Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisathe world’s most famous painting, may get her own room in the Louvre.
Such a move can visitors, many of whom visit the Louvre just for the Mona Lisa to view, give a better experience, said Laurence des Cars, head of the museum, on Saturday.
“It’s always frustrating when you can’t give visitors the best possible reception, and that’s the case with the Mona Lisa. I think we have to find a better solution for this.”
She says the Louvre has made contact with the Ministry of Culture to find possible solutions.
The Louvre, one of the world’s most popular museums, welcomed almost nine million visitors in 2023. Des Cars says 80% of these visitors – around 20,000 per day – brave the crowds to Mona Lisa to witness his enigmatic smile. They also constantly take selfies in front of the painting.
The painting is currently displayed in the Louvre’s State Room (Salle des Etats) in a protective glass case.
This is the largest room in the museum and the Mona Lisa share it with Venetian masters from the 16th century. Opposite the Mona Lisa hangs the museum’s largest work of art, The wedding in Canaby Paolo Veronese.
The Mona Lisa has come under vandals and activists more than once in recent years. In May 2022, a man, dressed as an elderly woman, jumped out of a wheelchair and tried to smash the bulletproof glass cover in front of the painting, before smearing the glass with cake. In January this year, two protesters threw pumpkin soup at the glass screen and demanded the right to “healthy and sustainable food”.
