Starchitecture is out of fashion these days, but it can still produce visual wonders. The look of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, designed by Jean Nouvel, might be described as Arabic-galactic. In the form of an immense, filigreed gray half-sphere resting on a low base infiltrated by water channels, it could pass as a spaceship, an unfinished mosque or a Venetian pavilion set on the edge of the Persian Gulf. — NYT
Holland Cotter reviews the new building and collection/inaugural installation, of the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
2 Comments
Centainly looks unfinished. And extravagant, wasteful and ostentatious. Massive failure even by Nouvel standards, much like the massive, pretentious roof.
I’d like to hear what a real architecture critic would say. I remember Arabic culture being more colorful, and a technicolor dome would have been nice. Arabic-galatic is a nice phrase, but I write off any review that begins with a bit about “starchitecture” which reads as an preemptive apology for covering anything other than zoning laws and streetcars (I.e. Kimmelman). NYT needs to realize there is a lot going on between the NYC Mayors Office and Abu Dabhi.
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