Paris, France — It is one of the most prestigious schools of art history in Europe. The Ecole du Louvre, which is located in a wing of the Louvre Palace as its name indicates and was founded in 1882, attracts more than 1,800 students as well as auditors from all over the world for here they can study all aspects of art history from all ages, archeology, epigraphy, anthropology, history of civilizations and museology. Last January 9th the school inaugurated the arrival of two major works of art into its lofty Hall Jaujard, donated by Majid Boustany. An installation by the French artist François Morellet in blue neon dialogues with a sculpture by the French artist César, La Marseillaise (1997) but also with the place and its history and the students, auditors, teachers and researchers during their journey at the Ecole du Louvre. 

François Morellet (1926-2016) is a self-taught artist and was one of the first to explore creating art works with artificial light and neon lights.  The work at the Ecole du Louvre is an expression of the infinite. And art opens up infinite doors.  César (1921-1998) was a French sculptor who trained at the Fine Arts Academy of Paris (l’École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris) known for his very own iconic sculptures but, who, too, remained faithful to the canons of classical sculpture. The work donated by Mr. Boustany in welded bronze draws its inspiration from academic and romantic sculpture and pays tribute to François Rude, the 19th century French sculptor who is known for his Departure of the Volunteers, also known as La Marseillaise, on the Arc de Triomphe.

Majid Boustany, the president of the Francis Bacon MB Foundation in Monaco, has been a patron of the Ecole du Louvre since 2016 when he created a scholarship for research into Francis Bacon. This was followed by the ambitious architectural program which saw the renovation of the school’s library, the creation of a research center for doctoral students and the refurbishing of the school’s documentation and computer services and the cafeteria in 2021 and 2022. The Ecole du Louvre offers the unique opportunity to do field work in the vast collections of the Louvre itself, the myriad museums, art foundation and galleries in Paris and beyond. Special to The Gourmet Gazette. https://www.ecoledulouvre.fr/en