Displaying items by tag: winged victory of samothrace

Paris’s Louvre museum was the world’s most visited museum in 2014, keeping its place at the top of the international culture league. More than half of its 9.3 million visitors in 2014 were under 30, a statement said.

Some 100,000 more people visited the Louvre in 2014 than in 2013, a statement said Tuesday, flocking to see world-famous masterpieces like Leonardo da Vinci’s "Mona Lisa" and the ancient Greek "Winged Victory of Samothrace."

One cloudy afternoon this month, the line to enter the Louvre stretched around the entrance pyramid, across one long courtyard and into the next. Inside the museum, a crowd more than a dozen deep faced the Mona Lisa, most taking cellphone pictures and selfies. Near the “Winged Victory of Samothrace,” Jean-Michel Borda, visiting from Madrid, paused amid the crush. “It’s like the Métro early in the morning,” he said.

It is the height of summer, and millions of visitors are flocking to the Louvre — the busiest art museum in the world, with 9.3 million visitors last year — and to other great museums across Europe. Every year the numbers grow as new middle classes emerge, especially in Asia and Eastern Europe. Last summer the British Museum had record attendance, and for 2013 as a whole it had 6.7 million visitors, making it the world’s second-most-visited art museum, according to The Art Newspaper. Attendance at the Uffizi in Florence for the first half of the year is up almost 5 percent over last year.

The iconic Winged Victory of Samothrace, the Louvre‘s other star attraction, has been reinstalled following a 10-month restoration—partially crowd-funded through some 6,700 micro-donations adding up to €1 million ($1.36 million)—and goes on public view again on July 12, Le Figaro reports. The sculpture, which dates from circa 190 BCE and depicts the winged goddess of victory standing on the prow of a ship, occupies the landing of a grand staircase through which the lion’s share of the Louvre’s seven million annual visitors pass.

The 18-foot-tall, 30-ton statue was scrubbed clean of both dirt and yellowing paints and varnishes applied during earlier conservation efforts.

The Louvre in Paris has raised enough money to restore one of its masterpieces, ‘Winged Victory of Samothrace.’ The museum collected one million euros thanks to 6,700 individual donations. The rest of the projected total cost of four million euros will come from sponsors.

‘Winged Victory’ was removed from its regular spot on September 3, 2013 so that the marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike could be restored. The work dates back to the 2nd century BC and has been a prominent fixture at the Louvre since 1884. The same day that the statue was taken off public view, the Louvre launched an appeal for one million euros to help complete the project, which included restoring the figure as well as the Daru staircase, where ‘Winged Victory’ is housed.

‘Winged Victory of Samothrace’ will return to its established spot at the Louvre in mid-2014.

The Louvre in Paris will remove the coveted Winged Victory of Samothrace from its regular spot on Tuesday, September 3, 2013 so that the marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike can be restored. Winged Victory dates back to the 2^nd century BC and has been a prominent fixture at the Louvre since 1884.

The same day that the statue is to be taken off public view, the Louvre will launch an appeal for €1 million in donations to help complete the project, which includes restoring the statue as well as the Daru staircase, which houses Winged Victory. The entire endeavor will cost around €4 million; the museum has already collected €3 million in donations from Nippon Television Holdings, Fimalac and Bank of American Merrill Lynch.

It became clear that Winged Victory was in need of some attention after becoming significantly discolored by dirt, lessening the distinction between the white marble of the sculpture and the gray marble of the its base. The restoration, the first in nearly 80 years, will also deal with a support frame that was inserted on the back of the statue and a crack in the work’s base.

The Louvre has been on the hunt for a director since the current chief, Henry Loyrette, announced his resignation in December 2012. Today, April 3, 2013, French President Francois Hollande announced his decision to appoint Jean-Luc Martinez, a French specialist in Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities, as the museum’s new director.

Martinez, who has worked with the Louvre since 2007, is currently helming the restoration of the museum’s famed sculpture Winged Victory of Samothrace. He has participated in a number of other projects at the museum including the creation of the Louvre’s outpost in the French city of Lens as well as the museum’s expansion in Abu Dhabi.

Martinez, 49, has signed on for a three-year term and will take over operations in mid-April. Loyrette, who has been the Louvre’s director for 12 years, leaves behind a lasting legacy. During his time at the museum Loyrette nearly doubled the Louvre’s annual attendance. By the end of 2012, approximately 10 million people were visiting the museum each year, making it the busiest museum in the world. Loyrette also implemented the museum’s contemporary art program, employed a policy that relied on crowed-sourced fundraising, and launched a number of successful public campaigns.

The search for a new chief was extensive; for the first time in the museum’s 220-year history the Louvre considered hiring non-French candidates for the role of director.

The Louvre’s famed Winged Victory of Samothrace, a marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike dating back to the 2^nd century BC, has been prominently displayed at the museum since 1884. In September 2013, the work will be removed from public view so it can undergo a $4 million restoration. After the sculpture and its base have been cleaned and repaired, Winged Victory will return to its legendary spot at the museum. Officials expect the project to be completed by Spring 2014.

It became clear that Winged Victory was in need of some attention after becoming significantly discolored by dirt, lessening the distinction between the white marble of the sculpture and the gray marble of the its base. The restoration, the first in nearly 80 years, will also deal with a support frame that was inserted on the back of the statue and a crack in the work’s base. The floors, walls, stairs, and ceilings surrounding the statue will also be cleaned; this portion of the project is less timely and is expected to reach completion in late 2014 or early 2015.

The Louvre is currently working on a book, a documentary, and a symposium focusing on the Winged Victory, one of the museum's best-known pieces along with the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo.