Photo Feature

A Glossy Touch 

This bold pyramid adds a contemporary touch to historic architecture

Spectacular in concept and form, the Pei pyramids in the courtyard of the famous Louvre Museum, Paris, offer a startling reminder of the audacious ability of modern architecture that invigorates and shuffles the traditional forms of the subject. The main pyramid is a complex inter-linked structure with a spathe of reflective glass. This wonderful structure doubles as the entrance doorway that provides the long overdue entrance portico to the galleries of the museum.

The main pyramid has two more small pyramids, which provide further light and ventilation to the subterranean space. Rising a modest 71ft above the ground, the central pyramid has used lightly tinted glass sourced from St Gobain to be compatible with the honey-coloured stone, the Second Empire facades of the old Louvre. This pyramid was built in the year 1989 by renowned American architect I M Pei.

Pei gave shape to this pyramid with a view of creating a clever solution to give the museum a spacious central entrance without touching the historic patrimony of the building.