Impressionist Paintings and The Musée d'Orsay with Marie Dessaillen
Regular price $36.50 Save $-36.50
Paris in the nineteenth century was the capital of art and culture. Musicians, writers, and artists flocked to the city to enjoy the freedom brought by the French Revolution. But the Revolution also brought the bourgeoisie, the French middle class, into power, and their taste in art was classical. According to polite society, passions were not to be publicly displayed. In response, a group of artists in the second half of the century launched a revolution of their own, a visual one, and it paved the way for modern art. Away from the heaviness of decorum and the artificial light of the studios, this new breed of artists painted the world as they saw it and felt it. They depicted the reality of the underworld of Montmartre and abandoned the varnished, perfect paintbrushes of the Academy. Their painting was their own and their style reflected their freedom. We call them the Impressionists.
This seminar will delve into the collection of Impressionist paintings that are held at the Musée d'Orsay. The museum was born in 1986 from an overflowing Louvre Museum and a 1900s railway station that needed to be saved from imminent destruction. The French national collections in Paris were split, and art from 1848 to 1905 was carefully transported across the Seine. Now, this collection is considered to be the most complete group of Impressionist works in the world, a collection that has since turned the Musée d'Orsay into a tourist favorite.
Led by art historian Marie Dessaillen, this interactive discussion will focus on some of the most iconic paintings of the collection by Manet, Monet, Degas, Renoir, Cézanne, Seurat, Gauguin, and Van Gogh, and explore the notion that Impressionism was a collaboration of a group of artists with a shared goal - to find buyers - rather than a school with a common style.
The daughter of a sculptor, Marie has been surrounded by art ever since she was born. A native Parisienne, she holds an undergraduate degree in history and art history, with a specialty in iconography and French and Flemish paintings from the 16th to the 18th centuries. She also holds a Master's degree in museology from the Ecole du Louvre and one in Art History from the Sorbonne.
This conversation is suitable for all ages
90 minutes, including a 30 minute Q&A.
Marie is a fabulous presenter. She has an excellent background in her subject matter, and speaks with enthusiasm. I have been an amateur student of Impressionism for years, and yet I learned so much from Marie that I didn't know before. I highly recommend her as a presenter.
The Musee D'Orsay has always intrigued me and I wanted to know more. Marie is so knowledgeable about this museum and the impressionist paintings there. She has great command of the information and made the presentation so enjoyable.. The slides were so helpful and her way of showing the details and importance of the paintings was fascinating. I will join another conversation with Marie and I can't wait to visit the Musee D'Orsay again as soon as I can. I highly recommend this presenter.
I've been longing for these particular paintings through this difficult year. They are old friends.
However, Marie Dessaillen offered me so much new information and I adored her conversation!
Marie’s presentation was fabulous - organized, informative and engaging! Her passion for the subject matter was evident throughout!