The Lourve Abu Dhabi is offering visitors a chance to take a step back into history to explore luxury through fashion, jewellery, visual art, furniture and design with masterpieces from around the world. This will be the museum’s first comprehensive exhibition on the history of luxury in the world.
Two years after the opening of the museum by the governments of Abu Dhabi and France, this latest exhibit will showcase over 350 objects that include the Abu Dhabi Pearl also known as world’s oldest pearl dating back to 5,800 – 5,600 BCE, the renowned Boscoreale Treasure “one of the largest collections of silverware preserved from Roman Antiquity” as well as dresses and jewellery from design houses such as Cartier, Maison Van Cleef & Arpels, CHANEL, Christian Dior, ELIE SAAB and Yves Saint Laurent.
Curated by Olivier Gabet, Director of Muse des Arts Decoratifs, the exhibition draws primarily from the collection of the Muse des Arts Decoratifs and other French, international and local institutions. It will also display works from Louvre Abu Dhabi’s collection and offers a rare chance to evaluate our ever-changing fascination with luxury.
The Winter exhibition explores the fascinating concept of Luxury through a long lens, contextualizing objects across time and culture to illuminate evolving notions of beauty, wealth and value.
Two landmark pieces illustrate the history of Abu Dhabi, featuring the Abu Dhabi Pearl which dates back to 5,800 – 5,600 BCE making it the oldest pearl in the world. There is also the antique pearl necklace that belonged to Arab diva Umm Kulthum.
Making the leap from ancient to modern times, the exhibition will also showcase how the Industrial Revolution led to
the emergence of the nouveaux riches, an elite with a more democratic access to luxury. As a result, department stores came into fashion, offering items such as jewellery, haute couture, dinner services, luggage and furniture to a wider audience than ever before. Women’s demands for emancipation also had far-reaching effects on the arts and in the 1920s, and Gabrielle Chanel’s Little Black Dress became an iconic example of couture for the modern woman.
Luxury fashion features prominently throughout the exhibition with exceptional loans from major couture houses including Christian Dior, Givenchy, Chloe, Azzedine Alaa, Maison Schiaparelli, Lanvin and more. A brocaded silk dress from the late Ottoman Empire blends Turkish and Parisian designs, on loan from the Muse des Arts Decoratifs. Contemporary fashion pieces include an organza evening dress by Karl Lagerfeld for CHANEL, horse riding accessories adorned in cockerel feathers by Hermes and an embroidered sequin gown from ELIE SAAB’s Spring/Summer 2019 collection.
In addition, there will be a virtual reality experience based on the series that will take viewers on an immersive journey through the lives of the Emirati forefathers and the history of the UAE.
Finally, Louvre Abu Dhabi will premiere the interactive installation, Digital Snow Globes, from 12 December 2019 to 10 January 2020, which will bring a festive winter spirit to the museum with visitor-activated snowstorms surrounding life-sized reproductions of artworks from 10,000 Years of Luxury encased in snow globes.
Pre-booking is highly advised due to the peak period. To book tickets, please visit www.louvreabudhabi.ae
