Art at the Louvre in Paris 4

One thing I forgot to mention was about the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, which is housed at the Louvre.  Sure, we wanted to see such an iconic painting within the history of art.  But once we approached the wing where it was hanging, we changed our minds due to the following:

1. It's not all that big.
2. It's housed behind a wall of glass, then ...
3. It has a wood platform in front of it, then ...
4. It has another railing arching in front of it.
5. So you can't get close for those reasons alone.
6. Then, there are tons of people in front of it. The rest of the museum was not terribly crowded because everyone was in front of the Mona Lisa!
7. It's like the paparazzi exploded in there.
8. And all you could see was arms with cameras flailing around above heads. 

So, maybe we saw only a glance of the Mona Lisa and thats okay!  We saw a ton of beautiful and aspiring art everywhere we turned.

Intricate details on metal.

This painting was absolutely breathtaking. 

A little bit of a close up.  So much going on!

It's pretty amazing when you study a painting in a book or class for so long, then you get to see it in person.

Brilliant colors.  How'd they do that?

I love this installation.

Someone admiring the installation.

Marie Antoinette era.