World’s most famous painting could get its own room — RT World News
A solo display of the Mona Lisa will provide visitors with a better experience, according to the Louvre director
The Mona Lisa, the world's most famous and visited work of art, could get its own room in the Louvre Museum in Paris, according to the museum's director. The idea is to give visitors a better experience of the masterpiece.
The early 16th-century painting by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci hangs in the Louvre's Hall of States, the largest in the museum, in a protective glass case. It is accompanied by works by other Venetian masters of the sixteenth century. Across the room is the Louvre's largest painting, The Wedding of Cana by Paolo Veronese.
“It's always frustrating when you don't give visitors the best possible reception, and that's the case with the Mona Lisa.” Louvre Museum director Laurence de Carre told public broadcaster France Inter on Saturday. “A better solution seems necessary to me today.” She added, noting that the Louvre Museum is in contact with the Ministry of Culture regarding potential solutions.
The Louvre, the world's most popular museum, welcomed nearly nine million visitors in 2023. According to De Carre, 80% of them, or about 20,000 people a day, line up to catch a glimpse of the Mona Lisa's enigmatic smile, often snapping selfies. In front of the painting.
However, with viewers only having an average of 50 seconds to admire the painting, tourists have recently dubbed it “The most disappointing masterpiece in the world.”
Reportedly, various attempts have been made to improve the experience of viewing the painting, most recently in 2019 when the walls of the Hall of States were repainted from eggshell yellow to midnight blue and the queuing system was simplified. In addition, the panel's protective cover has been upgraded with anti-reflective technology.
The Mona Lisa was targeted by two environmental protesters last January, who threw soup on the painting and demanded that it be killed. “Healthy and sustainable food.” But the painting was not damaged due to the bulletproof glass.
In 2022, a man disguised as an elderly woman in a wheelchair attacked the masterpiece, smearing it with cake frosting. The perpetrator, who turned out to be a young man wearing a wig, was quickly arrested.
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