Historic Guimet Museum in Paris reopens to the public

By Kunang Helmi-Picard

PARIS (JP): The imposing rotunda of the Guimet Museum has dominated Place d'Ina in Paris for over a century. On Jan. 20, the museum will reopen to the public after four years of extensive renovation.

Guimet Museum is said to contain one of the most comprehensive collections of Asian art in the world, a rewarding visit for true connoisseurs. During the major renovation of the Louvre at the beginning of the 1990s, French cultural authorities decided to also renovate the museum, which also contains a choice selection of early Indonesian art.

Emile Guimet, a successful industrialist and heir to his father's chemical industry fortune, founded the museum in 1889. Prompted by his early interest in the history of religions, Guimet's first voyage took him to Egypt and later, during a 1876 world tour, to India, China and Japan.

According to the present director, Jean-Franois Jarrige, Guimet's concept of the museum was not merely for others to admire the splendid collection, but also to serve as "a workshop for ideas". Thus, for example, Guimet considered that the cream of Asian handicrafts such as Japanese and Chinese porcelains should be a source of inspiration for European artists. The Guimet collection of Asian ceramics rivals that of the London Percival David foundation in significance. Scholars continue to consult the well-stocked research library. On a more amusing note, at the beginning of the last century, a lecture on Indian religion was enhanced by an interpretation of Brahmanic dances by a certain Madame MacLeod, later known as Mata Hari.

Emile Guimet sponsored many archaeological field excursions, but in addition to Guimet's own collections, treasures from other French archaeological and scientific expeditions which extended beyond the scope of world religions were soon to join the museum. Famous explorers, such as Victor Segalen in China, Jacques Bacot in Tibet and Paul Pelliot in Xinjiang, contributed to the museum's expansion. After Emile Guimet's death, the museum became part of the French state network of museums.

The Museum of Indochinese Arts, established before Museum Guimet in 1882, housed the late 19th century discoveries of Louis Delaporte and other explorers in Southeast Asian locations, including Angkor. This collection of Southeast Asian art was considered to be the best in the Western world at the time. In 1931 the actual collection was moved to the building of the Guimet.

The building itself suffered many alterations since the 1920s. Among them, the central stairway that formed the backbone of the edifice was demolished, and the interior courtyard covered when the Indochinese collection joined that of Guimet. With each change visitors were increasingly confused by the bad layout of the displays. They were left without a clear notion of the chronological and geographical sequence of events in Asian history.

In 1993, architects Henri and Bruno Gaudin were given the all clear to undertake complete interior remodeling and convert the museum into a state of the art modern establishment. As far as possible, its original architectural qualities have been restored and a new display circuit installed.

The budget for the renovation, including donations of 40 million FF, totaled 350 million FF. These donations, mainly from Hong Kong, Korea and Japan, contributed to the large-scale restoration of already existing objects and the acquisition of new artifacts. These include the new Jean and Krishna Riboud Gallery containing their donation of major Mogul, Decanni and Rajput artworks, which complete the museum's collection of Indian art.

Revamping was also aimed at improving reception facilities for the public, providing space for educational services that the museum lacked. Researchers benefit from improved access to objects of art in enlarged storage space, together with modern photo archives and a sound library. In addition, a spacious temporary exhibition space and an auditorium complete the museum.

From the ground floor upward, the focal point of the museum is the twin central and symmetrical staircase which introduces a vertical perspective to the interior. The spacious lobby opens up on the right to the new library and on the left to the bookstore. As before the renovation, the central Khmer Hall, with its magnificent statues, greets visitors. The patio, open to the sky on the upper floors, diffuses natural light throughout the visitor's itinerary.

Director Jarrige explained that the displays are grouped around the two great centers of Asian civilization: "On the one hand, India whose religious iconography extended to Japan via the Silk Route and to Southeast Asia via maritime routes. On the other hand, China whose way of life and thought have served as models for all the countries of the Far East."

The museum curators sought greater coherence in presenting collections. They gave priority to arts which were previously not adequately represented, but considered significant in Asia, such as calligraphy, painting, textiles, jewelry and metalwork. The museum's extensive collection of Chinese, Japanese and Korean paintings are now on permanent display on the second floor with the rest of the artifacts from those regions. Himalayan art, enriched by the 1989 Lionel Fournier donation of Tibetan art, reigns on the first floor together with Central Asia, Afghanistan-Pakistan and part of China.

On the ground floor precedence is given to the Indianized world of Southeast Asia and the Indian collection itself. Statuary, large stonework and Indian, Khmer and Javanese bronzes are found here. Curator for Southeast Asia Pierre Baptiste explained: "Although the ancient Indonesia collection may be relatively small compared to Cambodia, it does contain important pieces. There are also many wayang kulit, leather puppet, in our storage which are not on display." Superb Javanese bronzes dating from the ninth to 14th centuries were donated by JJ Meijer at the beginning of last century. Terra cotta statues from Trowulan, East Java, and Muslim stone funeral columns from Kuta Raya in Aceh are some more of the highlights.

The fourth floor rotunda contains a display of magnificent large Chinese screens bringing the visit to a climax. The room opens up with a glazed gallery giving onto an external circular terrace. Here visitors can enjoy a spectacular view of Paris featuring the Eiffel Tower, built in the same year as the museum on the opposite bank of the Seine.

Virtual visitors can visit the museum's site www.museeguimet.fr for an excellent introduction to the treasures here.