PHOTO
Abu Dhabi, UAE – As part of its rich 2022-2023 cultural season, Louvre Abu Dhabi has announced its upcoming exhibition, Bollywood Superstars: A Short Story of Indian Cinema, opening from 24 January and running until 4 June 2023. Organised in partnership with Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac and France Muséums, the exhibition will showcase the depth and richness of the Indian sub-continent’s art and civilisation through its long tradition of image making, and the diversity of the Indian filmmaking industry.
Through more than 80 artworks including photographs, textiles, graphic arts, costumes and over 30 film extracts, the exhibition explores the rich history of the Indian cinema from its beginnings in the late 19th century up to the present. The artworks come from the collections of Louvre Abu Dhabi, Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Musée de l’armée, Musée national des arts asiatiques – Guimet, al-Sabah Collection, Raja Ravi Varma Heritage Foundation and Priya Paul Collection.
The exhibition is co-curated by Julien Rousseau, Curator and Head of the Asian Collections, Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, and Hélène Kessous, PhD in Social Anthropology and Ethnology, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, with the support of Dr. Souraya Noujaim, Director of Scientific, Curatorial and Collections Management at Louvre Abu Dhabi.
As the world’s leading film producer, India currently produces more than 1,500 films a year in about 20 languages, which are then exported throughout Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Through Bollywood Superstars, museumgoers will discover how Indian pioneers utilised nascent image technologies such as lithograph and photography, kickstarting the journey from the birth of the first films to grand musical features. Visitors will gain a deeper understanding of the international success of Bollywood and an appreciation of the diversity of Indian cinematography. The comprehensive displays span the history of Indian cinema from storytelling, dance, and pre-cinema to the influence of religion and mythology and the rise of Bollywood superstars.
Manuel Rabaté, Director of Louvre Abu Dhabi, commented: “In a museum that invites visitors to discover artworks from all over the world, we are privileged to work again with Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac on this exhibition that explores the image in movement, after our first collaboration in 2019 on an exhibition about the development of photography in its first years of existence. Bollywood Superstars is a feast not only to Indian audiences who are among the most important nationalities that visit Louvre Abu Dhabi, but also to everyone with an appetite for the rich culture of the sub-continent and its roots.”
Emmanuel Kasarhérou, President of the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, said: “Bollywood Superstars stands out for the quality and originality of its content. It is bound to appeal to visitors at Louvre Abu Dhabi, an vital and influential institution that the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac is honoured to be associated with.”
Highlights from the exhibition include artworks from Louvre Abu Dhabi’s collection such as a Page from a Harivamsa Series: Krishna and His Courtiers by the Sea at Pandaraka (ca. 1820, Kangra, India); Mail and Plate Armour, Called “Four Mirrors” Armour (ca. 1600 – 1800, Mughal, India); and Krishna Surrounded by Gopis (ca. 1655, Rajasthan, India). Highlight loans from partner museums include a statuette of Krishna as a child playing the flute (second half of the 19th century, Rajasthan, India) from Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac; a Dagger (late 17th Century, Kuwait) from al-Sabah Collection; Indian Armour (18th Century) from Musée de l’armée; and a Coat (19th century) from Musée national des arts asiatiques-Guimet. Cinema buffs will especially enjoy the screening of several iconic film extracts that have left an indelible mark on the history of Indian cinema.
The exhibition’s curators, Julien Rousseau and Hélène Kessous, said: “This exhibition is a tribute to Bollywood and can be enjoyed by both Indian cinema fans and the wider public. We hope that it portrays the full richness of Asian traditions and tells the stories that led to the birth of this cinema. The exhibition celebrates Bollywood superstars who are adored by their fans in India in a way that is rarely seen elsewhere in the world.”
Dr. Souraya Noujaim, Director of Scientific, Curatorial and Collections Management at Louvre Abu Dhabi said: “This exhibition provides a unique insight into an art genre that has a vast history and powerful present. The exhibition visitors will discover the depth of the Indian filmmaking industry since its beginning in the 19th century and gain a unique perspective into the richness of forms that pervaded its creation. The cross-influences, boosted by technology progress, underline the continued presence of the great mythological and literary narratives in Indian culture, and the vitality of its regional cultures. We are delighted to bring this exhibition to life to showcase the diversity of the Indian cinema.”
Bollywood Superstars is supported by PureHealth, as Louvre Abu Dhabi’s exhibition season partner. Details of the rich cultural and educational programme accompanying Bollywood Superstars: A Short Story of Indian Cinema will be announced at a later date. For more information about the exhibition and to book tickets, please visit louvreabudhabi.ae or call Louvre Abu Dhabi at +971 600 56 55 66. Entrance to the exhibition is free with the museum’s general admission tickets. Admission to the museum is free for children under the age of 18.
Louvre Abu Dhabi’s new operating hours
Museum: Open: 10 am – 6.30 pm (Tue - Thurs); extended hours: 10am – 8.30pm (Fri - Sun); closed on Mondays.
Dome: Open: 10am – midnight (Tues - Sun) - last entry 11 pm; closed on Mondays
Museum Café: Open: 10 am – 6.30 pm (Tue - Thurs); extended hours: 10 am – 10 pm (Fri – Sun). Closed on Mondays
Art Lounge: Open: 3 pm – 12 am (last orders 11 pm); closed on Mondays
Fouquet’s Abu Dhabi and Marta Bar: Open: 12 pm – 12 am (last orders at 10 pm) (Tue – Thurs, Sun); weekends: 12 pm – 1 am (last orders at 10.30 pm) (Fri – Sat); closed on Mondays
Aptitude Café: Open: 9 am – 10 pm (daily including Mondays)
Follow Louvre Abu Dhabi on social media: Facebook (Louvre Abu Dhabi), Twitter (@LouvreAbuDhabi) and Instagram (@LouvreAbuDhabi) #LouvreAbuDhabi.
