The Louvre Museum in Paris. (Photo by Nick Sestanovich)

As this writer can attest, the Louvre Museum is one of the great destinations of the world whether or not one has an interest in art. It is home to more than 35,000 works of art from the prehistoric ages to the present day. Some of the most famous works of art housed at the Louvre include Eugene Delacroix’s “Liberty Leading the People,” Alexandros of Antioch’s “Venus de Milo” sculpture and Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa.” With such a large collection, it is no wonder the Louvre is the most visited museum in the world.

Unfortunately, a plane ticket to Paris costs about $1,258, and while the price to get into the Louvre is not too bad- roughly 9 euros- the lines to get in are enormous, so it is understandable why many would not be willing to make the trip.

However, for those who have always wanted to experience centuries of art history, Carter’s Biz Cafes will be bringing the Louvre to Benicia…not literally, but people will be able to experience it through a weekly series of video lectures.

Carter’s Biz Cafes will be presenting The Great Courses video lecture series “Museum Masterpieces: The Louvre.” The Great Courses is a series of audio and video courses aimed at college-level students. The courses are produced by The Teaching Company and can be downloaded as maps and streamed. The Museum Masterpiece series focuses on the great museums of the world from the Metropolitan Museum of Art to the National Gallery of London. The Louvre videos cover everything from the museum’s origins to Da Vinci to Delacroix.

Starting May 7, the lectures at Carter’s Biz Cafes will be showing two 30-minute videos each day with time after each for discussion moderated by Carolyn Plath, an event team member of Benicia Literary Arts.

The topics presented each week will be as follows:

*May 7: 1. “Palace to Museum – The Story of the Louvre,” 2. “Leonardo and the Origins of the Collection.”
*May 14: 3. “Italian Renaissance and Baroque Painting,” 4. “Spanish School of Painting.”
*May 21: 5. “Rubens and Flemish Painting; Early German,” 6. “Rembrandt, Vermeer and Dutch Painting.”
*May 28: 7. “De La Tour, Le Nain, and 17th Century Painting,” 8. “Claude and Poussin – French Painters in Rome.”
*June 4: 9. “Watteau and Chardin,” 10. “Boucher, Fragonard, and the Rococo in France”
*June 11: 11. “Jacques-Louis David and His School,” 12. “Delacroix and Ingres – The Great Dialectic.”

Attendees may come to all screenings or pick and choose based on the eras they are most interested in. All screenings will begin at 11 a.m.

Carter’s Biz Cafes is located at 1 Commandant’s Lane. The lectures are free of charge, but you must RSVP as seating is limited. Complimentary coffee, snacks and light refreshments will be provided. For more information, contact Carter Rankin at carter@carterzbizcafes.com or Carolyn Plath at carolynplath2003@yahoo.com.

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