Louvre Pyramid a thorough redesign, including better access to the pyramid and the Passage Richelieu. Louvre Pyramid The Louvre Pyramid (Pyramide du Louvre) is a large glass and metal pyramid designed by Chinese-American architect I.M. Pei, surrounded by three smaller pyramids, in the main courtyard (Cour Napoléon) of the Louvre Palace (Palais du Louvre) in Paris. The large pyramid serves as the main entrance to the Louvre Museum. Completed in 1989, it has become a landmark of the city of Paris. Commissioned by the President of France, François Mitterrand, in 1984, it was designed by the architect I. M. Pei. The structure,
Art in Paris museum, housing many works of art, including the "Mona Lisa" ("La Joconde") and the "Venus de Milo" statue. Known as the Great Louvre, it is the national museum and art gallery of France. Francis I ( a connoisseur of Art), initially started building the Louvre as part of the royal palace erected at a location where a 12th-century fortress of Philip Augustus existed. The palace underwent several additions over the centuries. Finally, after the court moved to Versailles in 1682, a proposal to convert the Louvre into a public museum was mooted in the 18th century, and in 1793 Musée