The famous bare-breasted woman waving the French flag among revolutionaries was portrayed by Delacroix in 1830. The 3.25 by 2.60 meter oil on canvas painting takes pride of place in one of the great red rooms of the Louvre in Paris.
The well-known bare-breasted woman waving the French flag among the revolutionaries was portrayed by Delacroix in 1830. The Louvre Museum, where it occupies a special place, has sent it for restoration as part of a major project to give another life masterpieces of world art
One of France's most famous paintings, "La Liberté guidant le peuple" by Eugene Delacroix, has been removed from the wall of the Louvre Museum for a restoration that is expected to last until next spring.
The famous bare-breasted woman waving the French flag among revolutionaries was portrayed by Delacroix in 1830.
The 3.25 by 2.60 meter oil on canvas painting takes pride of place in one of the great red rooms of the Louvre in Paris.
"The restoration was prepared for a long time and an X-ray analysis of the canvas was made. It is part of a major restoration campaign launched in 2019 for large-format paintings of the 19th century," said Sebastien Allard, director of the Paintings Department.
According to him, "one of the priorities is to remove the varnish that has oxidized on the surface, giving a yellow tint to the red, white and blue parts of the painting."
The painting was inspired by the July Revolution of 1830. The woman in the picture with the torn dress and the French flag in her hand is not just any woman, but Marianne, the French national symbol and allegory of freedom.
The Louvre has restored around 200 paintings since 2015, including Leonardo da Vinci's "Portrait of an Unknown Woman" ("La Belle Ferronniere") by Titian "Jupiter" and Antiope" and several by Delacroix, including "Women of Algeria" and "Massacre in Chios".
The Louvre, the largest museum in the world, is home to 6 paintings, including about 400 in the permanent exhibition.
