Gipsmodellen voor beeldhouwwerken op het Palais du Louvre: links "Trophée maritime en rechts "Trophées" door Pierre Rouillard c. 1855 - 1857

This photograph of plaster models for sculptures on the Palais du Louvre was created by Edouard Baldus. Baldus, working in mid-nineteenth-century France, captured these preliminary models during a period of significant transformation in both art and society. The image presents Pierre Rouillard's designs which feature classical motifs like trophies. These symbols, however, exist within a complex social narrative. France, still grappling with its imperial past, projected power through its art and architecture, often at the expense of marginalized communities. Consider how these sculptures, intended for the Louvre, reinforce a certain idea of French identity and power. By photographing these models, Baldus invites us to reflect on the relationship between art, authority, and historical memory. There's an emotional weight here, a tension between aesthetic appreciation and critical awareness.