In recent months, the restoration of Notre-Dame has restored the building’s familiar silhouette to the Paris skyline (ill. 1). The spire is rising again, exactly like the one that disappeared in the fire, proving de facto that the choice to rebuild it identically was the right one. We can only admire this work, carried out so quickly without any real need. The work will continue, however, as the cathedral is far from having been fully restored: while the fire damage has been repaired, much of the exterior still needs to be treated, with the exception of the façade, which was repaired a few years ago.
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- 2. View of the choir of Notre-Dame, after restoration
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 3. The ambulatory of Notre-Dame, after restoration
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
But what about the interior, where the work is now complete? The result, let’s say straight away, is very satisfactory. While some people, perhaps because they have only seen it on television, are already complaining that the cathedral is too white, we believe that this is not the case (ill. 2 and 3). Readers of La Tribune de l’Art know that we are the first to denounce the sometimes abusive restorations, as has unfortunately been the case for a very long time at Versailles. But this is no such thing: the stone has been cleaned of the grime that had accumulated over more than a century. We had visited the site (see article) and noted that the cleaning seemed to have been carried out in a careful manner [1].
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- 4. View of the interior of the cathedral in 2018, less than a year before the fire
Photo: Didier Rykner - See the image in its page
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- 5. View of the interior of the cathedral in 2018, less than a year before the fire
Photo: Didier Rykner - See the image in its page
If the result is surprising, it’s because we’re not used to it any more. The last time we were able to enter Notre-Dame - just a few months before the fire - everything was dark (ill. 4 and 5), the chapels were difficult to see, and so were the works of art. We had taken a lot of photographs to complete our Stella database, and we will gradually replace them with those of the restored objects, while keeping the old ones so that you can see the difference.
One of the characteristics of the Gothic style compared with the Romanesque is the creation of large windows that let in more light, filtered through stained glass. This is exactly how Notre-Dame was designed. In addition to natural light, there is now a very successful artificial lighting system (remember that this existed in the past, thanks to candles), which can be modulated according to need.
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- 6. Jean Jouvenet’s Magnificat in its new position at the entrance to the cathedral on the right, in Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 7. Jean Jouvenet’s Magnificat in its former position in the
ambulatory in 2018
Photo: Didier Rykner - See the image in its page
Many of the works have moved, which is not necessarily a problem. In particular, the Virgin and Child by Louis-Claude Vassé, which once adorned the left transept, can be admired from the entrance on the left. All the sculptures have also been cleaned, and these magnificent ones will no doubt be a discovery for many, as will all the sculpted monuments in the chapels, most of which were very dirty.
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- 8. The choir screen of Notre-Dame
after restoration
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 9. The carved stalls of Notre-Dame,
from 1710 after restoration
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
Another work greets the visitor, this time on the right: The Visitation, also known as The Magnificat by Jean Jouvenet (ill. 6), formerly in the ambulatory (ill. 7) - and then absolutely invisible because you could not enter the chapel - which had already been restored and presented in the exhibition The Baroque of the Enlightenment at the Petit Palais (see article). It was part of a commission in 1710 to decorate the choir of Notre-Dame, which included seven other paintings. Two of these are currently being restored and will soon be reinstalled in the cathedral.
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- 10. Nicolas Coustou (1658-1733)
Pietà, 1723 (after restoration)
Marble
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 11. Antoine Coysevox (1640-1720)
Louis XIV, 1713-1715 (after restoration)
Marble - 182 x 85 x 123 cm
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 12. Guillaume Coustou (1677-1746)
Louis XIII, 1713 (after restoration)
Marble - 172 x 110 x 180
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
The choir enclosure, a 14th-century sculpted ensemble (ill. 8), the early 18th-century stalls (ill. 9), the Vœu de Louis XIII, by Nicolas Coustou, Guillaume Coustou and Antoine Coysevox (ill. 10 to 12) from the same period, the Mausoleum of the Count of Harcourt by Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, that of the Cardinal de Belloy by Louis-Pierre Deseine (ill. 13) and of course the Mother and Child from around 1350, at the foot of the pillar at the entrance to the choir (ill. 14), whose image in the aftermath of the fire, with the flaming debris at her feet that did not touch her, left a lasting impression. These masterpieces of French statuary from all periods, and many others besides, are now not only restored and cleaned but also perfectly visible, and it is an enchantment that we never thought possible.
