Nicolaï Abildgaard is one of the main figures of Nordic art in the late 18th century. His oeuvre, marked by aspects of Enlightenment thinking, is an expression of rebellion, both aesthetically and politically. A history painter, he also designed theater costumes, architectural motifs, interiors, and furniture. The Louvre exhibition features some 40 paintings and drawings, as well as some pieces of furniture, thus giving the French public its first opportunity to become acquainted with an artist who combines a specifically Northern European art form with themes on universal ideas at the turn of the century.