The current president of the Musée d’Orsay in Paris will replace Jean-Luc Martinez at the helm of the iconic French museum, thus becoming the first woman to lead this museum institution.
Laurence des Cars, president of the Musée d’Orsay for the past four years, will take office as president of the Louvre Museum on September 1. His appointment was confirmed by the Elysee Palace, following a report from France Inter radio.
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At the head of the Musée d’Orsay, of which she was also the first female president, this 19th century and early 20th century art historian stood out for her dynamism, as well as for having focused on diversity, social issues and the importance of attracting new generations. She was especially applauded for the exhibition The Black Model , in 2019.
When submitting his candidacy, Des Cars, 54, presented a project to make the Louvre a “totally contemporary” museum, focused on “youth” and which aims to be a “resonance chamber of society”, as he explained to France Inter . His first measure at the head of the museum, founded in 1793, will consist of creating a ninth department dedicated to Byzantium and the Christians of the East.
“She is a recognized curator, of international projection, who excelled in Orsay and has a great knowledge of the Louvre, since she worked on the [construction project of the] Louvre in Abu Dhabi, between 2007 and 2014,” according to the Elysee.
The final decision on the appointment of the presidents of the great public museums rests with the head of state. President Emmanuel Macron “appreciated the fact that Des Cars perceives that social debates entered museums and examines how (…) to treat them from the point of view of art and entertainment, especially inviting artists,” said an Elysee councilor. .
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More than 10 million visitors in 2019
Jean-Luc Martinez, 57, had run the Louvre since 2013. This historian and archaeologist specializing in Greek antiquities was running for a third term. Very sensitive to opening the Louvre to all audiences, fighting against elitism, he reorganized and refurbished the museum to make it more welcoming. In 2019, before the pandemic, the number of visitors exceeded 10 million, of which 71% corresponded to foreigners, setting a world record. In addition, Martinez championed the opening of the Louvre museum in Abu Dhabi and the ultramodern center for the conservation of works in Lievin, next to the Louvre in the city of Lens, in northern France.
Follow the news of El Espectador on Google NewsMartinez was appointed first ambassador for international cooperation in the field of heritage by Macron, and will be in charge of the policy of restitutions and the fight against the trafficking of works of art.
The Louvre reopened its doors on May 19, after months of closure due to the pandemic. “Laurence des Cars will have to write a new page in the history of the largest museum in the world. The Louvre must reinvent itself in this post-crisis world, and become, now more than ever, a place of contemplation and reflection open to all ”, said the Minister of Culture, Roselyne Bachelot.
