Musée d'Orsay, restoration on view for Gustave Courbet's monumental Funeral at Ornans

The Musée d’Orsay has begun the restoration of A Funeral at Ornans, a monumental masterpiece created by Gustave Courbet between 1849 and 1850. Considered one of the most significant works in the famous Parisian museum’s collection because of its innovative subject matter and size, the work now needs a major conservation intervention, the first in 50 years.

The restoration, conducted in Room 7 on the museum’s ground floor-where the painting is usually displayed-is necessary because of deformations in the expansion frame added in 1884, which have caused the canvas to loosen and the seams to become brittle. Added to this is the dulling of the paint layers, which compromises the chromatic reading of the work.

The painting technique adopted by Courbet, dense and textural, with impastos also applied with a knife, poses particular challenges in conservation. The instability of some binders and the overlapping of pictorial layers generate phenomena of lifting, cracking and loss of adhesion. These problems are exacerbated by the large format of the painting, which has been subjected to frequent movement, disassembly and reassembly of the work since its creation, particularly on exhibition loans.

The pictorial surface is now covered by several layers of altered, thickened and yellowed varnish, the result of previous conservation interventions, which hinder the perception of the original tones and the legibility of the composition. The cleaning work, therefore, will be carried out gradually and with extreme caution, carefully evaluating the appropriateness of each intervention. The canvas also has seams, folds, deformations and tears, repaired at different times and using different materials.

The restoration is conducted in a publicly visible worksite set up inside the room itself, in an enclosed space that isolates the restoration site. Visitors will be able to observe the work of the restorers through transparent glass windows. Starting June 5, 2025, free guided tours of the restoration space will be available every Thursday morning at 9:45 a.m., 10:30 a.m., and 11:15 a.m. Reservations are required and are made through the Musée d’Orsay’s official website.

Musée d'Orsay, restoration on view for Gustave Courbet's monumental Funeral at Ornans

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