True to form, Carl Jacobsen had high ambitions for the exhibition, aiming for ‘The biggest and most important exhibition of French art outside France that has ever taken place’ (letter to Krøyer, 15 February 1888).

The exhibition was staged in a temporary pavilion at what was then Halmtorvet (the Haymarket; now City Hall Square).

P. S. Krøyer played a key role in the planning of the exhibition and was commissioned by Carl Jacobsen to paint a large picture of the members of the exhibition committee. The picture is owned by the Glyptotek and is on display at the Carlsberg Museum in Valby.

The Carl Jacobsen Letter Archive includes a fascinating exchange of letters between Krøyer and Jacobsen, which has now been made available online