Favorable opinion of heritage experts for the interior redevelopment of Notre-Dame de Paris – archyde

With the exception of the benches, of which they want to see a prototype first, and the maintenance of statues of saints in the chapels, the heritage experts, meeting on Thursday, December 9, gave the green light to the future interior redevelopment of Notre-Dame de Paris. , which partially burned down in April 2019.

The experts have “Validated a program that includes a number of principles. They notably agreed on the central liturgical axis and the furniture (baptistery, altar, tabernacle) which must be designed by the same creator ”, explained Senator (LR) Albéric de Montgolfier, president of the National Heritage and Architecture Commission (CNPA), in which the experts met.

They therefore have “Expressed reservations about the benches on wheels, equipped with candles, and first want to see a prototype which will again be submitted to the committee. Their access to the crypt must also be clarified ”, added the senator.

Experts also reject the removal of statues of saints dating from Viollet-le-Duc (architect who was entrusted with the restoration of the cathedral from 1844 to 1879) which were on the altars of the chapels and which the diocese had envisaged of install along the great pillars of the cathedral, according to M. de Montgolfier.

At last, “They are also opposed to the transformation of the choir into a space of prayer, fearing that the floor, which dates from the XVIII^e century, be damaged by the passage of the faithful and tourists “, said the senator again.

Reopening scheduled for 2024

The diocese intends to take advantage of the restoration of the famous Gothic cathedral, devastated on April 15, 2019 by a gigantic fire that had upset the whole world, to give it a new lease of life, before its reopening scheduled in 2024. The cathedral welcomed 12 million visitors and held 2,500 services and 150 concerts each year before the fire.

“No object or painting that was in the cathedral before the fire will come out”, assured M. de Montgolfier. The Ministry of Culture reaffirmed for its part that contemporary works should take their place alongside them, but “No artist name has yet been decided”, he clarified.

The French father of street art Ernest Pignon-Ernest, Anselm Kiefer or Louise Bourgeois were mentioned for “Dialogue” with paintings by old masters such as the Le Nain brothers or Charles Le Brun.

Scathing criticism

The liturgical reorganization of Notre-Dame has aroused strong criticism. Such proposals “Distorts[nt] entirely the decor and the liturgical space ”, say a hundred personalities, including the host Stéphane Bern or the philosopher Alain Finkielkraut, in a Tribune published Tuesday in Le Figaro and The Art Tribune.

“Let us respect the work of Viollet-le-Duc, let us respect the work of the artists and craftsmen who have worked to offer us this jewel”, they add, denouncing a project where according to them “Very often silliness disputes it with kitsch”.

On the menu of the announced renewal: an airy route for tourists and faithful from all over the world around a refined central axis, from the nave to the choir, with a “Deep cleaning” 14 chapels, already very dilapidated before the fire. This cleaning should make it possible to rediscover the “Mays”, large altar paintings ordered each year from great artists, between 1630 and 1707, by the corporation of goldsmiths who offered them to the cathedral.