With a mass of documents to discover bonus

An avalanche of superlatives. One could say that it is the most spectacular, the most beautiful and perhaps also the most important expo 2009 on the history of art. It is "The sacred made real", at the National Gallery in London until January 24. An exhibition on the relationship between painting and sculpture in the 17th century in Spain. A bloody Jesus appears resurrected in his coffin. It is a painted sculpture of Gregorio Fernandez in a genre that today departs. To the generic yet, Velasquez and Zurbarán - or how sculpture has influenced painting of the largest of the time ( .uk). But more, in the Louvre in Paris, takes place another major exhibition of the season. See absolutely until January 4, 86 paintings of the Italian parts signed, as the title to extension indicates, "Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, rivalries in Venice".Giant artists, including Titian remains the master. To avoid the queue, choose the Saturday morning at the opening at 9 a.m. or on Saturday evening from 6: 00 ().

In the Louvre, always, the Turkey in France season requires, an interesting exhibition, although small, is devoted to the caftans of the Topkapi Palace (to January 18). But the major exhibition on the Sublime Porte is the Grand Palais, to January 25, "From Byzantium to Istanbul".Cogent step. Very documentary with a bombastic and clumsy production which does not serve the purpose. The demonstration appears before any political: Istanbul is a Western City. There is still the exceptional archaeological pieces.

The nearby exhibition at the Grand Palais is devoted to Renoir, but only in the last nineteen years of his life. Renoir, its too voluptuous women, his children too, too green landscapes, is a little past fashion and this is regrettable. A retrospective have righted wrongs. Here are exhibited works by the less popular tradition. Exposure leads to think rather than to "feast" visually.

At the Centre Pompidou, the event not to miss is "The subversion of the images" devoted to the surrealistic images (to January 11). Four hundred works in a beautiful environment although crazy a little iced for the spirit of Breton and his band. Man Ray, Dali, Dora Maar, Claude Cahun, Raoul Ubac, and many others... Beautiful, curious, offbeat, subversive, fun. With a mass of documents to discover () bonus. Paris did not allowed a large exhibition on pre-Columbian art long long. Here it is at the Museum of the Branly Quay until 24 January. "Teotihuacan, cited of the gods" presents 450 parts to understand this civilization, which existed five centuries before the Aztecs. Its capital was located 45 kilometers from Mexico City. She was remarkably beautiful, with houses and temples to frescoes in colour coated walls, but it worked according to violent rituals of massacres and sacrifices. Its icon: the "feathered serpent" (Quetzalcoatl), incarnation of heaven and Earth,

Discoveries of distant talents

In another genus, the Biennale of contemporary art, Lyon, led by the Sino Hou Hanru, failed not this year - and this is its strength - its vocation of discoveries of remote talents. The most compelling works are located at the Museum of contemporary art with, among others, the disturbing photos of Malaysian Won Hoy Cheong, inspired by reality immigrant French or the installation of an army of dégingandés puppets of the Indonesian Jompet Kuswidananto. ()

More to the South, Marseille offers a remarkable historical presentation on the relationship between painting and Museum scèneau Cantini, to January 3. Little-known in France on the Shakespearean drama in English painting works. The trip could be justified only by exceptional small fabric Degas, "The Orchestra of the Opera", which perfectly reproduced the magic of the stage and lights. A single table may suffice to long feed the spirit... ( www. marseille free)

See our slideshow on "The subversion of the images" on