Palais Garnier Dome and Ceiling: Program and Light

Overhead, the dome conducts color and light. Motifs celebrate music, dance, and drama, while lighting rewrites atmosphere across performances.

🎨 Motifs and Mood

• Allegories of music and poetry.
• Seasonal palettes shift warmth and coolness.
• Nighttime dim increases gold bloom.

🔭 Simple Optics Note

Legibility $L$ under illuminance $E$ falls with viewing distance $d$:

$$L propto rac{E}{d^2}$$

Stand under the edge of the dome for glancing reads of relief.

Look up, then look around—the dome teaches how to see.