The Museum in a Postmodern Era: The Musee D’orsay
Author(s)
Barker, Emma
Abstract
We will analyze the genesis of the Musee d’Orsay, taking account both of broad cultural shifts on the international level and of political factors specific to France. The basic contention is that, while major art museums throughout the world share many of the same features, it is important not to neglect the national context. We will also examine the design of Orsay as an example of museum architecture which demonstrates some of the problems that can be involved in converting an existing building for the display of works of art. Our aim will be to assess just how far Orsay does depart from the modernist canon and adopt a new ‘revisionist’ outlook. This will lead to a more general consideration of display in the museum, and finally to an assessment of the phenomenon of the museum as spectacle.
