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Time Out Abu Dhabi
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out Abu Dhabi
5 reasons to visit Louvre Abu Dhabi this summer
If you're looking for an exciting (and blissfully) air-conditioned thing to do this summer, why not head to Louvre Abu Dhabi? Tucked away on Saadiyat Island and topped with that iconic dome that plays with sunlight like a dream, the museum has lined up some brilliant experiences over the sunny months. From VR time-travel to seeing a historic painting and cosmic fun for the kids, this season is packed with reasons to swing by. Here's why you should book your next outing at Louvre Abu Dhabi. Cheaper tickets for UAE residents First off, there's a handy 30 percent off on online bookings for UAE residents, so tickets worth Dhs65 are now available for Dhs45. That's a decent little bonus for planning ahead. And if you're visiting with kids under 18, even better, there's a cosmic exhibition at the Children's Museum that's completely free for them. VR takes you back in time One of the biggest highlights this summer is the new Quantum Dome Project – a collective VR experience that's like a time machine. This 40-minute adventure lets you journey through Imperial Rome, medieval Baghdad and Mughal India in a race across centuries. Tickets are Dhs95 for Louvre Abu Dhabi's admission tickets holders. It's family-friendly, accessible by wheelchair users and available in Arabic, English and French. On weekdays, the last session kicks off at 6pm, while on weekends, it runs until 8pm. See Una Bulaqueña for the first time in the UAE Art lovers will want to make time for Una Bulaqueña, now on display for a year. Painted by the famed Filipino artist Juan Luna in 1895, this rare masterpiece is on loan from the Philippines and hasn't often been seen outside the country. There are some exciting new arrivals worth checking out as well. From a striking portrait of Kosa Pan, Siam's first ambassador to France, to a dreamy Venetian scene by Canaletto, the latest additions span continents and centuries. There's also a self-portrait by 19th-century French artist Antoinette Haudebourt-Lescot, a bold abstract work by Kandinsky, and a limestone head of a youth from ancient Cyprus. Whatever age of history you want to travel back to, there's plenty to admire on your next visit. Take kids to see a space-themed experience at the Children's Museum There's a must-see space-themed experience called Picturing the Cosmos at Louvre Abu Dhabi's Children's Museum. Spread across three floors, the exhibition invites young minds to think about how different cultures throughout time have viewed the stars, planets and universe. There are plenty of hands-on games and activities to keep them entertained while learning something new (bonus points for that). Go on a Family Treasure Hunt And if you've got young adventurers in tow, don't miss the Family Treasure Hunt. It's a mobile game available in five languages – Arabic, English, French, Chinese and Russian – designed to keep curious minds busy. All you need is your phone. Scan the code, follow the clues, and explore the permanent galleries in a fresh, puzzle-solving way. From Dhs45. Open Tue-Thu, 10am-6.30pm (exhibition), Fri-Sun, 10am-8.30pm. Closed on Mon. Saadiyat Cultural District, Saadiyat Island, .
