Louvre Abu Dhabi

Description

The Louvre’s new branch in Abu Dhabi is part of the Gulf States’ efforts to promote themselves as tourist and cultural destinations in order to reduce the burden of oil on their economies. This vast building is underpinned by two key requirements: climate control and the need to create a landmark that expresses authenticity and a global vocation. A huge dome 180 metres in diameter, a reinterpretation of Islamic architecture, looms over the museum, filtering the light and creating an atmosphere somewhere between tradition and science fiction. The uniqueness of the roof solution is fragmented in the museum’s floor plan, configured by the composition of cubic forms organically arranged to form internal streets that distribute the flow of visitors. Under the constant presence of the dome’s aluminium lattice, the inner medina stretches out towards the sea, revealing attractive inlets and outcrops reminiscent of the coastal villages that are becoming increasingly rare in the area. This sophisticated building, full of cultural references, reflects well the complexity and even the contrasts inherent in the site and in the genesis of the project itself. As an impossible exercise in cultural translation without budgetary constraints, it has resulted in a space that brilliantly reflects the times in which we live today.