Picasso et les maîtres

Successful exhibition / Visit at the Grand Palais (November 2008)

From October 8, 2008 to February 2, 2009, the figures for the exhibition Picasso et les maîtres speak for themselves: 783,352 visitors of which 65,000 came during the 83 hour marathon that closed the exhibition at the Grand Palais — four days and three nights’ non-stop opening. What made this exhibition, grouping together 210 masterpieces comparing the Spanish picture with his influences (Picasso opposite Velasquez, Goya, Rembrandt, Poussin, Manet, Cézanne and Van Gogh), is revealed by looking at the figures differently. Visitors were from eclectic social backgrounds. Some  55% were visiting an exhibition for the first time, whereas this figure is usually closer to 20 or 30%. “Even during a crisis, or perhaps because we are in a crisis, art becomes a surefire value”, confirmed Thomas Grenon, General administrator of the French National museums group (RMN). For three years the RMN had been working with the Picasso Museum, the Louvre and the Orsay Museum to bring together these works scattered across the globe. The presidential couple visited the exhibition on November 11 at the end of the afternoon.