Musee d’Orsay unveils rare ‘Gaudi’ exhibition in Paris

The master of Art Nouveau, Antoni Gaudi, is not just celebrated for his ability to construct structures which are straight out of a fantastical narrative, but also for his near-perfect ideation of opulence through prosaic arts. In France, a rare exhibition dubbed 'Gaudi' pays homage to the visionary's phantasmagoric architectural works that took a backseat for almost half a century. In collaboration with the Musee de l'Orangerie and the Musueu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, the Musee d'Orsay of Paris presents a collection of Antoni Gaudi's lesser-known creative endeavors, reflecting his mystical mind and wildly influential career.

On display till the 17th of July 2022, the art exhibition takes one back to an era that thrived on the economic, architectural and artistic abundance in Spain that is observed through a series of photographs, a collection of artworks and furnishings by the legendary Catalan architect. When the audience enters, they will be greeted by a dramatic reproduction of Casa Mila's entrance hall wherein, for the first time, the focus is drawn particularly towards Gaudi's organically shaped doors, windows and walls from the original setting. The conception of these sinuous accessories from the monumental building idenitifies Gaudi's unmistakable attention to detail.

One moves forth into an interesting 3D duplication of Gaudi's creative workshop that shapeshifted as his library, accompanied by renditions of his last abode, both of which precisely depict his way of working. The highlight of this section is Gaudi’s mirror device, which was an assembly of mirrors placed in a corner, where the mirrors on all sides and the ceiling allowed the architect to view a person or an object from every direction. This creative setting supposedly helped him to apprehend a body or an object in a better way.

Furthermore, the exhibition rejoices the combined intellect of Eusebi Guell and Gaudi through enticing furniture pieces, photographs and architectural drawings from the Guell palace and church. The exhibits are a near-fanatical ensemble of nature with design and craftsmanship as rendered by Gaudi to address the will and wishes of the Guell family. Herein, Isobel Guell's opulent dressing table stands out, silently reciting the Catalan architect's efforts to incorporate organicity into the design. For the table, he married wood with brass and adorned it with intricate lattice-work, a tilted mirror and very amusing organic details.

Accompanying the dresser, is a wrought iron daybed, a pair of gilded armchairs and a screen crafted in Cordoba leather, all of which belonged to the Guell Palace. With a closer look at architectural drawings of the church and intriguing photographs with colourful motifs from the Guell park, the audience also establishes knowledge of Gaudi's transcendental abilities to bring art and architecture to life.

While the platter of adornments from different Gaudi structures leaves any viewer in complete awe, the exhibition commemorates Gaudi's artistic additions to Barcelona's cityscape. A beautiful mosaic flowering pot, a variety of minutely detailed stoneworks, a planter ornamented with vegetable motifs and a huge variety of near-futuristic candelabras display how Gaudi romanticised gothic design style and Art Nouveau. Though the architect was nearly forgotten post his demise, great artists like Salvador Dali, lived to tell the tales of his working glories. The museum commemorates Gaudi with a short film showcasing Dali in front of the great architect’s Sagrada Familia.

The immaculate details of individual exhibits, construct a rather appealing statement of the Antoni Gaudi’s applied genius and even though furniture pieces and decorative artworks deteriorate once past their prime, various conceptions of Gaudi's works by present-day artisans, certainly express his omnificent abilities to add life and meaning to material things.