid at the Louvre was designed by I M Pei - Chinese American architect (I think he's 100 0yrs old and still going).
Its not just the pyramid - the whole entrance was remodelled and sits beneath the pyramid. And yes, there is a McDonalds and a Starbucks down there.
The maximum number of visitors before the remodelling was 2 million a year, and it now handles 10 million a year thanks to his work.
If you are a culture vulture, Paris is a must see - the art museums are fantastic.
Its not just the pyramid - the whole entrance was remodelled and sits beneath the pyramid. And yes, there is a McDonalds and a Starbucks down there.
The maximum number of visitors before the remodelling was 2 million a year, and it now handles 10 million a year thanks to his work.
If you are a culture vulture, Paris is a must see - the art museums are fantastic.
These buildings are all pushing 1000 years, so I don't get your comment.
Fact of the matter is they will at some point be damaged or ravaged by fire, war or whatever. So you repair them using the technology an materials of the day and they live on. The other option is to do nothing and they simply crumble away, like the Parthenon for example, which I understand was still in acceptable condition 1000 years ago but then got raided for building materials.
The Pantheon in Rome is still a stunning building and its fully 2000 years old.
I visited Naples once and saw buildings built upon ruins, built upon ruins, built upon ruins, and ruins built upon foundations, with buildings built upon rooftops, and they were everywhere. I saw motorbikes made of welding rods held together with bits of broken motorbike. I walked a street twelve miles long, and saw shops hundreds of years old with displays last seen in the 1950's. Everything fed off everything else, and it is to me the most beautiful city in the world, as all of it was and still is real.
Sorry that the Notre Dame is broken. Looks like a golden opportunity for France to revitalise itself anew. I knows it is sad, but Paris should look to Naples sitting next to a volcano, and see how it is done in a city that has no money. No politics please.
ToS
I see you have mastered the art of the non sequitur. Well done, top of the class.
My Freudian slips are couched well enough already. This old building doesn't really matter to anyone now, beyond the image of something that was great for just being... old and familiar.
is there any reason a trapezoid/rhombus should not be placed in front the next one? Why? Why not?
About mixing modern art & refurbishment.
they swaps the stone floor of a The Louvre courtyard with a cool roof in form of wave... At least more a Dune as it was to celebrate the Islamic Art DPt and give (en)light to the inside collections... it's yellow while being able to enter the day light. The New Department<br />of Islamic Art | Islamic Art | Louvre Museum
But perhaps for the spire (last one is from the 19 century) La fleche | Notre Dame de Paris
French engineered a stone sculptor robot able to do anything from a 3D scan and the cathedral was already modeled. Sculpture | LITHIAS
It would be unlikely french mix it with modern art this time for several reasons imho :
- it's still a church with worship and sunday masses.
- it's one of the important symbols of France & Paris and is in the Humanity WorldWide Heritage UNESCO list.
- it's not because it is a place to glorify Virgin Marie God's Mother which is open on Sundays (unlike museums and shops) they will construct a Virgin Store instead.
- There is already a modern temple of modern art which is close : The Building – Centre Pompidou
- They have all the craftmanship yet to rebuild as the original but for cost reasons I doubt they will rebuild the wood support structure which was a art jewel in itself but which could not be seen. Instead they certainly uses modern tech to wear the roof as they did with Reims cathedral in the past (look at the picture of the support structure in the middle of this : Reims Cathedral - Wikipedia )
They can not do it again as the original again because despite cathedral Art was invented in their country they never keep alive the colored stones with pigments of the portal or from the inside (they also did not elsewhere in Europe). But as far one talk about holy art & architecture it is rare people want to mix with tastes of the day (because indeed it's a holy symbol of the past) : Imagine the Giseh Pyramid with modern things on it ? Or the Athen Partheon with Basquiat paintings on it ? Taj-Mahal with Jeff Koons ugly violet sculptures in the garden, or in the Forbiden City ? Moai statues with glass suit on it? NYC Liberty Statue with a bluejean ? why not the Queen of England with a mexican hat. Please...
All those holy constructions & holy symbols all over the World are today in our global world a Humanity Heritage and you want not ot change them. Mixing arts in museums or in an historical city is a different thing.
Btw people were shocked because of the symbol, not because it's just a beautifull cathedral.
they swaps the stone floor of a The Louvre courtyard with a cool roof in form of wave... At least more a Dune as it was to celebrate the Islamic Art DPt and give (en)light to the inside collections... it's yellow while being able to enter the day light. The New Department<br />of Islamic Art | Islamic Art | Louvre Museum
But perhaps for the spire (last one is from the 19 century) La fleche | Notre Dame de Paris
French engineered a stone sculptor robot able to do anything from a 3D scan and the cathedral was already modeled. Sculpture | LITHIAS
It would be unlikely french mix it with modern art this time for several reasons imho :
- it's still a church with worship and sunday masses.
- it's one of the important symbols of France & Paris and is in the Humanity WorldWide Heritage UNESCO list.
- it's not because it is a place to glorify Virgin Marie God's Mother which is open on Sundays (unlike museums and shops) they will construct a Virgin Store instead.
