Louvre Pyramids
Rice Francis Ritchie (RFR) were asked by the Etablissement du Grand Louvre (EPGL) to review the I M Pei scheme design of the Pyramid structure and glazing in 1985; and some months later to design and erect a full scale mock-up on the site for review by President Mitterrand, M. Chirac, and I. M. Pei. In 1987 RFR acted as consultants to EPGL and I. M. Pei to control and refine the design of the structure with CFEM/EIFFEL, the appointed contractor. RFR subsequently conceived, designed and engineered the smaller inverted pyramid – a large naturally lit chandelier – which was completed in 1992 and which acts as another focal point within the enlarged Louvre below the courtyard. It was the first occasion in France that low-iron glass (PPG Starphire®) was used as a construction material (refer also to the Ecology Gallery project at London’s Natural History Museum), and the 45o chamfered edges intentionally refract the light into ‘rainrod’ colours across the interior stone surfaces.
