At the Louvre: Poems by 100 Contemporary World Poets

by Antoine Caro (Editor)

New poems from 100 of the world’s brightest contemporary poets, all about a common the Louvre—exploring the many pleasures, provocations, and surprises that the museum and its collection inspire.Of the world's great museums, the Louvre is the most encompassing, a sumptuous collection that includes not only some of the most celebrated works of art of all time, but fascinating, perplexing, splendid, and beautiful objects of all kinds, all housed in a building, itself monumental, that was once the seat of the kings of France. In the grand corridors and multiplying backrooms of the Louvre, the history of the world and the history of art and the history of how we look and think about art and its place in our lives challenge and delight us at every corner. Few other public spaces are at once so haunted and so alive.A unique collaboration between New York Review Books and the Louvre Museum, At the Louvre presents a hundred poems, newly commissioned exclusively for this volume, by a hundred of the world's most vibrant poets. They write about works from the museum's collection. They write about the museum and its history. They write what they see and feel, and together they take us on a tour of the museum and its galleries like no other, one that is an irresistible feast for the ear and mind and eye.Some of the poets in At the Simon Armitage;  Barbara Chase-Riboud; Hélène Dorion; Jon Fosse; Fanny Howe; Kenneth Goldsmith; Lisette Lombé; Tedi López Mills; Precious Okoyomon; Charles Pennequin; Blandine Rinkel; Yomi Şode; Krisztina Tóth; Jan Wagner; Elizabeth Willis.

Genres: Poetry

224 pages, Paperback

Published November 26, 2024

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read my review at Full Stop: https://www.full-stop.net/2025/03/07/...

[Kalani Mah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like the concept of this collection but I wish that the prompt focused around a certain piece of art in the museum. The general prompt made some of the poems feel too constricted and forced for my taste.

[Kerfe · Rating 3 out of 5]

The editors asked 102 poets from around the world to write their experiences of the Louvre. Some wrote about the building itself, or the city of Paris; others wrote of the works inside, or one particular work; some evoked, history, or the future; others, a timelessness. Some spoke of the other visitors; some of themselves.

As with any collection, certain poems stood out for me; others I did not like at all. There are more than enough good poems to make the book worth reading, and, as is also often the case, many poems I didn't like contained beautiful lines. It was also good to see so many different cultures and nationalities represented. I would have given it a 3.5 if that were available.

Among my favorites were Tahar ben Jelloun, Pierre Chopinard, Peter Gizzi, Kim Gordon, Sylvie Kande, Bandine Rinkel, Albert Roig, Yomi Sode, and Simon Johannin. With special mentions to Louise Chennevieve, Michael Edwards, and Marie do Quatrebarbes.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 A wonderful, eclectic collection of poems either about works within the Louvre, or the experience of the Louvre itself. One of my favorites- Louvre, Continents of Art and Spirit! by Amadou Lamine Sall begins:
When God goes on holiday, he takes up residence at the Louvre
and the Mona Lisa's smile is lovelier than ever
and the Seated Scribe lies almost flat on his belly
and all the arts sing their hearts out under one roof of marvels.

[Isabella Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️