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limited interest in his different residences, but due to the magnificent decorationwork carriedout by hisminister Colbert, his architect Louis LeVau andone of his painters, Charles LeBrun. Under LeBrun’s direction, an army of painters and sculptors took charge of thedecorationof thousands of square metres of walls and ceilings – completed in record time. This acted somewhat as a kindof practice runof what thepalace at Versailleswould eventually undergo. Unfortunately, the fire whichdestroyedLes Tuileries in 1871 left only traces of what haddoubtless been an enormous artistic achievment. When theSunKing, Louis XIV, abandoned the Louvre to reside inSaint-Germain-en-Laye and later inVersailles, the Louvrewas without use for a short time, until the kingdecided tomove the headquarters of the academies (including those of the sciences, architecture, painting and sculpting, and l’Académie Française amongothers) to thepalace. Les Tuileries, however, continued to host the king each time he had to stay in the capital. The Louvrebecame a hotbedof artistic activity, a temple to the sciences, the arts andgood taste, wherepainting and sculpture salonswere organisedby theAcademy. After the FrenchRevolution, the Louvrebecame a centre of spectacular innovation, leading to the conversionof thebuilding into a museumwhere artists could alsogo to learn andbe inspiredby the great artworks of themasters – apracticewhich continues to this day. Under Napoleon I andhis descendents, themuseumwas re- dedicated exclusively to the exhibitionof the art collections, with all artists expelled from the facility. It was respectfully remodeled following a neoclassical Renaissance aesthetic. In fact, during theSecondEmpire (between 1852 and 1870) theDenonWing (then known as the “NewLouvre”) became a symbolicmonument to “Napoleon III style”, that is to say, ornately decorated in anobsessive search for glorification. Themuseum threw itself into celebratinghigh society life under the regime. It is in this period that we find the famously excessive soirées at the Louvre organisedby its director, the Count of Nieuwekerke. Nevertheless, themuseum’s inventory grew thanks to the incorporationof important collections, like that of theMarquis of Campana (comprisingofmore than 11,000 items), AlexandreSauvageot’s collection in1856 and the collectionof Doctor Lacaze in 1869. Finally, as a result of AugusteMariette’s excavations inEgypt (financedby the Louvre andother clandestine financiers of the time) the museum receivedmore than 400boxes full of newdiscoveries. Themuseum nowowns one of theworld’smost important collections of items originating fromPharaonicEgypt. From1861, the Louvrebegan a newperiodof transformations and reconstructions, themost recent in 1997, each in line with the institution’s universalist ambitions, which led to the celebrated creationof theGrandLouvre, which nowoccupies practically the entirety of thebuilding. In1989, under the presidency of FrançoisMitterrand, a large glass and aluminium pyramidwas constructed, whichnow serves as access to themuseum. Designedby architect IeohMingPei, its centre of gravity is in linewith that of themuseum’s threepavilions: Richelieu to the north, Denon to the south andSully to the east. It extends undergroundwith a second invertedpyramidwhich functions as a kindof skylight. During thepresidency of Henri Loyrette (2001-2013), the museumunderwent amost important growthbeyond itswalls, thanks to the commissioningof a subsidiary satellitemuseum inLens, France, and the creationof a newmuseum: the Louvre AbuDhabi in theUnitedArabEmirates. decir, profusamente adornado en una obsesiva búsqueda de glorificación. El museo se vuelca en la celebración de la vida mundanadel régimen.Deestaépocadatan lascélebresydes- mesuradas veladas organizadas por su director, el conde de Nieuwerkerke. El museo no obstante incrementó su inventario gracias a la incorporación de importantes colecciones, como la del Marqués deCampana –formada pormás de 11.000 ob- jetos–, la de Alexandre Sauvageot en 1856 y la del doctor La- caze en1869. Finalmente, y como resultadode las excavacio- nes en Egipto de AugusteMariette –financiadas por el Louvre y furtivas algunas de las veces–, entraron en el museomás de 400 cajas repletas de hallazgos. El museo detenta una de las coleccionesmás importantedelmundodepiezasprocedentes del Egipto faraónico. Apartir de1861, el Louvrecomenzóunanuevaetapade trans- formaciones y reconstrucciones, registrándose las últimas en 1997, todasellasacordesa lasambicionesuniversalistasde la instituciónyconducentesa la triunfal creacióndel granLouvre, el cual ocuparía ya la práctica totalidad del edificio. En 1989 –bajo la presidencia de FrançoisMitterrand– se construyó una gran pirámide de vidrio y aluminio que actualmente sirve de acceso. Diseñada por el arquitecto Ieoh Ming Pei, su centro degravedadcoincideconel de los trespabellonesdelmuseo, Richelieu al norte, Denon al sur y Sully al este. Se prolonga, a nivel subterráneo, con una segunda pirámide invertida que funciona amodode claraboya. Bajo la presidencia de Henri Loyrette (2001-2013), el museo experimentó un importantísimodesarrollo fuera de susmuros, gracias a la puesta en marcha de una filial satélite en Lens (Francia) y a lacreacióndeunnuevomuseo : el LouvredeAbu Dhabi en los EmiratosÁrabes. Vista nocturnadel AlaRichelieudel Museodel Louvre/ Richelieuwing of the Louvremuseum . Foto/ Photo Gloumouth. Lic. CreativeCommons. 142