Parisian Galleries Embrace Summer Olympics with Sport-Themed Exhibits

To coincide with the upcoming 2024 Summer Olympics, many renowned art galleries in Paris are mounting carefully curated sports-themed art and design exhibitions. 

From July 26 until August 11, the eyes of the world will be firmly focused on Paris, as the ‘City of Lights’ becomes the ‘City of Sports’ for the duration of the 2024 Summer Olympics. Of course, Paris also has a reputation as the city of art, and thus – not surprisingly – there will be many art-related gallery exhibitions to coincide with the highly anticipated XXXIII Olympiad. So, if you’re travelling to France this summer, here are some sporty art exhibits to set your sights on. 

Heading to Paris? Read about all the new openings you should put on your radar here.

THE LOUVRE 

If you’re talking about gallery going in Paris you can’t help but start at The Louvre, which is home to some of the most iconic works of art on the planet. For the 2024 summer games, the museum’s curators have put together an exhibition entitled ‘Olympism: Modern Invention, Ancient Legacy’, which runs until September 16. Through a variety of artworks and artifacts, the legacy of this global sporting competition comes alive. Visitors will discover how and in what political context the first modern Olympics came into being, as well as the historical sources from ancient Greece upon which the modern games were based. 

Highlights on display include turn-of-the-century medals, postage stamps and posters, as well as the first Olympic Cup, which was designed by French academic Michel Bréal to be presented to the winner of the “marathon”, a race specially invented for the modern Olympic Games (which were first held way back in 1896). 

Quite a bit older is the precious ‘Krater of Antaeus’, a masterpiece of Greek pottery, dated from between 515–510 BC, which shows Hercules wrestling with Antaeus, son of the sea god Poseidon. Another ancient artwork celebrating wrestling is a 17th century marble statue by French sculptor Philippe Magnier – a masterful copy of the famous ‘Uffizi Wrestlers’ in Italy – which was originally installed in the park at Versailles. 

PETIT PALAIS 

The Petit Palais is hosting an intriguing art show called ‘The Body In Motion’, which continues through to mid-November. The exhibition, compiled from the museum’s sizeable collections, illustrates the connection between art and sports. It shines a spotlight on 50 different works, from antiquity to the early 20th century – some of which have been specially taken out of the reserves – which are thematically divided into categories: Origins of the Olympic Games; Heroic Body; The Drawn Body; Suspended Bodies; Sculpting the Body; The Body at Play; and Sport in Vogue. 

Some of the pieces to watch out for include a 2,500-year- old kylik (drinking cup) attributed to the master Greek potter Euphronios, a sketch of an athlete in repose by Rembrandt, Augustin Rouart’s painting of a swim race, Serge Youriévitch’s exquisite sculpture ‘La Danseuse’, and the richly detailed ‘La Bicyclette au Vésinet’ by French artist Léon Comerre. 

This exhibition is further complemented by ‘In the Words of Athletes’, a selection of short videos featuring Olympic and Paralympic athletes who have each chosen a work that particularly resonates with them. These moving videos shed light on the link that exists between art and sport, with the participants becoming, in their own words, “artletes”. 

MUSÉE MARMOTTAN MONET 

A visual history of sport, from around 1870 to 1930, is the focus of ‘En Jeu! Artists and Sport’, which is on display at the Musée Marmottan Monet until September 1. The show runs the gamut from Impressionism to Cubism, with lesser-known works by such household names as Monet, Degas, Rodin, and Toulouse-Lautrec. 

The hundred or so modern paintings and sculptures here cover everything from sailing and wrestling to equestrian sports and ball games, examining the metaphorical figure of the sportsman – a symbol of both determination and endurance. This theme is especially evident in the trio of works by American realist painter Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins depicting both boxers and rowers. 

Other highlights include the jauntily nautical ‘Regates a Molesey’ by Alfred Sisley, the thrilling horse race depicted in Kees van Dongen’s ‘La Course’, the contemplative fencer so deftly captured in Alcide – Théophile Robaudi’s ‘La Leçon d’Escrime’, and the Art Nouveau tennis playing ladies in ‘Nausicaa Jeu de Balle’ by Maurice Dennis. 

