link between east and west

In 2017, the Arab world welcomed its first cosmopolitan museum, which houses famous artworks and other culturally significant objects from around the world. Louvre Abu DhabiStanding proudly on Saadiyat Island in the United Arab Emirates, the museum is a bridge between Eastern and Western civilizations. For Louvre Abu Dhabi, the institution is dedicated to spotlighting the story of human creativity. “Museums bring different cultures together to provide new perspectives on these shared human stories, transcending individual civilizations, eras or places,” the museum’s website states.

The creation of the Louvre Abu Dhabi stems from an intergovernmental agreement between the Gulf states and France. The Louvre name will be loaned to Abu Dhabi for 30.5 years for a fee of $520 million as part of a broader $1.3 billion deal with the French Museum of France. In exchange, the Emirates Museum will house art from 17 French cultural institutions, from Leonardo da Vinci’s “La Belle Ferronnière” portrait to Francesco Primaticcio’s bronze “Apollo Belvedere”. Expert guidance is also available to help museums choose which pieces to acquire.

The 2017 inauguration of the Louvre Abu Dhabi was themed ‘From Louvre to Louvre: A Museum for Everyone’ and featured 600 masterpieces. At the time, it sought to trace the origins of the Parisian museum to a time when the public finally had access to these rare collections. But unlike his Western counterparts, Jean-François Charnier, chief curator of Louvre Abu Dhabi, organizes artworks by time and theme rather than origin.

Apart from the building of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the exterior of the museum is a marvel in itself. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning Jean Nouvel, this visual masterpiece subtly showcases his skill with geometry and light. Before designing the museum, the Frenchman was already known for his work at the Arab World Institute, Cartier Foundation In Paris, the cultural and congress center of Lucerne. For Louvre Abu Dhabi, Nouvel was inspired by the natural elements of Sadia Island and the desire to combine it with Arabic culture and Abu Dhabi itself.

The result is a domed structure made of steel, whose complex geometric roof allows for an effect known as a “rain of light” to occur as sunlight travels through the eight structural levels. Patterns of light illuminate the walls and floors of the museum, creating the illusion of being shaded by palm trees commonly found in Abu Dhabi, as their foliage filters and softens the bright sunlight from above.Despite the concept of weightlessness under the interaction of shadows and lights, the structure weighs about 7,000 tons, which is similar to the Eiffel Tower in Paris – Another link with France.

According to an article New York TimesMinister of State Zaki Nusseibeh said the government “sees the Louvre Abu Dhabi as part of a cultural strategy to deal with tensions in the region”. Furthermore, the UAE’s ultimate goal is to “promote the capital as an inclusive global city and its flagship museum as a bridge between civilizations”. In addition, Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, added that the museum aims to “inspire a new generation of cultural leaders and creative thinkers to contribute to our changing and inclusive nation.”

Fast forward to 2022, as the museum celebrates its fifth anniversary with special exhibitions from October 12, 2022 to February 5, 2023.Entitled “Impressionism: Pathways to Modernity”, from works by masters such as Cezanne, Degas, Manet, Monet, Pissarro and Renoir will be on display. Touted as one of the most important exhibitions of the 19th century art movement outside of France, visitors will see more than 150 works of art. This includes Claude Monet’s “Woman in the Garden” and “London, Parliament”. The theme of the exhibition also aptly resonates with what is happening in the Bay Area, where there is a dissonance between modernity and tradition as society transitions to the new world.

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