A Week in Paris - the Musée d’Orsay

It’s hard to overlook a museum in Paris. There are a plethora of options that cater to almost any interest. Everything seems to be overshadowed by the Louvre, but I would argue that the Musée d’Orsay is a more interesting collection and dramatically more interesting building than its older brother across the Seine.

Housed in the former Gare d’Orsay, that was quickly obsolete upon its opening in 1900, the building was renovated by Italian master Gae Aulenti leading up to its opening as a museum in 1986. The way Aulenti’s intervention touches (or in many cases does not touch) the existing building is a delicate and respectful ode to the geometry of the train station without the architectural complexity of intersecting the structure.

The collection inside the museum is a who’s who of impressionist-era masterworks including Van Gogh, Renoir, Manet, Courbet and countless others.

Walk through the main train hall to take the escalators up to the fifth level where the transparent clock faces and terrace provide panoramic view across the Seine up to Sacre Coeur.