A master work

Antoine Bourdelle — along with Auguste Rodin — is one of the pioneers of 20th-century monumental sculpture. The Musée Bourdelle in Paris has recently been given a lighting update with LED technology using ERCO’s photometric precision to enhance the dynamic style of Bourdelle’s sculptures for optimised three-dimensionality.

Tucked away on a quiet street near, and yet so far from, the bustling Gare Montparnasse in Paris, the Musée Antoine Bourdelle is an unexpected oasis of tranquillity and meditation that is reminiscent of an ancient temple. This is where Antoine Bourdelle, a pioneer of 20th-century monumental sculpture, lived and worked from 1884 until 1929.

Bourdelle’s work was frequently inspired by mythological themes, which he captured in powerful and dynamic sculptures using materials such as plaster, bronze or marble. The structures on the premises are from a number of different periods. Once the home and studio of Bourdelle, the buildings originating from the 19th century were turned into a museum.

The ‘Great Hall’ was built by architect Henri Gautruche to mark the 100th anniversary of Bourdelle’s birth, whilst the extension to the museum was added in 1992, designed by architect and Pritzker Prize winner Christian de Portzamparc.

Recent renovations of the Musée Bourdelle included an upgrade of the lighting system with LED technology. The lighting inside the museum was optimised for maximum visual comfort with lighting tools from the ERCO Light Board, Logotec, Parscan and Pollux ranges.

Designed to overcome great distances, the luminaires bathe the Great Hall in superbly uniform and glare-free light across an impressive height of 10 m, allowing visitors to look at the monumental sculptures from different angles.

Using various lenses and different beam characteristics, as well as two light colours with 3000 and 4000 K, the sculptures are illuminated with photometric precision, accentuating their surfaces in varying nuances depending on the texture.

The Musée Bourdelle has several landscaped gardens with lawns, bushes and trees that provide a natural setting for Bourdelle’s bronze sculptures. Embellished with a green patina, the sculptures blend effortlessly with the lush vegetation.

The artwork and selected garden features are illuminated effectively from different angles using outdoor luminaires of the ERCO Grasshopper range, with neutral and warm white light.

Designed with a compact housing, the lighting tools remain virtually invisible, whilst precise light distributions eliminate glare for the visitors and neighbours, so as not to detract from the enjoyment of the sculptures as well as the gardens and night sky.

Image credit: ERCO. Photo: Edgar Zippel.