The Louvre Park Abu Dhabi

Gillespies was appointed by the Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC) as Lead Consultant for the design and delivery of Louvre Park, a 3.8-hectare waterfront landscape that forms a fitting and distinctive setting for three of the world’s most celebrated cultural institutions: Louvre Abu Dhabi by Jean Nouvel, Zayed National Museum by Norman Foster, and the future Guggenheim Abu Dhabi by Frank Gehry. Gillespies also delivered adjacent amenity landscapes and a purpose-built guest and staff car park, further enhancing the visitor experience and connectivity across the cultural district.

The Louvre Abu Dhabi, which opened in 2017, was the first museum completed within this visionary cultural quarter. It sits within a carefully composed waterfront park that reflects both the grandeur of the architecture and the long-term ambitions of the Abu Dhabi 2030 Vision, a commitment to sustainable, culturally rich, and globally significant urban development.

The park’s design expresses the monumental scale and elegance of the surrounding museums while embracing the expansive views across the western horizon and the Gulf. A sweeping seafront promenade forms a defining edge to the landscape, offering visitors panoramic views of the Louvre and a calm, reflective space to stroll, pause and connect with the setting.

Landscaping has been used intelligently across the park to provide shading and cooling, with soft planting and tree-lined promenades providing green, accessible, comfortable and attractive connections between the cultural establishments. 

The entire landscape was designed in accordance with a bespoke sustainability rating system, tailored specifically to the UAE’s climate. A state-of-the-art irrigation system supports the carefully selected palette of native and adaptive plant species, allowing the park to perform environmentally while reinforcing a strong sense of local identity.