Louvre Abu Dhabi: When architecture becomes art

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  Scenes from the Louvre Abu Dhabi construction site on July 10, 2013, the first day of the year’s holy month of Ramadan, at the site’s location on Saadiyat Island. Silvia Razgova / The National

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  The opening next year of the Louvre Abu Dhabi is set to be the most talked-about event in the world cultural calendar. Silvia Razgova / The National

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  A view of the Louvre Abu Dhabi dome in late September as workers prepare to lift the very last so-called supersized element – number 85 – into place. Silvia Razgova / The National

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  The Louvre Abu Dhabi construction site on Saadiyat Island. Silvia Razgova / The National

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  An oversized crane gets prepared for installation of a supersized element, the first piece of the steel dome of Louvre Abu Dhabi. The element weighs about 41 tonnes and will rest on its sphere-shaped bearings nestled in bearing plates atop temporary towers. Silvia Razgova / The National

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  Men work on creating a work platform, high in the air, just beneath the iconic dome structure at the Louvre Abu Dhabi construction site on Saadiyat Island in March. Silvia Razgova / The National

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  Just how much has been accomplished can be seen in a new exhibition now open at the Volvo Ocean Race village on Abu Dhabi’s Corniche Breakwater. Silvia Razgova / The National

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  Human and metal sinew are crucial to the construction and success of the Louvre Abu Dhabi. Rods are part of the foundation that will carry one of the dome support towers. Silvia Razgova / The National

The opening next year of the Louvre Abu Dhabi is set to be the most talked-about event in the world cultural calendar.

For some of us at The National it will also mark the end of a remarkable journey, following the construction of the first museum of the Saadiyat Island Cultural District from a patch of empty sand to the completed vision of the architect, Jean Nouvel.

The photographs here are part of a collaboration between The National and the Tourism Development & Investment Company, the Government entity building the museum.

Now entering its third year, this agreement has given The National and its readers a unique insight into the construction of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, an astonishing combination of brilliant engineering and breathtaking design.

Just how much has been accomplished can be seen in a new exhibition now open at the Volvo Ocean Race village on Abu Dhabi’s Corniche Breakwater.

Featuring photographs and articles from The National’s Making of a Museum series, the exhibition also includes video, an Instagram competition with prizes and the opportunity to take home a free souvenir photograph on Thursdays and Fridays.

The exhibition is open at the Volvo Ocean Race village from noon to 9pm Sunday to Wednesday and 11am to midnight on Thursday and weekends until January 3. Admission is free.