Thematic mini-sites

Fortified by the political intelligence of its rulers, the most famous of whom is Alexander the Great, ancient Macedonia was able to oppose its unity as a kingdom to the diversity of the Greek city-states. This exhibition reveals the glorious past and remarkable rise of the kingdom of Macedonia, and sheds light on the significance of the northern Greek tombs of the period: the treasures they contained, preserved by the earth of the tumuli, testify to the extraordinary skill of the artists of the time.
Five hundred artworks have been selected to trace the history of ancient Macedonia, from the 15th century BC to the Imperial Roman period.

In his own lifetime Claude Gellée, known as Claude Lorrain (or simply as Claude), was recognized as one of the finest masters of landscape painting. His serene, intensely poetic vision of “classical” landscape became a model for his many followers up to and even after the Impressionist era. Claude was able to combine the perfect grandeur of an idealized ancient world with impressions of a real, personally experienced nature. He attained this lofty accomplishment through his highly skilled handling of light and his incorporation of elements studied from life.

To paint Christ from life… It is this puzzling idea, that a picture of Christ could be painted “from life,” which prompted this exhibition, Rembrandt and the Face of Jesus. The face, physiognomy, physique, outline, even silhouette of a person, a legend and his memory…

• Paper Museums: Antiquity Through Books, 1600 – 1800, September 25, 2010 – January 3, 2011
• The Louvre in the Age of Enlightenment, November 11, 2010 – February 7, 2011
• Antiquity Rediscovered: Innovation and Resistance in the 18th Century, December 2, 2010 – February 14, 2011
• Messerschmidt, January 26 – April 25, 2011

The works gathered for this unprecedented exhibition reflect remarkable diversity. Ancient Russian art not only preserved the Byzantine legacy until the turn of the 18th century, but revived it too, forging a strong identity of its own from the very beginning.