Time Out Dubai
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out Dubai
5 reasons to visit Louvre Abu Dhabi this summer
If you're looking for an exciting (and blissfully) air-conditioned thing to do this summer, why not head to Louvre Abu Dhabi? Tucked away on Saadiyat Island and topped with that iconic dome that plays with sunlight like a dream, the museum has lined up some brilliant experiences over the sunny months. From VR time-travel to seeing a historic painting and cosmic fun for the kids, this season is packed with reasons to swing by. Here's why you should book your next outing at Louvre Abu Dhabi. Cheaper tickets for UAE residents First off, there's a handy 30 percent off on online bookings for UAE residents, so tickets worth Dhs65 are now available for Dhs45. That's a decent little bonus for planning ahead. And if you're visiting with kids under 18, even better, there's a cosmic exhibition at the Children's Museum that's completely free for them. VR takes you back in time One of the biggest highlights this summer is the new Quantum Dome Project – a collective VR experience that's like a time machine. This 40-minute adventure lets you journey through Imperial Rome, medieval Baghdad and Mughal India in a race across centuries. Tickets are Dhs95 for Louvre Abu Dhabi's admission tickets holders. It's family-friendly, accessible by wheelchair users and available in Arabic, English and French. On weekdays, the last session kicks off at 6pm, while on weekends, it runs until 8pm. See Una Bulaqueña for the first time in the UAE Art lovers will want to make time for Una Bulaqueña, now on display for a year. Painted by the famed Filipino artist Juan Luna in 1895, this rare masterpiece is on loan from the Philippines and hasn't often been seen outside the country. There are some exciting new arrivals worth checking out as well. From a striking portrait of Kosa Pan, Siam's first ambassador to France, to a dreamy Venetian scene by Canaletto, the latest additions span continents and centuries. There's also a self-portrait by 19th-century French artist Antoinette Haudebourt-Lescot, a bold abstract work by Kandinsky, and a limestone head of a youth from ancient Cyprus. Whatever age of history you want to travel back to, there's plenty to admire on your next visit. Take kids to see a space-themed experience at the Children's Museum There's a must-see space-themed experience called Picturing the Cosmos at Louvre Abu Dhabi's Children's Museum. Spread across three floors, the exhibition invites young minds to think about how different cultures throughout time have viewed the stars, planets and universe. There are plenty of hands-on games and activities to keep them entertained while learning something new (bonus points for that). Go on a Family Treasure Hunt And if you've got young adventurers in tow, don't miss the Family Treasure Hunt. It's a mobile game available in five languages – Arabic, English, French, Chinese and Russian – designed to keep curious minds busy. All you need is your phone. Scan the code, follow the clues, and explore the permanent galleries in a fresh, puzzle-solving way. From Dhs45. Open Tue-Thu, 10am-6.30pm (exhibition), Fri-Sun, 10am-8.30pm. Closed on Mon. Saadiyat Cultural District, Saadiyat Island, .
The National
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Weekly UAE museum and gallery guide: Louvre Abu Dhabi's new loans and Mohammad Alfaraj's solo show
At Louvre Abu Dhabi, new loans and acquisitions have been woven into the museum's permanent galleries, adding fresh layers to its core universal narrative. At Ishara Art Foundation, a new exhibition brings a visual identity from the streets into a white cube space, while a show at Jameel Arts Centre delves into life in Saudi Arabia's oasis city Al Ahsa. Here are three exhibitions to explore this weekend. New loans and acquisitions at Louvre Abu Dhabi Louvre Abu Dhabi has introduced a new rotation of loans and acquisitions across its permanent galleries. The additions range from Roman portraiture and South Asian courtly art to modernist works. Highlights include a finely carved Roman cameo thought to depict Agrippa Postumus, mounted in an 18th-century British setting; a luminous ivory-and-gold casket from 16th-century Sri Lanka; and Juan Luna's enigmatic Una Bulaquena (1895), on loan from the National Museum of the Philippines. Other artefacts build subtle conversations with existing displays: a limestone Head of an Ephebe from Cyprus joins other sculptures of the human face; a Gabonese reliquary figure enters a display of funerary objects; and Kandinsky 's White Oval (1921) marks a moment of artistic transition. Tuesday to Thursday, 10am-6.30pm; Friday to Sunday, 10am-8.30pm; Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi No Trespassing at Ishara Art Foundation Curated by Priyanka Mehra, No Trespassing is Ishara Art Foundation's first summer exhibition. The show brings street aesthetics into the gallery, with six artists engaging with urban materials as both subject and medium. Works by Fatspatrol (Fathima Mohiuddin), H11235 (Kiran Maharjan), Khaled Esguerra, Rami Farook, Salma Dib and Sara Alahbabi turn building materials, pavements, signage and surfaces into acts of mark-making. Rather than define what the street is, the exhibition reflects how it's used, as a space that's chaotic, curated, lived-in and constantly rewritten. Monday to Saturday, 10am-7pm; until August 30, Alserkal Avenue, Dubai Seas are sweet, fish tears are salty at Jameel Arts Centre Art Jameel presents the first institutional solo exhibition of Saudi artist Mohammad Alfaraj. Rooted in his hometown of Al Ahsa, the works draw from agricultural landscapes, oral traditions and the details of everyday life. The show spans photography, film, installation and poetry, unfolding across both the indoor galleries and garden spaces of Jameel Arts Centre. Hands, birds and palm trees recur throughout, forming a loose constellation of motifs. New commissions include a sound piece, a site-specific structure and a video work. The exhibition reflects Alfaraj's interest in storytelling, moving across human and non-human worlds.
