The Louvre's "Mona Lisa" Has Temporarily Relocated

Text and photos by Chen Chi-Hsiang. Known as the City of Flowers, Paris is a place of praise; for travelers, the Louvre Museum is a must-visit pilgrimage site. It is France’s most eye-catching, smokeless leisure factory, boasting the world’s largest collection and attracting the highest number of visitors globally. The long queues daily are bustling, resembling a vegetable market. When discussing the Louvre, one inevitably thinks of the world-famous Mona Lisa. She has become the symbol of the museum and a legend in Western painting history. Thousands of admirers from around the globe come daily to witness this eternal smile, making it a routine ritual for visitors.

For general tourists, the Louvre has three treasures: first, Leonardo da Vinci’s mysterious Mona Lisa; second, the Venus de Milo statue; and third, the Winged Victory of Samothrace (all located in the Denon Wing). No wonder this wing is constantly crowded with throngs eager to view these masterpieces. While amateur art lovers appreciate the brilliance of human civilization throughout the museum, these three works remain the primary draw.

This year marks the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, the most mysterious and wise genius among the Three Masters of the Renaissance, as well as an artist, scientist, architect, engineer, and scholar. A commemorative exhibition will be held from late October to February 24, 2020. To honor this unparalleled talent, the Louvre began renovating the Italian Galleries in the Denon Wing earlier this year. On July 1, the Salle des États was closed for renovation (July 11–October, featuring the Venetian School exhibition). Unfortunately, the Mona Lisa overshadowed the Venetian masters’ work. From July 17, 2019, to mid-October, the Mona Lisa was temporarily moved to the Medici Gallery on the second floor of the Richelieu Wing, formerly a hall for Rubens.

Recently, friends from Hong Kong asked me to help them see the Mona Lisa, which they had long dreamed of seeing. As a host, I found it easy to arrange, given my familiarity with Paris museums, which feel like my own kitchen where I go to relax and find inspiration in the forest of art. We arrived early to join the queue at the Louvre Pyramid, a daily ritual for tourists. After waiting over an hour under the sun, we entered. Surprisingly, the ticket counter was empty except for one window. I learned that tickets must be purchased electronically and bound to the visitor’s wrist, a measure taken after Chinese tourists illegally resold exit tickets to enter.

Our group of five went directly to the Richelieu Wing entrance to queue for the Mona Lisa. The line stretched from the second-floor escalator down to the basement lobby. After another hour of quiet waiting on small stairs, we slowly progressed. In the Medici Gallery, the path wound like a maze. After nearly another hour, the previously spacious gallery was packed with admirers from around the world. Finally, standing before the white display case containing the Mona Lisa, the excitement of seeing the image and the awe of witnessing the eternal smile were overwhelming. Before I could recover, staff directed us forward. The entire process took three hours just for a few seconds of face-to-face presence with the moving smile. These brief moments etched the world’s most magical and beautiful image into the heart, becoming eternal—a miracle many dream of.