Louvre Abu Dhabi to finally open in November

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The Louvre Abu Dhabi - the first Louvre-branded museum outside of Paris - will finally open to the public in November, bringing Mesopotamian artifacts and post-impressionist masterpieces to the Gulf.

Housing 600 works of art, including 300 loaned by 13 French museums for the inaugural year, the Louvre Abu Dhabi is described as the "first universal museum" in the Arab world.

"At a time when culture is under attack... this is our joint response," French Culture Minister Francoise Nyssen said at a news conference Wednesday in Abu Dhabi to announce the November 11 opening date.

President of the Louvre Jean-Luc Martinez speaks during a press conference in Abu Dhabi on September 6, 2017. /AFP Photo

The long awaited museum has been a decade in the making and is opening five years behind schedule.

Among the works on loan to Abu Dhabi are Leonardo da Vinci's La Belle Ferronniere from the Louvre, which houses the world's largest collection of art, and Vincent van Gogh's self-portrait from the Musee d'Orsay.

Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, the "museum city" is reminiscent of an Arab medina, enveloped by a part arabesque, part futuristic silvery dome that lets in light in patterns mimicking the leaves of palm trees in the Gulf.

French architect Jean Nouvel poses next to a model of the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum after a signing ceremony in 2007. /AFP Photo

While the Louvre Abu Dhabi will not lack its Rodins and Gaugins, for some, the real heart of the museum is in its narration of ancient civilizations, told through artifacts acquired by the United Arab Emirates.

Complex, ambitious

The planned opening comes a decade after France and the UAE agreed a 30-year partnership worth 1.1 billion US dollars, under which many top French museums will loan art to Abu Dhabi.

French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to attend the inauguration of the museum, which had originally been scheduled to open in 2012.

This file photo taken on November 4, 2014 shows part of the dome structrure of the future Louvre museum still under contruction on Saadiyat island, near Abu Dhabi. /AFP Photo

The "complex, ambitious project", in the words of museum director Manuel Rabate, has faced delays in funding and construction.

The decision to grant Abu Dhabi the rights to the Louvre name sparked heated debate in France with critics accusing the Louvre of "selling its soul" and questioning the perseverance of the art involved.

Guarded by Emirati forces, in coordination with French experts, including civil defence and terrorism security forces, the art is protected by "state of the art security systems and procedures, in line with international standards," said Mohamed Khalifa al-Mubarak, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority.

Message of tolerance

The Louvre Abu Dhabi is part of "a major cultural strategy" to promote the city as a patron of the arts in a region increasingly focused on soft power.

About five percent of the overall museum will be dedicated to contemporary and modern art. The rest focuses on telling the story of different world histories and religions.

In the gallery of world religions, a sixth century Koran, a gothic Bible and a Yemeni Torah face each other, open to verses that give similar accounts. "To send that message of tolerance is really important for our time," said Mubarak.

Source(s): AFP