An Arab Louvre

Paris

The Louvre is opening a satellite museum in the United Arab Emirates. France and the UAE signed a deal this week that would make the Louvre outpost one of five international art museums to be built on an island in the capital, Abu Dhabi. The museum will display works from the Paris Louvre as well as from other French museums, including the Pompidou Center and the Musée d’Orsay. Most French artists and art critics oppose the deal. They say the French government sold the Louvre’s good name for “filthy lucre.” The UAE is paying France $520 million for the Louvre brand and access to its artwork; it will pay another $747 million for special exhibitions and management advice.