Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, is paying France $520 million to open a Louvre art museum in the Middle East, according to an article in The New York Times titled “The Louvre’s Art: Priceless. The Louvre’s Name: Priceless.”
Artworks from the original museum, according to the contract, would be rotated through the new museum. I was born and raised in the United Arab Emirates and find a few disturbing facts in this corporate merger.
The U.A.E. has slowly come to rely on tourism as a great national revenue, resulting in the national agenda to focus on building the grandest malls and most outlandish attractions. An example could be seen in the indoor ski and snowboarding slopes located close to the beach in a country known for its desert.
In my mind is imprinted a country before the renowned beach resorts and the abundance of shopping malls. The country I remember is one where children could go to the beach whenever they pleased without being required to have a spa pass or hotel key, a country where the locals knew more than the tourist guides.
Though I may acknowledge the blessing that finances may bring to the nation I viewed as home, the damage done to the culture and natural resources still remains.
The beaches, the desert and the local souqs (outdoor shopping markets) have all become tourist attractions, hindering their existence as places where locals can enjoy their traditional environment. Streets are sprinkled with foreigners equipped with cameras observing national customs of celebration preparations.
The government focuses on what it is giving back to the country – a successful economy – thinking that it justifies all that is being taken away from those who call the U.A.E. their home.
I speak for myself and no one else, and I feel as though I have had more taken away than I have been rewarded.
To add insult to injury, I, like many French nationalists, find the “loaning” of the Louvre name to another museum unheard of. As a child, I learned about the Louvre and all of the amazing treasures it houses, hoping to someday visit all the wonders encased within its walls. It is a monument embodying a great amount of the finest artwork ever created. Its reputation and name are priceless.
I do, without a doubt, believe that the Middle East should house cultural and artistic monuments worth a tourist’s visit. I suppose this is where I differ from others.
I believe that the Middle East already houses such beauties, from Islamic artwork and historical structures to its natural and seemingly untouchable landscapes. The U.A.E. should not need to acquire the treasures of foreign lands to draw attraction to its already impressive country.
The effect that I may discern from this situation is this: A land that shall try to become more “modern” and Western in an attempt to lure visitors to earn revenue may lose more than it may believe.
It unknowingly trades its natural and humble beauty for that which is distinguished in terms of monetary numbers and rankings, only to recognize its loss once it’s become too late.
Sarah Al-Mulla is a junior journalism major.
