Jeu+de+Paume

Jeu de Paume The Jeu de Paume is a museum dedicated to modern and postmodern photography. It was built in the 17th century on the northern side of the Tuileries Garden located in Paris, France. Napoleon III was the man who ordered that the building be established in 1861; however, he was not involved in designing or the actual construction. Originally, the museum was actually a tennis court but it didn’t last for too long. By 1909, the building stood on top of what was once a tennis court at about 262 feet in length and 42 feet in width. Shortly after it finally became a building, it was given the name “Jeu de Paume Exhibition Centre”. During the French Revolution, which took place in the 18th century, the tennis court served as a rallying point for the people who revolted. Once the building was constructed, it collected many contemporary artwork from surrounding Parisian schools. About eight years later when the Germans had control, they turned the Jeu de Paume into a storage unit for over 22,000 pieces of art that they either stole of confiscated from different places and people. The building held a few exhibitions during this time period, but only for high-ranking Nazis. Eventually, France gained control again and the museum was cleaned of its stolen art. It is said that a custodian who worked in the museum during German control kept track of the stolen artwork and once the war had ended, he returned a majority to the rightful owner. With a major change, Impressionism and post-Impressionism art surfaced and filled the galleries. In 1986, the Jeu de Paume closed and gave most of the art to the Musée d’Orsay. Three years later and the French government made renovations to the building and to make it more spacious. Shortly after, in 1991, the museum opened its doors again to the public. Today inside the building there is now art of advanced photography and media. A new addition to the Jeu de Paume is a cinema that will be used to show projections. This takes art to another level because the idea of videos are being introduced allowing many artists to create more masterpieces. Here there are many different types of activities you could take part in. On the last Saturday of the month, children ages 7-11 are allowed to go on a tour named “Variations of Framework”. In this tour they learn about photographs and can take the position of a photographer or a model. The Jeu de Paume has not only hands-on activities, but educational ones as well. There is a course provided that teaches lessons in art and visual history. All together there are four lessons that direct attention to the arrival of photography into the life of art. While these special tours are given, there are always numerous amounts of guided tours that take you more into the history of certain pieces of art.