15 artworks you'll be able to see at the Louvre Abu Dhabi when it opens...
This is a properly prestigious collection of art, sculpture and ancient history…
The Louvre Abu Dhabi will be a cultural game changer when it opens on Saadiyat Island on Saturday November 11.
We all know about the beautiful, light-dappled Jean Nouvel structure (which is actually 55 separate white buildings), with its ‘concrete beach’ and 180-metre-wide dome that gives off a ‘rain of light’ effect, but what will we actually find inside its walls?
Well, more than 600 pieces will be on display in the museum at any time (300 of which will likely be loans from French museums), so there will be a lot to take in, here are some of the key pieces that you’ll be able to see from opening day…
ON LOAN
King Ramesses II, Diorite, 1279 – 1213 B.C.E. (19th dynasty), found at Tanis
Image: Musée du Louvre, dist. RMN/Christian Dé camps
La Belle Ferronniè, Leonardo da Vinci, 1495-1499
Image: Musée du Louvre, C2RMF/T. Clot
Self-portrait, Vincent Van Gogh, 1887
Photo: Musée d’Orsay, dist. RMN-Grand Palais/Patrice Schmidt
Number 26 A, Black and White, 1948, Jackson Pollock
Image: Centre Pompidou,MNAM-CCI/Georges Meguerditchian/Dist. RMN-G
Statue of Gudea, prince of Lagash, praying, Circa 2120 B.C. (Neo-sumerian period, Gudea reign, 2125 – 2110 BC), ancient Girsu (Iraq)
Image: 2007 Musée du Louvre – High Museum/Peter Harholdt
IN THE PERMANENT COLLECTION
Funeral set of princess Henuttawy, Egypt, 2nd half of 10th century BCE, beginning of the 22th dynasty
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Thierry Ollivier
The Subjugated Reader, René Magritte, Le Perreux-sur-Marne, France, 1928
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Thierry Ollivier
Bactrian “princess”, Central Asia, end of 3rd beginning of 2nd millennium BCE
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Thierry Ollivier
Portrait of Fayoum, Egypt, Antinoopolis, 225-250 AD
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Thierry Ollivier
Shiva Dancing, Asia, 2nd half of 10th century AD
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Thierry Ollivier
Turban Helmet, Aq-Qoyunlu or Ottoman, 2nd half of 15th century
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi / Thierry Ollivier
Game of Bezique, Gustave Caillebotte, Paris, France, 1880
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Agence Photo F
Children Wrestling, Paul Gauguin, Pont-Aven, France, 1888
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Agence Photo F
A Young Emir Studying, Osman Hamdy Bey, Istanbul, 1878
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Agence Photo F
Untitled (I-IX), Cy Twombly, Artist’s studio, Italy, 2008
Image: Louvre Abu Dhabi/Agence Photo F & Cy Twombly Foundation
SOME FAST FACTS ABOUT THE LOUVRE…
– It was born from an agreement between the UAE and France in 2007 (and now, 10 years later, it’s opening – good things take time).
– There are 23 galleries and 12 ‘sequences’.
– There’s also a Children’s Museum, a 200-seater-auditorium, a restaurant, a café and a retail space.
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