Musee d'Orsay Paris
Like most of the great buildings in Paris, the Musee d'Orsay was originally constructed to be something else. In this case, a train station had outlived its usefulness and was used for a variety of purposes until it was entirely refitted inside and transformed into a museum devoted to all art forms from the second half of the 19th century (painting, sculpture, architecture, music and items from everyday life). The Orsay fills a chronological link between the works at the Louvre and those found at the Musee National d'Art Moderne. Significant Impressionist and neo-lmpressionist works are on display, as well as the creations of the more conservative academic school that was also known as Pompier in France. Art-Nouveau objects and blueprints complement the collections.

The main hall, with the station clock, was retained to create a sense of unity between painting, sculpture, architecture, design, photography and the cinema. The collections are spread over three levels: The Lower Level deals with the years from 1848 to 1870, the Upper Level is the prestigious Impressionist and post-Impressionist collection, and the Middle Level is dedicated to the period from 1870 to 1914 and includes important works by Rodin and others.

Website Musee d'Orsay Paris