38. The Petite Palais

Into Paris Central to visit the Petite Palais and the Grand Palais on Avenue Winston Churchill which runs off the Champs Elysees . Unfortunately the Grand Palais – also the grander of the two - was closed for a big art expo happening next week.

The Grand Palais - closed today 

 

But I did get into the Petite and spent an enjoyable afternoon wandering through this beautiful building built around an open inner courtyard garden, viewing a stunning collection of decorative paintings and sculptures that make up the city of Paris collection. Also in the permanent collection housed within the Petite are galleries devoted to earlier artworks dating back to early Christian eras and the Roman and Greek eras.

 

The Petite Palais
 

 

impressive front door
 

Both these richly decorated and extravagant buildings were built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris, and then afterwards in 1902 the City decided to transform the Petite building into a permanent museum and use the Grand for larger exhibitions.  

Main Foyer

 

Le Nouveau Ne - Andre Gill - 1881

 

Porteurs de Farine - Louis Carrier-Belleuse - 1885

 

Nausicaa  a la Fontaine - Lucien Simon - 1915 

La Femme au Singe - Camille Alaphilippe - 1908 - bronze

and

Portrait de Jane Hading - Alfred Roll - 1890

Eve - Aime-Jules Dalou - marble - 1866

 La Bacchante - Jean-Baptiste Clesinger - marble - 1848
 

 la Bon Samaritain - Amile Nicolas Morot - 1880 

 

 La Verge aux Anges - William Bouguereau - 1990
 

 Bords du Loing à Saint-Mammès - Alfred Sisley - 1888

Le Pont Royal, Paris - Camille Pissarro - 1903



Trois Baigneuses - Paul Cezanne - 1882

Beau Temps a Pern - Henry Moret - 1901 

Madame et Toilette - Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux - 1869

 

 

 

Nature Morte a l'Aiguiere - Willem Claesz. Heda - 1643

 

 

Vase de Fleurs dans une Niche - Jan van Huysum - 1720

 

Le Chant Interrompu - Frans van Mieris - 1671

La Grande Descente de Croix - Peter-Paul Rubens - 1620

 

 

 

Portrait of Jean Carries - Charles Giron - 1885

Jeune fille a la tete Penchee - Jean Carries - 1888

entrance to internal courtyard

courtyard 

courtyard

 

 

A truly beautiful gallery - and the bonus was no entry fee ...

 

I have found that some of the most enjoyable galleries are the smaller less popular ones - no crowds to contend with and quite often more exciting private collections and exhibitions ...

 

Tomorrow we will visit Napoleon's final resting place ....