- There is already a modern temple of modern art which is close : The Building – Centre Pompidou
- They have all the craftmanship yet to rebuild as the original but for cost reasons I doubt they will rebuild the wood support structure which was a art jewel in itself but which could not be seen. Instead they certainly uses modern tech to wear the roof as they did with Reims cathedral in the past (look at the picture of the support structure in the middle of this : Reims Cathedral - Wikipedia )
They can not do it again as the original again because despite cathedral Art was invented in their country they never keep alive the colored stones with pigments of the portal or from the inside (they also did not elsewhere in Europe). But as far one talk about holy art & architecture it is rare people want to mix with tastes of the day (because indeed it's a holy symbol of the past) : Imagine the Giseh Pyramid with modern things on it ? Or the Athen Partheon with Basquiat paintings on it ? Taj-Mahal with Jeff Koons ugly violet sculptures in the garden, or in the Forbiden City ? Moai statues with glass suit on it? NYC Liberty Statue with a bluejean ? why not the Queen of England with a mexican hat. Please...
All those holy constructions & holy symbols all over the World are today in our global world a Humanity Heritage and you want not ot change them. Mixing arts in museums or in an historical city is a different thing.
Btw people were shocked because of the symbol, not because it's just a beautifull cathedral.
Here a nice article that discusses some of the same things we've been discussing here.
How France Can Rebuild Notre Dame - Scientific American
How France Can Rebuild Notre Dame - Scientific American
Those great buildings mentioned here were built with the latest building technology available at the time. Replicating the technology of the distant past would be a waste of time and material. Replacement can look like the original but it can be built using the latest building technology available now. I'll bet the future generations will be glad that we did.
For sure. As the italian art conservators say " a good job should not be seen when working in an artifact". (you're free of th etechnic as far as it can not be seen).
I have no doubt it will be a mix of old craftmanship knowledge and work, mixed with modern engineering : you need both approachs. I really doubt they will make a spire in modern style though.
They don't need to replicate anything, they still know to do it and have art workers conservators. They already uses modern technics and ancient technics when needed.
I have no doubt it will be a mix of old craftmanship knowledge and work, mixed with modern engineering : you need both approachs. I really doubt they will make a spire in modern style though.
They don't need to replicate anything, they still know to do it and have art workers conservators. They already uses modern technics and ancient technics when needed.
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diyiggy,
You make a very powerful argument. I applaud you. However, it is possible to reimagine a past that has now gone within the context of the near future. This is what artists do. You mention Basquait, whose work I vividly remember from the mid 80's, as someone who is now being rediscovered. It will be many more years before he finds his actual place in history. Remember, it was Napoleon who smashed up the face of the Sphinx at Giseh, a relatively modern intervention which is now part of Western misinterpretation of Middle Eastern history. The fire of Notre Dame has caused a cultural seismic wave now racing around the world, and in its own way, it will cause a permanent change in the way we see things.
I don't see this as good or bad, it just is.
ToS
You make a very powerful argument. I applaud you. However, it is possible to reimagine a past that has now gone within the context of the near future. This is what artists do. You mention Basquait, whose work I vividly remember from the mid 80's, as someone who is now being rediscovered. It will be many more years before he finds his actual place in history. Remember, it was Napoleon who smashed up the face of the Sphinx at Giseh, a relatively modern intervention which is now part of Western misinterpretation of Middle Eastern history. The fire of Notre Dame has caused a cultural seismic wave now racing around the world, and in its own way, it will cause a permanent change in the way we see things.
I don't see this as good or bad, it just is.
ToS
Nah, this is not Napoleon army who broke the Sphinx nose, it's a myth (there are several about the nose, but anyone knows)
You missed the point : it's not about art here, it's about symbol & holy symbol, especially when it goes to religious things made in the past.
But of course we had always involved modernity of the day in religious art & religious buildings everywhere in the world as you pointed out. But here it's about Heritage, Hystory, not stylisting inovations. I do think the symbol is more sacred here than the religious symbol of it despite a church is blessed.
For me it's very sad, it's always sad when people are hurted, but it will change not the way we see thing because it has already happened and still will happen : big loss from all the recent Middle-East wars or in the the past as well: Monte Cassino, Alexiandria "torch light" and so on. We are all in emotion territory now because a big waste for worldwide Art culture, but from a long time now human being make all to preserve the Art heritage of the past when it's possible. Halas some things will collapse with time, as the paintings (while they will be restored but a part of the artists action will be lost).
You missed the point : it's not about art here, it's about symbol & holy symbol, especially when it goes to religious things made in the past.
But of course we had always involved modernity of the day in religious art & religious buildings everywhere in the world as you pointed out. But here it's about Heritage, Hystory, not stylisting inovations. I do think the symbol is more sacred here than the religious symbol of it despite a church is blessed.
For me it's very sad, it's always sad when people are hurted, but it will change not the way we see thing because it has already happened and still will happen : big loss from all the recent Middle-East wars or in the the past as well: Monte Cassino, Alexiandria "torch light" and so on. We are all in emotion territory now because a big waste for worldwide Art culture, but from a long time now human being make all to preserve the Art heritage of the past when it's possible. Halas some things will collapse with time, as the paintings (while they will be restored but a part of the artists action will be lost).
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