Mario Bellini and Rudy Ricciotti designed the new Islamic Art Wing in the Cour Visconti, an 18th-century courtyard and the last available building site at the Louvre. The architects were chosen for the commission in part because of how their design respected the existing architecture.
A roof detail from inside the galleries.
A detail of the pavilion's undulating roof.
Visitors who look out into the Cour Visconti on the Seine side of the palace see the pavilion’s roof below, a Saharan topography of gold-tinted mesh dunes.
Bellini designed the installation space with architect–engineer Renaud Piérard, fashioning elegant glass vitrines to hold exhibits.
The virtrines are arranged to encourage visitors to create their own paths through the galleries, instead of following a prescribed "death march" that many museums favor.
