Abu Dhabi’s branch of The Louvre is set to open Nov. 12th, more than five years late. It is the first, and possibly the last, overseas outpost of the iconic French museum.
The building, by noted French architect Jean Nouvel, cost over $100 million, will show a collection of over 700 works, 300 of them on loan from France. France’s museum authorities received about $750 million as part of the deal, including the services of French managers who will oversee the loaned works. Abu Dhabi is also said to have paid about $525 million for use of the Louvre name.
Some of the delay has been due to complexity of the building, designed to protect the paintings from extremes of weather and climate, and some due to drops in oil prices in recent years.
Despite the cash flowing to France, the project has drawn wide criticism in France, where many felt that national heritage had been sold, and elsewhere because of labor conditions for migrant workers at the construction site.
A Guggenheim Museum branch has also been planned, but has also been delayed, without construction starting.
