À quoi ressemblera le futur musée du Louvre ? Les architectes du chantier du siècle désignés
On May 18, the French Ministry of Culture announced the winner of the international competition for the 'Louvre Nouvelle Renaissance' plan, championed by President Emmanuel Macron in January 2025. The winning consortium, led by Studios Architecture Paris and Selldorf Architects with landscape firm Base, will design a major renovation of the Louvre. The project includes a new entrance on the east side near Saint-Germain-l’Auxerrois to relieve congestion at the pyramid, a belvedere overlooking vegetated moats, and a new 3,000-square-meter gallery dedicated to the Mona Lisa. Construction is not expected to begin before 2028.
The selection matters because it marks the first major architectural intervention at the world’s most visited museum in decades, addressing critical overcrowding and infrastructure issues. However, the project faces significant financial hurdles: the French Court of Auditors estimates costs exceed one billion euros, and no major patron has come forward following a spectacular theft in October 2025. A parliamentary report published May 13 also criticized the plan’s target of 12 to 15 million annual visitors as unrealistic and risky for the fragile building. The outcome will test France’s ability to fund and execute a landmark cultural project amid institutional and economic pressures.