MUSÉE DU LUXEMBOURG 

To mark the 2024 Olympic Games, the Musée du Luxembourg in Paris is staging a fascinating exhibition dedicated to the role of design in the development of sports, and the strong ties uniting these two innovation-driven fields. Going by the title ‘Match: Design & Sport – A History Looking to the Future’, it aims to reveal how everything from Formula 1 steering wheels to table tennis rackets and curling stones have all seen vast improvements throughout the ages when cutting-edge design is employed.

As top athletes seek to build and sculpt their bodies, technology both enhances and optimises their human capabilities. Elegant examples of form and function include the prototype of the very first sports bra – the JogBra, introduced in 1977 – and the heavy-duty Selle Faubourg showjumping saddle created by Hermès in 2023.

More futuristic design, meanwhile, can be seen in the 2021 Paralympic Rugby Wheelchair by Ottobock, and the Speedo LZR Racer series swimsuits developed by Italian manufacturer Mectex – in collaboration with Speedo, Comme de Garçons’ Rei Kawakubo, and even NASA experts – which were famously worn by Olympic swim champ Michael Phelps in the 2008 Beijing Olympics (helping him become the most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time). 

GAGOSIAN GALLERY 

Gagosian Gallery, in collaboration with the Olympic Museum, is presenting ‘The Art of the Olympics’, a unique two -part exhibition spread out across Gagosian’s two Parisian galleries. The gallery at rue de Castiglione features artworks that explore the rich cultural, iconographic, social, and emotional tapestry of sport, including Andreas Gursky’s monumental photograph ‘Amsterdam, Arena I’ (2000), which transforms a manicured football pitch and its players into a formal composition of line and colour.

In a different vein, Man Ray’s ‘Jeux Nocturnes’ (1970) infuses the soccer ball itself with a spirit of mystery, while the much more 21st-century ‘Serena’ (2014- 22), painted by Spencer Sweeney, depicts the American tennis superstar in flowing strokes against a warm yellow background marked with pastel flourishes. The varied selection here also presents works by Keith Haring, Takashi Murakami, Marc Newson, and Ed Ruscha, as well as several iconic sports figures captured on Polaroid by Andy Warhol.

By contrast, the second-floor gallery at rue de Ponthieu features – among other works – a selection of Olympic posters designed by internationally renowned talents. These art world luminaries include David Hockney (1972 Munich Games), Robert Rauschenberg (1984 Los Angeles Games), Cy Twombly (1984 Winter Games in Sarajevo), and Rachel Whiteread, who created a playfully abstract poster for the 2012 London Games. 

HOUSE OF GUERLAIN 

LVMH is Premium Partner of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, and as such there’s plenty going on at La Fondation Louis Vuitton, the company’s expansive museum and cultural centre (which was designed by starchitect Frank Gehry, and opened in 2014). However, it’s not just LV that’s celebrating the upcoming Summer Games. In fact, many of the brand’s maisons are presenting programmes that bridge the arts, sports, and “Olympic values”. 

One of the more glamorous shows is the one at La Maison Guerlain, which runs until September 12. Simply entitled ‘Or Norme’, this bold and breathtaking photography exhibition celebrates the glitter and glory of gold, the precious metal that fuels the dreams of athletes the world over. Of course, gold has also long been linked with the perfumer itself, most notably in the creation of the infamous “bee bottle” in 1853 for Empress Eugenie. 

Curated by Jean-Luc Monterosso and Benoît Baume, the exhibit showcases 16 talented photographers, all of whom have helped transform the 68 Champs Elysées headquarters into a golden gallery. The images on display were all specially created for the occasion, with standout pieces that include a 24- carat gold and glass print by renowned photographer Isabel Muñoz, and Cédric Matet’s gold-tinged lithograph that attempts to capture the multiple identities of the city of Montpellier. 

(Hero image: Augustin Rouart’s ‘Le Nageur’ at Petit Palais; Featured image: Kees van Dongen’s ‘La Course’ at Musée Marmottan Monet)

This article first appeared on Prestige Thailand.