Lenepveu Heir Seeks To Reveal Painting Under Chagall's Paris Opera Ceiling

(MENAFN- USA Art News) A descendant of Jules-Eugène Lenepveu is renewing efforts to uncover his ancestor's 19th-century painting on the Paris Opera 's domed ceiling. This artwork has been concealed since 1962 by a vibrant ceiling piece by Marc Chagall, igniting a decades-old disagreement.

Arnaud Carayon, Lenepveu's great-great-great-great-grandnephew, currently leads the Friends of Lenepveu Society, an organization established 39 years ago. The 58-year-old Paris-based consultant oversaw the renovation of Lenepveu's tomb in Angers in 2022. This preceded a 260-work retrospective dedicated to Lenepveu, known for his historical paintings and Joan d'Arc frescoes in the Paris Pantheon, at the Musée des Beaux-Arts d'Angers.

Carayon is now appealing to French president Emmanuel Macron and is considering legal action to expose Lenepveu's original 19th-century artwork, according to Le Monde.

Around 1869, architect Charles Garnier commissioned Lenepveu to paint the dome above the Paris Opera 's audience hall. Lenepveu created“ Les Muses et les Heures du Jour et de la Nuit” (The Muses and the Hours of Day and Night) between 1869 and 1871, painting directly onto copper plates. This oil painting, now a certified historic work, complemented the palace's Second Empire style. Lenepveu then served a six-year term leading the French Academy in Rome.

Ninety years later, French culture minister André Malraux commissioned Chagall to create a new artwork for the same location. Malraux sought to rebrand the Opera and was reportedly inspired by an uninspiring performance he had attended.

Chagall's son told Le Monde that his father had emphasized that his ceiling should be“removable” to preserve Lenepveu's work. Despite this, critics objected to Malraux's introduction of Modern art, which they felt disrupted Garnier's aesthetic continuity. The Royal Institute of British Architects sent a letter expressing disapproval, highlighting the space's“harmony.”

Chagall, then 72 years old, worked without pay but employed three assistants. They prepared and spliced 24 canvases for his untitled artwork, which was then glued onto a plastic shell placed over Lenepveu's painting. The piece, rendered in Chagall's distinctive vivid and dreamy style, pays tribute to 14 prominent European composers from the 18th through 20th centuries. The artwork debuted in September 1964 and was well-received by the press. New York's Lincoln Center later installed its own pair of Chagall opera murals.

To this day, debates persist regarding which ceiling should be showcased. Some advocate for Lenepveu's work to be restored, while others suggest commissioning a new artist for each generation. One of Chagall's assistants even argued that removing his work would negatively impact visitor numbers.

Earlier this year, Carayon wrote to Macron proposing“an alternating ceiling at the Opéra, perhaps every 10 years,” to ensure both the Chagall and Lenepveu paintings could be displayed. Macron's office responded, indicating that the president was“particularly attentive” to the issue.

Source: Artnet News

MENAFN01092026005694012507ID1111609774