It seems the French hate everything new and startling, until they don’t anymore. Parisians thought the Eiffel Tower to be an eyesore when it was first erected, and now it seems hard to imagine Paris without the Eiffel Tower.
The Louvre’s pyramid is a comparable situation. The metal and glass structure was designed as a new entrance to the famous art museum by a Chinese American architect, I.M. Pei, and was opened in 1989, the bicentenary year of the French Revolution. It provides a stark contrast to the palace in whose courtyard it sits, but personally I’ve always found that it captured my attention and imagination.
While the idea of the pyramid was originally hated, today it seems appreciated by tourists and Parisians alike. The pyramid, like the Mona Lisa, has become a symbol of the Louvre.
I especially the view from within it.
