Museums - Musée du Louvre - Pavillon des Sessions

The Louvre's Pavillon des Sessions, entirely dedicated to the so-called arts premiers, is in a sense the precursor of the Musée du quai Branly. Its installation in the year 2000 marked a turning point in the recognition of long-overlooked tribal art and allowed its exhibition on an equal footing with the masterpieces of the universal cultural patrimony.
Situated between the museum's Flore and Denon wings, the galleries hold sculptural works from Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, painstakingly selected by the late Jacques Kerchache for their aesthetic qualities. Most of these sculptures come from French public collections such as the Musée National des Arts d'Afrique et d'Océanie, the Ethnology Laboratory of the Musée de l'Homme, and other national and regional French museums. State acquisitions and loans consented to by the countries of the works' origins complete these collections. In all, there are 46 African sculptures, 6 works from non-literate Asian cultures, 28 Oceanic, and 34 American objects. One of the African works, the oldest in the selection, represents the Nagada period of Pre-Dynastic Egypt (fourth millenium B.C.) and creates a direct link with the department of Egyptian antiquities at the Louvre, demonstrating artistic continuity with what has long been held to be the world's art patrimony. Illustrated descriptions provide information about the more than 100 exhibited works, and a multimedia room, equipped with a dozen interactive screens, is also available for those seeking greater depth. A video movingly chronicles the life of Jacques Kerchache, the spiritual father of this splendid place.