Emmanuel Macron at the Louvre: A Speech Addressing the Museum’s Deterioration

Emmanuel Macron will visit the Louvre on Tuesday, January 28, where he is set to deliver a speech at 3:30 PM following an alarming report by the museum’s president, Laurence des Cars, about the concerning state of the world’s largest museum. This visit comes days after a note was sent to Minister of Culture Rachida Dati, in which Laurence des Cars highlighted “the multiplication of incidents in severely degraded areas,” “the obsolescence of technical equipment,” and “worrying temperature fluctuations threatening the conservation of artworks.”

The note also underscored the structural limitations of the iconic glass pyramid, inaugurated in 1988 and designed to accommodate four million visitors annually, while the museum welcomed nearly nine million visitors in 2024. Additional concerns included a lack of relaxation areas, substandard restroom facilities compared to international benchmarks, and overcrowding, which further strains the site.

A close aide to the president told BFMTV: “The President of the Republic seems eager to address the issue after multiple warnings about the urgent need for renovations to safeguard the museum.” The Élysée confirmed that Emmanuel Macron had been “alerted” and had held “several discussions with the minister and the museum’s management” to explore potential solutions.