The National
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Juan Luna masterpiece, a Filipino national treasure, on view at Louvre Abu Dhabi
A landmark work by the 19th-century Filipino painter and activist Juan Luna is one of the newest highlights at the Louvre Abu Dhabi. Una Bulaquena is one of Luna's most enigmatic works. The painting depicts a young Filipina woman, poised and composed in traditional attire. In one hand she holds a handkerchief. In the other, an ivory fan. Painted in 1895, the work is a National Cultural Treasure of the Philippines, and offers a rare glimpse into Luna's softer, more introspective style. The Badoc-born artist is perhaps best known for his epic paintings, which reframe moments from ancient history as allegories of colonial oppression. His famous Spoliarium, for instance, is set in ancient Rome and shows dying gladiators being dragged out of an arena, stripped of their weapons, armor and dignity. The painting can be seen as a metaphor for colonial brutality and apathy. On the far right of the painting is a weeping woman often interpreted as representing the 'Mother Country' as she witnesses the plundering of her people. Una Bulaquena is a very different painting. It is more personal and restrained. If Spoliarium roars with political symbolism, Una Bulaquena whispers of grace and the complex interiority of its subject. ' Una Bulaquena is one of Luna's most recognisable works,' says Jorell Legaspi, deputy director-general for Museums of the National Museum of the Philippines, which has loaned the painting to Louvre Abu Dhabi for a year. 'It has inspired many creatives and pop culture here in the Philippines over over the decades. The painting is our second largest Juan Luna painting after Spoliarium.' Though less overtly political than Spoliarium, the painting still challenged Eurocentric aesthetics through its dignified portrayal of a Filipina subject. ' It represents a total opposite of what a 19th-century artist who is trained in the European canon would feature,' Legaspi says. 'It depicts a Filipino woman, as opposed to what you would have in a European subject painting, especially if its depicting nobility or aristocracy.' That's not to say that Una Bulaquena does not have its own regal flair. The woman depicted in the painting comes from upper middle-class society, as evidenced by her clothing. Her baro't saya consists of a blouse, saya (long skirt), panuelo (neck cover) and tapis (knee-length overskirt). Interestingly, some of her clothing was produced using pineapple fibre. ' It's a sheer textile that's exquisite and expensive,' Legaspi says. 'Only people of affluent backgrounds can actually afford these types of of garments. These are the symbols or clues that the subject of the painting is from an affluent family.' But who is the woman depicted in Una Bulaquena? For years, her identity remained a mystery and was left open to speculation. Recent scholarship, however, points to a more concrete figure: Emiliana Yriarte Trinidad, a young woman from Bulacan. Archival photographs reinforce this idea, as Trinidad's features sharply resemble the sitter's. 'She was herself an artist and student of Luna,' Legaspi says. 'She was only 16 or 17 when she sat for Luna for this painting. There are some written accounts that Luna was actually in love with her but because of the age gap, her parents did not approve of him as a suitor.' However, Trinidad's relationship with the painting is not merely as its subject. In fact, she may have had an active role in protecting it through the Second World War, when the Philippines was occupied by Japan, suffering immense destruction and loss before being liberated by Allied forces in 1945. 'There was an assumption that the painting was hers, and that it was a gift from Luna to her,' Legaspi says. 'In order to safeguard the painting from damage or being looted, Emiliana herself sold the painting to an art collector and patron to protect it.' The painting's provenance is a bit murky after that, Legaspi says. But somehow the painting ended up in the presidential palace, where it stayed until 1986, when the People Power Revolution peacefully overthrew dictator Ferdinand Marcos, ending two decades of authoritarian rule. 