Gipsmodellen voor beeldhouwwerken op het Palais du Louvre: links "L'Agriculture et le Commerce" en rechts "La Science et l'Industrie", beide door Joseph-Félix Simouillard en Eustache Bernard c. 1855 - 1857

Edouard Baldus created this photograph of plaster models for sculptures at the Palais du Louvre. The muted tones and detailed textures immediately evoke a sense of classical grandeur, inviting us to consider the intersection of art, representation and civic identity. The image, bisected into two distinct panels, presents models by Joseph-Félix Simouillard and Eustache Bernard. On the left, "L'Agriculture et le Commerce" displays symbols of harvest and trade, arranged with an almost heraldic symmetry. To the right, "La Science et l'Industrie" features items of knowledge and craftsmanship, also carefully composed. Baldus's photograph operates on several levels. It documents the artistic process, preserves the image for posterity and also elevates the status of these models to that of artworks in their own right. The composition highlights the structured arrangement of objects, each serving as a signifier within a larger symbolic order. This order reinforces the values that the Louvre, as a cultural institution, seeks to promote. Through this interplay of form and symbol, Baldus invites us to reflect on how institutions use art to define and project cultural values.