JR AU LOUVRE

In the spring of 2016, JR was invited to create an artistic intervention at the Louvre Museum. He made the famed Ieoh Ming Pei pyramid disappear beneath an anamorphic collage. An iconic symbol of the museum, tourists frequently turn their back on the pyramid so it is the backdrop for their selfies. Having sparked heated debate during its construction in 1989, JR once again drew the public's attention to this famous structure with a trompe l'oeil that revealed, from a precise spot in the Cour Napoléon, the Sully Wing uninterrupted by the glass and steel. Through this complex arrangement, JR not only redirects visitors’ gazes back to the monument, but also galvanizes vast public participation as people physically move around the pyramid in search of the point where the anamorphosis occurs. 

JR’s installation resurrects the transgenerational dialogue intrinsic to this royal palace, which became the largest art museum in the world under Napoleon. His anamorphosis, reminiscent of the trompe l'oeil decorations from Antiquity and the Renaissance, invites a new conversation between the site's two architectural styles. Through contemporary, black-and-white photography, JR seamlessly connects the modern pyramid with the Renaissance architecture of the Sully wing, playing with different eras and artistic expressions. By making it disappear, he brings new focus to the pyramid, encouraging visitors to turn around and truly look at the building, to think about what they see, what they consider a monument and why.  

For the unveiling of the installation, JR was joined by Arcade Fire and Matthieu Chedid, among others, for an impromptu musical performance at the Jardin des Tuileries. Further, a performance by the artist Liu Bolin accompanied the project. Known for his practice of camouflage, Bolin and JR made themselves disappear in front of the installation with the help of paint and makeup, adding another layer of illusion to the work. 

Three years later, JR was again invited to intervene on the Louvre pyramid for the 30th anniversary of its construction. He organized a collaborative work titled, “Le secret de la Grande Pyramide,” creating an enormous pasting that raises the pyramid from its foundations.