According to Agence France-Presse, the French National Heritage and Architecture Commission recently approved a new plan for the interior renovation of Notre Dame Cathedral. Although the plan has been opposed by 100 cultural figures since it was proposed, critics say the new plan will "Disney" the historic landmark.
France recently approved a controversial interior renovation of Notre Dame Cathedral. Visual China figure
As early as November of this year, a new plan for internal renovation was revealed, proposed by the Archdiocese of Paris, calling for the modernization of the interior of Notre Dame.
Major changes include the addition of soft ambient lighting, while multiple languages of Biblical quotes are projected onto church walls through light projection. Visitors in the future will be able to enter the church through the central gate instead of through the side door as before.
According to the Times, the parish also plans to rearrange more than 2,000 movable items inside the church to make room for visitors to move around — notre dame received 12 million visitors a year before the 2019 fire.
Specific schemes include leaving the altar in place and other objects such as the tabernacle and baptistery elsewhere, and moving the less used 19th-century confessional to the second floor, leaving only four in the main cathedral area to create a space for modern and contemporary art.
While information on which works of art are specifically displayed has not yet been revealed, the French Ministry of Culture has released the names of several artists, including street artist Ernest Pignon-Ernest, painter Anselm Kiefer and painter and sculptor Louise Bourgeois.
The plan even proposed the removal of some statues, the removal of some stained glass windows, and the replacement of old grass chairs with new, more comfortable benches, etc., and the review committee rejected some of the recommendations.
Interior of Notre Dame Cathedral before the fire. Visual China figure
Patrick Chauvet, bishop of Notre Dame de Paris, said the redesign was intended to facilitate a "dialogue" between the old and the new. In an interview with AFP, the priest in charge of the project, Gilles Drouin, said the proposed renovation of the church was not radical.
"Cathedrals have always been open to contemporary art, such as in 1994 when Cardinal Lustiger had the sculptor Marc Couturier install a huge golden cross," Delauine said. ”
"Notre Dame has undergone continuous evolution over the past eight centuries, and the Church intends to restore the tradition of appointing living artists to create."
Given the millions of tourist figures each year, proponents also believe the new scheme will make Notre Dame "more beautiful and popular."
On April 29, 2019, a statue of Notre Dame was removed. Visual China figure
However, many critics say the new interior renovation scheme will degrade the historic building's status and undermine its cultural integrity.
On December 7, some 100 public figures, including art historians, heritage and architecture experts, intellectuals, artists and writers, signed a petition in Le Figaro and The Tribune des Arts, accusing the Archdiocese of Paris of "completely distorting the decoration and liturgical space of the cathedral."
Maurice Kulot, an architect who lives in Paris, said in an interview with The Daily Telegraph that the new scheme would turn the interior of the church into a politically correct theme park.
"What they propose to do with Notre Dame, never with Westminster Abbey or St. Peter's Basilica in Rome ... It's as if Disney is entering Notre Dame Cathedral, very childish and trivial."
"The diocese wanted to use these works to cater to modern times. But we must respect this monument and the spirit of Violet le Duque. Didier Rykner, an art historian, journalist and founder of The Art Tribune, said. Violet le Duque, to whom Recquene refers, was a central figure in French Gothic revival architecture and was involved in the restoration of Notre Dame cathedral in the mid-19th century.
It was also pointed out that in the 2019 fire, when the spire collapsed, the huge organ in the center of the church, the 14th-century statue of the Virgin and Child, and the exquisite flower windows and reliefs around the altar were intact. Therefore, in principle, there is no need to carry out such a large-scale "recovery" other than to sort out and clean the chaos.
The roof minaret of Notre Dame cathedral was burned down. Visual China figure
You can see the statue of the Virgin and Child and the exquisite flower windows and reliefs around the altar. Visual China figure
"This Notre Dame is 2,000 years old – it's an old lady. It has a history that we must respect, and that people today cannot erase with a single stroke of a pen. Didier Reckner wrote in an opinion for The New York Times.
In April 2019, the world was shocked by the sight of Notre Dame cathedral being engulfed in flames, a fire that destroyed two-thirds of its roofs and spires. People around the world raised nearly $1 billion to rebuild the cathedral.
Since then, there has been a long and heated debate about the restoration plan, including French President Emmanuel Macron's proposal to replace the spire with a "contemporary architectural gesture", which was abandoned amid a public outcry.
Workers carry the oak used to repair Notre Dame Cathedral. Visual China figure
Workers are rebuilding iconic spires and roofs. Visual China figure
Finally, in terms of rebuilding the roof of Notre Dame, the French government decided to make it "exactly the same" as before the fire. Workers begin their search for historic oak trees that will recreate the famous 13th-century timber frame and the iconic 19th-century spire.
However, the French Ministry of Culture has not yet responded to the controversy over the new plan.
French President Emmanuel Macron has said the renovation work will be completed as early as 2024, when Paris will host the Summer Olympics. But most experts believe that the painstaking repair process will actually take nearly 10, 20 or even 40 years.