-Ends-
ABOUT LOUVRE ABU DHABI
Created by an exceptional agreement between the governments of Abu Dhabi and France, Louvre Abu Dhabi was designed by Jean Nouvel and opened on Saadiyat Island in November 2017. The museum is inspired by traditional Islamic architecture and its monumental dome creates a rain of light effect and a unique social space that brings people together.
Louvre Abu Dhabi celebrates the universal creativity of mankind and invites audiences to see humanity in a new light. Through its innovative curatorial approach, the museum focuses on building understanding across cultures: through stories of human creativity that transcend civilisations, geographies and times.
The museum’s growing collection is unparalleled in the region and spans thousands of years of human history, including prehistoric tools, artefacts, religious texts, iconic paintings and contemporary artworks. The permanent collection is supplemented by rotating loans from 13 French partner institutions, regional and international museums.
Louvre Abu Dhabi is a testing ground for new ideas in a globalised world and champions new generations of cultural leaders. Its international exhibitions, programming and Children’s Museum are inclusive platforms that connect communities and offer enjoyment for all.
ABOUT MUSÉE DU QUAI BRANLY – JACQUES CHIRAC
The Musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac is dedicated to the arts and civilisations of Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas. Designed by the architect Jean Nouvel, the building has become an iconic signature of Paris’ heritage just a stone’s throw from the Eiffel Tower. Since its opening in 2006, the museum welcomes some 1.3 million visitors from all continents every year.
With 370,000 objects, 700,000 images and over 200,000 reference works, its collection is one of the largest in the world and includes many masterpieces. A testament to human genius and the life of societies, these pieces are of major cultural and scientific interest. The many scientific, cultural and technical activities run by the establishment in partnership with the countries its collections originate from contribute to the study, conservation and circulation of works, thus encouraging the spread of knowledge to a broad audience, both in France and internationally. At the same time, a rich and multi-annual programme allows visitors to discover or add to their knowledge of non-European arts and societies.
Permanent and temporary exhibitions, concerts, performances, readings and conferences all play their part in making the musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac a living forum for culture where cultures meet every day in dialogue.
ABOUT MUSÉE DU LOUVRE
The Louvre in Paris opened in 1793, during the French Revolution, and from the very beginning was intended to provide inspiration for contemporary art. Courbet, Picasso, Dalí and so many others came to its hallowed halls to admire the old masters, copy them, immerse themselves in masterpieces and improve and fuel their own art. As an ancient royal residence, the Louvre is inextricably linked to eight centuries of French history. As a universal museum, its collections, among the best in the world, span many millennia and miles, from the Americas to Asia. Over 38,000 artworks are grouped into eight curatorial departments, including universally admired works such as the Mona Lisa, the Winged Victory of Samothrace and the Venus de Milo. With 9.6 million guests in 2019, the Louvre is the most visited museum in the world.
ABOUT FRANCE MUSÉUMS
Following the intergovernmental agreement between France and the Emirates of Abu Dhabi signed in 2007, France Muséums, a cultural consulting and engineering agency, was created to work towards the creation of Louvre Abu Dhabi and support the project in all its dimensions (strategic, scientific, cultural, building, human resources).
Since the opening of the UAE museum in 2017, France Muséums continues to support Louvre Abu Dhabi in four main fields of activity: the management and coordination of loans from French museums for the permanent galleries of the museum, the organisation and production of 4 international exhibitions per year, training of teams and a wide range of consultancy and auditing assignments in all areas of museum management.
France Muséums mobilise its teams based in Paris and Abu Dhabi and a network of 19 major French cultural institutions and museum partners : Musée du Louvre, Centre Pompidou, Musées d’Orsay et de l’Orangerie, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac, Réunion des Musées Nationaux et du Grand Palais (RMN-GP), Château de Versailles, Musée national des arts asiatiques-Guimet, Musée de Cluny – musée national du Moyen-Âge, École du Louvre, Musée Rodin, Domaine National de Chambord, Musée des Arts Décoratifs (MAD), Cité de la Céramique – Sèvres & Limoges, Musée d’Archéologie nationale – Saint-Germain en Laye, Château de Fontainebleau, and OPPIC (Opérateur du patrimoine et des projets immobiliers de la culture), le musée de l’Armée et le Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon.
ABOUT SAADIYAT CULTURAL DISTRICT
Saadiyat Cultural District on Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, is devoted to culture and the arts. An ambitious cultural undertaking for the 21st century, it will be a nucleus for global culture, attracting local, regional and international guests with unique exhibitions, permanent collections, productions and performances. Its ground-breaking buildings will form a historical statement of the finest 21st century architecture; Zayed National Museum, Louvre Abu Dhabi and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi. These museums will complement and collaborate with local and regional arts and cultural institutions including universities and research centres.
ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE AND TOURISM – ABU DHABI
The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) drives the sustainable growth of Abu Dhabi’s culture and tourism sectors and its creative industries, fuels economic progress and helps achieve Abu Dhabi’s wider global ambitions. By working in partnership with the organisations that define the emirate’s position as a leading international destination, DCT Abu Dhabi strives to unite the ecosystem around a shared vision of the emirate’s potential, coordinate effort and investment, deliver innovative solutions, and use the best tools, policies and systems to support the culture and tourism industries.
DCT Abu Dhabi’s vision is defined by the emirate’s people, heritage and landscape. We work to enhance Abu Dhabi’s status as a place of authenticity, innovation, and unparalleled experiences, represented by its living traditions of hospitality, pioneering initiatives and creative thought.
