Maymester Day 8

After turning down at least 4 guys selling knockoff miniature Eiffel Towers, we begin our scavenger hunt through the Louvre. I am perhaps most fascinated by David’s piece “The Coronation of the Emperor Napoleon I”. The seriousness and grandeur of the moment comes across stunningly. As I look over the different expressions on the crowds’ faces, I can only really distinguish two emotions: adoration or gravity. The spectators in this painting seem to me to be either very excited and in awe of the coronation, or stiffly serious. Furthermore, for those that have this stolid and stony look on their faces, I feel like it does not go much beyond this formal seriousness. In other words, they don’t seem to be angered or saddened by what they are seeing, just stiff and robotic. It’s almost as if what I am seeing is more of a lack of expression than anything else.
Another intriguing aspect about this painting is the fact that Napoleon’s mother is adoringly watching the coronation, however, in reality she wasn’t even there that day because she was angry at Napoleon! Also, Napoleon is portrayed as thinner and taller than he actually was. Of course, these discrepancies make sense because Napoleon himself commissioned David to make the famous piece. I do wonder if the lack of diversity in the crowds’ expression was also an attempt to further please Napoleon. The looks of adoration make perfect sense, but I wonder if the graver expressionless faces were drawn to give the moment a more realistic feel while not crossing any boundaries where someone in the audience could have been perceived as angry or upset about seeing Napoleon’s Coronation.
After finishing up our scavenger hunt, I head back to my apartment and get ready for the ballet. Although I’m not a dancer, I’m extremely excited, especially because it’s an all Ravel program who’s one of my favorite composers. The first piece, “La Valse” immediately hooks me in. I’m surprised that I am impressed, first off, by the hand and arm movements. The ballerinas’ who start the show have such control over every tiny little muscle in their hands and arms; I am blown away. Musically, I love how Ravel employs such drastic and abrupt changes between sections, which nonetheless feel completely seamless. One minute there will be a primarily textural section with muted violins swirling around and the next we will suddenly swing back into a clear 6/8 tempo without the slightest hesitation.
While I absolutely loved “En Sol”, I’d have to say my favorite was the Bolero. The amazing visual designs beautifully supported the dramatic buildup of the Bolero music. At first I wondered if it was too much, but as the piece progressed and the dancers moved through the hypnotizing circles, I felt like the design perfectly supported the piece. The music of Bolero is already very hypnotizing music, and I feel like the visuals combined with the incredibly passionate dancing(which included our friend Adrien!) worked together to create a truly special performance.

My private booth at the Palais Garnier! Until everyone else showed up 1 minute later that is….

A juxtaposition of a beautiful statue next to a section of unfinished wall at the Louvre

My favorite painting I found at the Louvre. This is what I will make my kids do