Abu Dhabi Louvre Museum : Information

Louvre Abu Dhabi : Sheikh Sultan and Jean Nouvel inspect a prototype of the dome 17 Nov 2009 Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman of TDIC inspects a prototype of the lattice-like dome for the Louvre Abu Dhabi, installed on Abu Dhabi's Saadiyat Island where the new universal museum is being built. Accompanying Sheikh Sultan is Jean Nouvel, Pritzker Prize-winning architect for the project. image © TDIC, Abu Dhabi A key design element of the Louvre Abu Dhabi will be its great dome, 180 metres (almost 600 feet) in diameter, floating above a cluster of buildings and waterways. Perforated by interlaced patterns, the dome will let a diffused light filter magically into the spaces below. The prototype, 6 metres (approximately 20 feet) in diameter, is being used to test the play of light and shadows on the site prior to fabrication of the final structure. The 24,000 square metre (260,000 square foot) Louvre Abu Dhabi is expected to open in 2013 and will have 6,000 square metres (65,000 square feet) of galleries devoted to permanent displays and 2,000 square metres (21,500 square feet) for temporary exhibitions. The Louvre Abu Dhabi will present major artifacts and works in archaeology, the fine arts and decorative arts from all historic periods, with works drawn from the Louvre and other French museums and from its own permanent collection. Louvre Abu Dhabi dome image / information received 171109 Previously: Abu Dhabi Louvre 2007-12 Jean Nouvel NATHALIE CRINIÈRE WINS COMPETITION TO CREATE EXHIBITION DESIGN FOR THE LOUVRE ABU DHABI Louvre Abu Dhabi Architect: Ateliers Jean Nouvel Image courtesy of Gaston Bergeret UAE, January 5th, 2009 -- Agence France-Museums, in partnership with Abu Dhabi's Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), today announced that the firm of Nathalie Crinière has been selected to create the exhibition design for the Louvre Abu Dhabi, one of the five major institutions being planned for Abu Dhabi's Saadiyat Island Cultural District. Nathalie Crinière was awarded the project through a competition among six invited design firms. In addition to conceiving the design of the permanent collection galleries and integrating it with the architectural design by Jean Nouvel, Nathalie Crinière will develop a graphic identity for the Louvre Abu Dhabi and design the lighting, curatorial and directional signage, and multimedia elements. The exhibition design competition was organized by Agence France-Museums, which is implementing the agreement between the governments of France and Abu Dhabi that has established the Louvre Abu Dhabi, and TDIC, the developer of Saadiyat Island into a signature cultural, leisure and residential destination. The competition jury panel was chaired by His Excellency Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman of TDIC, and included Henri Loyrette, Director of the Musée du Louvre; Bruno Maquart, General Director of Agence France-Museums; Jean Nouvel, architect; and Lee Tabler, Chief Executive Officer of TDIC. The Louvre Abu Dhabi is being developed through a 30-year accord between the governments of France and Abu Dhabi. Housed in an extraordinary building and scheduled to open in 2012/2013, the Louvre Abu Dhabi will present important archeological artifacts and major works of fine arts and decorative arts from cultures around the world and from all historic periods. "In partnership with the French Government and Agence France-Museums, we are moving steadily forward in realizing the Louvre Abu Dhabi," said H.E. Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan. "We look forward to continuing this momentum and breaking ground for the museum in the first half of 2009." The 24,000 square metre (260,000 square foot) museum will include 6,000 square metres (65,000 square feet) of galleries devoted to permanent installations and 2,000 square metres (22,000 square feet) reserved for temporary exhibitions. The exhibitions in the permanent galleries will be drawn from the collections of the Louvre and other eminent French public museums and cultural institutions, including Centre Pompidou, Château de Versailles, Musée d'Orsay, Musée Rodin and Bibliothèque Nationale de France. Over time, the Louvre Abu Dhabi will also develop its own distinctive permanent collection. Nathalie Crinière has conceived of a design that will bring these works to life, while merging seamlessly with an architecture that Jean Nouvel has described as an "island on the island": a micro-city of small buildings, ponds and landscaping, covered with a lacy dome "which lets a diffuse, magical light come through in the best tradition of great Arabian architecture." Among Nathalie Crinière's recent projects are the designs for the exhibitions "Marie Antoinette" shown at the Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais in Paris and "L'age d'or des sciences arabes" at Musee national d'art modern et contemporain d'Alger in Algeria. The other firms invited to participate in the competition by Agence France-Museums included Adrien Gardère, Antoine Stinco, Reza Azard Société Projectiles, Adeline Rispal and Didier Blin. Abu Dhabi Louvre Museum - Information from 26 May 2009 Abu Dhabi Louvre Museum Building - Talking Art Information from 26 May 2009 About Saadiyat Island Cultural District: The Saadiyat Island Cultural District in Abu Dhabi is planned to be the world's largest single concentration of premier cultural institutions. Unprecedented in scale and scope, these facilities will include the Sheikh Zayed National Museum, designed by Lord Norman Foster; the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi Museum, designed by Frank Gehry; the Louvre Abu Dhabi, designed by Jean Nouvel; a performing arts center, designed by Zaha Hadid; and a maritime museum, designed by Tadao Ando. About Agence France-Museums: Agence France-Museums associates in its capital twelve cultural French public institutions: the Musée du Louvre, the Centre Pompidou, the Musée d'Orsay, the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, the Musée du Quai-Branly, the Réunion des Musées Nationaux, the Château de Versailles, the Musée Guimet, the Musée Rodin, the Ecole du Louvre, the Château de Chambord, the Etablissement Public de Maitrise d'Ouvrage des Travaux Culturels. Agence France-Museums is responsible for the project of the universal museum of the Louvre Abu Dhabi. Feedback on Abu Dhabi Architecture welcome: info@e-architect.co.uk