La France vue du Grand Siècle — Dessins d’Israël Silvestre (1621-1691)

Exhibition

Drawing

La France vue du Grand Siècle
Dessins d’Israël Silvestre (1621-1691)

Past: March 15 → June 25, 2018

While Silvestre’s engravings circulated widely, his drawings remain relatively unknown. The Musée du Louvre is home to a remarkable collection of them, to be shown to the public for the first time.

After training as an engraver under Jacques Callot, Israël Silvestre very quickly turned to the cityscape. Small and picturesque, his early “views” were of his native Nancy and the cities he passed through on the several journeys he made between Paris and Rome.

By contrast, his mature works offer broad panoramas of the French capital, with its royal festivities and the changes it was undergoing, and outlines of the cities conquered by Louis XIV in Lorraine and the Ardennes. In addition, his series devoted to the handsome Ile-de-France châteaux—Vaux-le-Vicomte, Meudon, Montmorency, Versailles—brought a fresh eye to architecture and gardens.

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Palais royal, musée du Louvre

75001 Paris

www.louvre.fr

Palais Royal – Musée du Louvre

Opening hours

Every day except Tuesday, 9 AM – 6 PM
Late night on Wednesday, Friday until 9:30 PM
Lundi, jeudi, samedi, dimanche : fermeture des salles à partir de 17h30

Admission fee

Full rate €17.00

D’octobre à mars : le premier dimanche de chaque mois, l’accès aux collections permanentes est gratuit pour tous.

The artist

  • Israël Silvestre