The Quai Saint-Michel and Notre-Dame

In 1901 Luce painted Notre-Dame from the Quai Saint-Michel, one of about ten views of the cathedral he made around the turn of the century. The west front catches the light in pinks, oranges and yellows, with bluish shadows laid down in small separate strokes. Behind the towers rises the slender spire that the architect Viollet-le-Duc had added in the mid-19th century, during his restoration of the building. That spire fell in the fire of April 2019, and a rebuilt one stood in its place when the cathedral reopened in December 2024. Below, the quay is full of ordinary Paris. Booksellers' boxes line the parapet, a cab and a handcart go by, a woman in an apron leads a child by the hand, and a delivery boy walks with a basket balanced on his head.