Van Gogh & co in Canberra extravaganza

Canberra, Australia's capital, can be a ghost town as the city clears out over summer, but that could change this year with a blockbuster dose of culture from Paris.

The National Gallery of Australia has scored a rare coup, attracting a travelling collection of post-Impressionist works from the famed Musee d'Orsay in Paris.

Art aficionados believe it will be one the most important exhibitions to have ever hit Australian shores, where there is a lack of post-Impressionist art which is now too expensive to acquire.

The 114 works from the likes of Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Claude Monet and Paul Cezanne will spend the summer in Canberra as part of Masterpieces from Paris: Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cezanne and Beyond.

Most of the masterpieces have never left Paris but will now venture afar because the post-Impressionist galleries at the one-time railway museum are being renovated.

NGA director Ron Radford describes the "astonishing" exhibition as the most important ever to visit the gallery.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Radford says.

One of the reasons the NGA was able to beat other galleries to host the collection was the relationship it has developed with the Musee d'Orsay over the years.

Guy Cogeval, the president of the Musee d'Orsay, visited the NGA last year as part of its successful Degas exhibition.

"Guy likes relationships," says Radford.

Many of the works will be familiar to visitors, such as Starry Night or the self-portrait by van Gogh.

Canberra is one of only three cities - along with San Francisco and Tokyo - to host the collection from the Musee d'Orsay.

One of the key factors allowing the priceless works to come to Australia is indemnity provided by the Federal Government under its Art Indemnity Australia programme.

Although irreplaceable, the 114 works are reportedly valued at around A$2 billion ($2.45 billion).

The exhibition runs from December 4, 2009 to April 5, 2010.

- AAP