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- 13. Louis-Pierre Deseine (1749-1822)
Mausoleum of Cardina de Belloy, c. 1805 (after restoration)
Marble
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 14. France, early 14th century
Virgin and Child, known as the Virgin of the Pillar
(after restoration)
Stone - H. 180 cm
Paris, Notre-Dame cathedral
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
The chairs, which we said were not very beautiful, are not very attractive either, but it is true that they are rather discreet, and that their accumulation in the nave is not at all disturbing (ill. 15). In fact, they are no worse than the classic chairs that used to be there. The images of the nave empty (ill. 16), as it was most often before the nineteenth century, are nevertheless much more satisfying, and it is to be hoped that it will be seen like this from time to time.
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- 15. The nave of Notre-Dame, after restoration, with the chairs
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 16. The nave of Notre-Dame, after restoration, without the chairs
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
The furniture designed by Guillaume Bardet confirmed our first impression: it is quite elegant, and it too does not impose itself on the eye, which is a good thing. The material, a bronze that almost resembles wood, seems well suited to it, particularly for the altar (ill. 17), which harmonises well with the colour of the choir stalls. The baptismal font (ill. 18), at the beginning of the nave and in its centre, would have benefited from not being placed on a pedestal, but they are not too massive and are also largely inconspicuous.
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- 17. The altar drawn by Guillaume Bardet
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 18. The baptismal font drawn by Guillaume Bardet
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
The same cannot be said of Sylvain Dubuisson’s "reliquary" of the crown of thorns (ill. 19). Far too massive, it largely obscures the axial chapel where it has been installed, and its mock aesthetic is in perfect bad taste. As for the "small forecourt", Bas Smets’ first intervention in front of the cathedral, it is dismally mediocre (ill. 20), which gives cause for concern about the future of this project piloted by the City of Paris.
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- 19. The reliquary of the crown of thorns
by Sylvain Dubuisson
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 20. The paving of the forecourt by Bas Smets
Photo: Didier Rykner - See the image in its page
All in all, this is not very serious, just as the installation of tapestries in the north chapels, opposite the Mays, is not very disturbing. Let’s just hope that these tapestries, entrusted to the Gobelins and whose cartoons were commissioned from Michael Armitage and Miquel Barceló with very precise specifications (they will represent the saints to whom the chapels are dedicated), will be successful and, above all, well suited to the site. The ones currently on loan from the Mobilier National, although by major artists such as Matisse, Braque and Bazaine, clash with their surroundings.
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- 21. Alfred Gérente (1821-1868)
Under the direction of Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1869)
Stained glass window from the Sacré-Coeur chapel, 1865, seventh chapel of the right aisle (after restoration)
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 22. Alfred Gérente (1821-1868)
Under the direction of Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1869)
Stained glass window from the Saint Francis Xavier chapel, 1865, second chapel of the right aisle (after restoration)
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
There remains, of course, the question of the south aisle chapels and the removal of their stained glass windows (see articles). The windows by Alfred Gérente, based on drawings by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc (ill. 21 to 26), are still in place and have been cleaned, so everyone can see how beautiful they are. Unfortunately, we can only publish photographs taken at dusk, as when we visited the cathedral on a sunny day when these stained glass windows were in their full glory, we were not allowed to take any photos (see article).
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- 23. Alfred Gérente (1821-1868)
Under the direction of Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1869)
Stained glass window from the Sainte Genevieve chapel, 1865, third chapel of the right aisle (after restoration)
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 24. Alfred Gérente (1821-1868)
Under the direction of Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1869)
Stained glass window from the Saint-Joseph chapel, 1865, fourth chapel of the right aisle (after restoration)
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
But even so, their quality is striking. The fact that we were able to read in a major evening newspaper that they were not "artworks" because they are "geometric drawings" leaves us stunned: for the journalist at Le Monde, Piet Mondrian is not an artist, and Islamic art is not art? There’s no doubt that the reopening of the museum, among many other factors, will put paid to the absurd, costly and destructive plan to replace them.
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- 25. Alfred Gérente (1821-1868)
Under the direction of Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1869)
Stained glass window from the Saint Peter chapel, 1865, fifth chapel of the right aisle (after restoration)
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
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- 26. Alfred Gérente (1821-1868)
Under the direction of Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1869)
Stained glass window from the Sacré-Cœur chapel, 1865, seventh chapel of the right aisle (after restoration)
Paris, cathédrale Notre-Dame
Photo: La Tribune de l’Art - See the image in its page
But let’s not deny ourselves the pleasure, and let’s congratulate the Établissement public (a better project manager than communicator), the chief architects and all those who have worked to make Notre-Dame what it is. The cathedral will reopen, and everyone will be able to admire it, not more beautiful than before, but as it should be seen and as we would never have seen it without the fire. Every cloud has a silver lining.