The Louvre

Once a royal residence and today one of the most photographed Parisian landmarks, the Louvre, home of iconic masterpieces, was the world’s largest and most visited museum in 2017. Its President Director Jean-Luc Martinez had since 2013 spearheaded its development and launched large-scale renovation projects with the sole objective to better welcome all visitors, be they French or international, art connoisseurs or tourists, of all ages and backgrounds. With the visitor numbers at the state-owned museum trending upwards in 2018, Martinez had to decide on his priorities for his second mandate. He wanted to further improve the visitor experience but also had to balance the Louvre’s public service mission of cultural education, which was increasingly hard to fulfill given the variety of visitors whose expectations had become more diversified. Which audiences, if any, should he put at the center of his attention and how could he best serve them to ensure the future success of his iconic museum?