One of the greatest art collections will now be returning to Paris this autumn. Confined to Soviet Russia, surviving a century of turbulent political change and impossible weather conditions, over 130 pieces of Impressionist, post-Impressionist and Modernist pieces will travel from Moscow and St. Petersburg to be hung at the Louis Vuitton Foundation. Mandarin Oriental, Paris and Hotel Castille – Starhotels Collezione offer a two night package, return Eurostar tickets and a guided tour of the Louis Vuitton Foundation with Art Tours Ltd.
‘Icons of Modern Art. The Shchukin Collection’ will be exhibited at the Louis Vuitton Foundation from 22 October 2016 – 20 February 2017.
The industrialist, Sergei Shchukin began collecting Impressionist pieces on business trips to France in 1897 and continued to expand his private collection which was hung in the Trubetskoi Palace and opened to the public in 1908. Forced to abandon Russia in the October Revolution, his collection was then neglected leading to severe damage. The artwork has had to undergo restoration ahead of its journey to Paris by joint custodians, the Pushkin and Hermitage Museums.
Shchukin commissioned several pieces for his collection, including various iconic works by Matisse such as ‘La danse,’ and ‘Music.’ Conflicting ideologies in the first part of the twentieth century in Russia have meant that these pieces have been hidden for most of their existence. Other artists that will be exhibited include Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne, Picasso and Monet.