Society
25.06.2020
Reopening of the Louvre in Abu Dhabi after 100 days of closure
Closed for more than a hundred days due to the coronavirus, the Louvre Museum in Abu Dhabi reopened on Wednesday.
A reopening adapted to the international health situation
100 days of closure. That’s an eternity for a building whose vocation is to introduce its visitors to the history and the arts. Closed due to the coronavirus epidemic, the Louvre Abu Dhabi Museum was finally allowed to reopen by the Emirati authorities, on the condition that all the necessary measures to prevent the spread of the virus will be taken.
Nous sommes impatients pour la réouverture le 24 juin. ⁰En tant que musée à l’écoute, nous avons travaillé dur afin de nous préparer à recevoir de nouveau nos visiteurs en toute sécurité.⁰ Bonne chance à @MuseeOrsay qui ouvre aujourd’hui et @MuseeLouvre qui ouvre le 6 juillet. pic.twitter.com/IfGJ9gpwDi
— Louvre Abu Dhabi (@LouvreAbuDhabi) June 23, 2020
In addition to being gloved and masked as they wander through the corridors of the imposing monument, museum visitors will have to discover it with a mobile application to find their way around rather than the usual paper maps provided at the entrance to the site. Each visitor will have 3 hours to admire the various works of art compiled within the building, such as the Diorite Sculpture of Pharaoh Ramses II or Leonardo da Vinci’s La Belle Ferronnière.
Culture, stronger than the epidemic
Although for the moment accessible only to residents of the emirate of Abu Dhabi due to the still tight restrictions on travel to and from Abu Dhabi, this situation is expected to change in the coming days or months, depending of course on the evolution of health situation.
Interviewed by AFP, Manuel Rabate, the museum’s director, was both enthusiastic and lucid about the situation: “The restrictions still in place will inevitably limit the number of visitors”.
However, he believes that “every effort is being made to ensure that all visitors have the best and safest possible experience.
After 100 days of closure, night finally falls on the just reopened @LouvreAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/Z8sQeH8tUh
— Manuel Rabate (@ManuelRabate) June 24, 2020
This reopening is timely for art enthusiasts, especially since it barely coincides with the reopening of his elder brother’s museum, the Louvre in Paris, which is scheduled for July 6.