The Masterpieces of the Musée d'Orsay

This gorgeous illustrated coffee table art book is a best-selling book at the Museum : it will take you on a journey to the heart of the Musée d'Orsay's most famous masterpieces. The Musée d'Orsay, which has been open to the public for decades, boasts one of the finest and most extensive collections of art from a century that was at once dreamy, romantic, realist and visionary. In this magnificent, richly illustrated book, author Margherita d'Ayala presents a selection of some of the most unforgettable masterpieces in the history of 19th-century art. This beautiful book on the finest works in the Musée d'Orsay covers a period that begins with Ingres, the sublime master of harmonious lines and colors, continues with Realism and Impressionist painting, and culminates in the experiments of the end of the century, which paved the way for the avant-gardes of the 20th century. Each painting or sculpture is studied as a whole, then treated in detail and placed in perspective with similar works.