Construction begins on Jean Nouvel's Louvre Abu Dhabi

It's been in the planning phase for years, and now the much-discussed Louvre Abu Dhabi is finally becoming a reality.

Today, construction officially began on the cultural complex on the Persian Gulf city-state's Saadiyat Island. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, crown prince of Abu Dhabi, presided over the ceremony.

Designed by French architect Jean Nouvel, the civic area will span 260,000 square feet and comprise  pavilions, plazas, canals and alleyways. (About 65,000 square feet will be dedicated to exhibitions.) A dome 590 feet in diameter will hover over much of the complex.

Completion is set for  2012 or 2013.

The Louvre Abu Dhabi is a joint effort between the governments of France and Abu Dhabi. It will feature artworks loaned from several top French museums, including the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, le Centre Pompidou, the Musée de Quai Branly and the Musée Guimet.

In addition, the center will exhibit work from its own developing collection.

Billed as "the first universal museum," the Louvre Abu Dhabi will also feature archaeological artifacts and art from all cultures.

Click through to view more illustrations of Nouvel's designs ...

A view from under the dome:

An aerial view of the complex's museum space:

Another view of the dome:

-- David Ng

Photos: Renderings of Jean Nouvel's designs for the Louvre Abu Dhabi. Credit: Ateliers Jean Nouvel

Comments

[裴振成]

真的很漂亮，要是我能近距离看看？！

[Mango]

Where's the marina? Looks more like the Louvre Hotel and Casino than a true art space.

[Mr.wang]

Beautiful
太漂亮了。。 。 。

[steel balls]

不错，， ， 挺漂亮的。 。。

[Justin]

Can money by culture? This seems like another vanity project as opposed to a sincere appreciation for the arts: http://tinyurl.com/l8w393.

Thanks for the post! The pictures are incredible.

[William LeGro]

Who needs art when you have a building like this?