Gipsmodellen voor beeldhouwwerken op het Palais du Louvre: links "La Musique" door Jules Salmson en rechts "L'Art assyrien" door Jean Louis Nicolas Jaley c. 1855 - 1857

This photograph by Edouard Baldus presents plaster models for sculptures intended for the Palais du Louvre. The composition, defined by the stark contrast between the detailed models and the expansive blank space, draws our attention to the formal qualities of the sculptures themselves. On the left, "La Musique" exhibits a playful asymmetry, with instruments and cherubic figures swirling around a central form. To the right, "L'Art Assyrien" contrasts this with a stately, seated figure holding a tablet, embodying a more rigid, authoritative posture. Baldus's photograph prompts a consideration of how these models, rendered in a uniform tone, negotiate the space between original artistic creation and its photographic representation. What is revealed through the interplay between sculpture, photography, and the architectural ambition of the Louvre itself? The photograph exists not merely as documentation but as an invitation to consider the nature of artistic representation, cultural memory, and the construction of value.