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Nearly empty Paris Picasso museum opens
THE Picasso museum in Paris reopened for two days this weekend after being closed for five years of renovation that have been fraught with setbacks. But there won’t be much to see.
“I will first of all calm your ardor and enthusiasm ... but you’re going to see nothing. It’s an empty museum,” Laurent Le Bon, the museum’s president, said during Friday’s preview reception.
She has had her job for just three months. Her predecessor was sacked.
The 37 rooms of Musee Picasso, inside the Marais district’s grand 17th-century Hotel de Sale, are being temporarily opened in honor of France’s annual heritage weekend.
The museum, which is under the stewardship of the French government, won’t officially open until October 25.
It will house a 52 million euro (US$66.7 million) renovation, which organizers hope will end the museum’s seemingly endless problems.
The previous president, Anne Baldassari, was sacked in May over the lagging renovation, amid accusations of mismanagement and clashes between the government and the artist’s family.
This weekend, visitors are being encouraged to use their imagination about how the museum will look.
“In lots of rooms there is nothing to see. It’s like a blank page, where we can use our imagination,” Le Bon said.
When it officially reopens, 400 works from the prolific founder of Cubism will be on display. Until then, this weekend’s visitors will mostly see bare walls.
For some, the reception at the preview was tepid. “It’s great to see the restoration. It’s beautiful. But where’s all the art?” asked Pierre Vercueil, 23.
Organizers said it is important for the museum to open on national heritage day, even if the space is not ready.
For Picasso-lovers interested in more than sparkling interiors, there will be six large-format works made by the Spanish-born artist peppered around the space, including his canvas “Three Women at the Fountain” from 1921.
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