'The National Museum of the Philippines was able to retrieve this painting from the presidential palace and kept it under its care since then.' As Una Bulaquena is regarded as a national treasure, several permits and a great deal of care was required before bringing it to Abu Dhabi. 'The fact that it traveled for the very first time ever, left the Philippines to come to Abu Dhabi, is a huge honour,' Aisha AlAhmadi, curatorial assistant at Louvre Abu Dhabi, says. The painting now hangs between two other masterpieces from the same era – Auguste Renoir's La Tasse de Chocolat (Cup of Chocolate) and Edouard Manet's The Bohemian. 'She demands her own presence, with her poised, elegant and dignified look,' AlAhmadi says. 'The scale of the painting also commands its own respect and attention. It made sense to put the painting here, because in this gallery we have the theme of modern subject and landscape. Looking at how artists in the 19th century were looking at portraiture and in different styles.' For the UAE's sizable Filipino community, the painting offers a strong moment of cultural recognition and connection. "It can be a proud moment to see something so significant in size, beauty and history," Legaspi says. Una Bulaquena is not the only work at Louvre Abu Dhabi that is on loan from an institution in the Philippines. A gold cup, dated between 900 and 1200 AD, and a funerary mask from the same period, have been on loan from the Ayala Museum since 2022.
Filipino Times
22-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Filipino Times
PH Embassy in UAE invites Filipino community to visit Juan Luna's Una Bulaqueña at Louvre Abu Dhabi
The Philippine Embassy in the UAE warmly invites the Filipino community to visit the iconic painting Una Bulaqueña by revered painter and sculptor Juan Luna, currently on display at Louvre Abu Dhabi. In an interview, His Excellency Alfonso Ferdinand A. Ver, Philippine Ambassador to the UAE, encouraged the overseas Filipinos, especially the schoolchildren, to take advantage of this unique opportunity to experience a national treasure that celebrates Filipino heritage and artistry on the international stage. 'We are very glad that Una Bulaqueña is here. It is a product of the cooperation between our two countries and our pride in showing the genius of the Filipino,' the Ambassador said on the sidelines of the Philippine Independence Day celebration in Abu Dhabi. 'So it's here, and I invite all of you, we're inviting all the schoolchildren, please, through your schools, pumunta kayo. 'Yung mga administrator, bibigyan namin kayo ng ticket. 'Yung mga bata naman libre,' he added. According to Louvre Abu Dhabi's official website, all visitors under 18 years old can enter free of charge. 'It's not just a matter of pride, but it's a real work of art that you should appreciate. It attaches you to our Philippine history and culture, and it's something that you can be proud of and probably even inspire you,' Ambassador Ver said. He also highlighted the significance of Saadiyat Island as a global cultural hub, hosting not only the Louvre Abu Dhabi, but also the interfaith complex Abrahamic Family House, and the upcoming Guggenheim Abu Dhabi and Zayed National Museum. Una Bulaqueña, an oil painting depicting a young woman from Bulacan dressed in traditional Filipino attire, will be exhibited until June 2026. This collaboration marks the first direct partnership between Louvre Abu Dhabi and the National Museum of the Philippines, symbolizing the strengthening cultural ties between the UAE and the Philippines. 'I'm so proud that because of our cultural ties, we have a cultural agreement with the UAE. One of the fruits and the results of that is a loan of one of our national treasures in the very prestigious Louvre Abu Dhabi here in Saadiyat Island,' Ambassador Ver said. Painted in 1895, Una Bulaqueña was declared a National Cultural Treasure in 2008. The artwork is a striking blend of European artistic techniques and Filipino identity during the Spanish colonial period.
