The Louvre Abu Dhabi commissioned two famous cultural figures to create unique sculptural compositions that will decorate the museum at its opening ceremony in 2017.
The "Museum City" of Jean Nouvel consists of streets, squares and canals, and therefore the exhibition space is supposed to be both inside and outside. Giuseppe Penone and Jenny Holzer worked closely with the team of the Louvre Abu Dhabi so that future sculptures and installations reflect the concept of the museum and harmonize with the architectural features of the building.
Italian artist and sculptor Giuseppe Penone, one of the youngest representatives of the artistic movement of Arte Povera (Italian: Arte Povera - poor art), created Germination, a four-piece installation made of trees to emphasize the connection between man, nature and art. The central element is the sculpture of Leaves of Light, a huge bronze tree with mirrors on its branches. They reflect the incident light from the perforated roof of the building and are thus a continuation of the "rain from the light" created by Jean Nouvel. Stretching its branches to the dome itself, this tree becomes a symbol of life, common to all cultures. As the author himself notes, "this work emphasizes the ideological orientation of the museum with the help of external forms and is an echo of its spiritual universality."
Giuseppe Penone also created for the Louvre Abu Dhabi and other works, including Propagation, a wall of porcelain stoneware with concentric circles drawn by hand. The lines of the pattern sprout from Sheikh Zayed's fingers, showing how a simple action can create infinite space.
American artist and sculptor Jenny Holzer, known for her work at numerous international exhibitions, created three engraved stone walls with texts from important historical sources. These walls include fragments from the work of Ibn Khaldun "Mukaddima" from the Atyf Effendi Library in Istanbul, the Mesopotamian bilingual tables "Creating a Myth" from the Near East Asian Museum in Berlin and Michel De Montaigne's essay with comments from 1588 from the Bordeaux Municipal Library.
Jenny Holzer noted: “The work in such a significant museum is admirable. The Louvre Abu Dhabi set ambitious goals and put on the agenda topical issues about museums and civilizations. Creating an installation among the fantastic works presented in the Jean Nouvel building is also a privilege , and a challenge. I created my walls in accordance with the architecture of the museum, which I saw as a perfect archaic village under a beautiful futuristic dome. "
Works from the permanent collection will also be exhibited along with these installations in the open areas of the museum.
