The Grand Archetectual Presence of the Louvre Palace Essay

INTRODUCTION The Louvre is one of Paris’ most beautiful and historic monuments. It’s one of the world’s largest museums and is a central landmark of Paris itself. The museum today contains nearly 35,000 works of art and is held within an area of 60,600 square meters. With nearly 10,000 visitors a year, the Louvre has become the world’s most visited museum. Out of all the wonderful sights in Paris it was the Louvre’s grand and architectural presence that captured my attention most. The contrast between old and new jumps out at you, but at the same time they work well together. The striking glass pyramid sits seamlessly in the Cour Napolà ©on, which is the main court of the Louvre Palace, whilst being wrapped by the old palace itself. Since†¦show more content†¦It wasn’t until 1983 that the French President Franà §ois Mitterrand proposed the ‘Grand Louvre’ plan that was to renovate the building and relocate the Finance Ministry, allowing the Louvre to have displays throughout the entire building. It was a Chinese-American architect Ieoh Ming Pei, known as I.M. Pei, who was chosen for the project, becoming the first foreign architect to work on the Louvre. His vision involved a divisive and controversial glass pyramid that would stand over the new entrance in the main court, the Cour Napolà ©on. The pyramid and it’s underground lobby were inaugurated on 15 October 1988; finally reaching completion in 1989. At the start Pei went to Paris to assess the location, finally agreeing that the reconstruction was possible, but at the same time he felt that it was a necessity for the future of the museum. Not only did this new design occupy the Cour Napolà ©on within the midst of the three main wings, but also an alteration of the interior. Pei proposed a central underground entrance that would connect the three main buildings. The centrepiece of the design is the glass and steel pyramid that has now become the focal point of the Louvre itself. The structure was mirrored by another inverted pyramid that’s main purpose was to reflect sunlight into the room. This is located in the Carrousel du Louvre, an underground shopping mall inaugurated in 1993 that adjoins the Hall Napolà ©on of the Louvre. Pei found the pyramid shape best suited