Unprecedented in scale and scope, Saadiyat Cultural District will be a centre for global culture, drawing local, regional and international visitors with unique exhibitions, permanent collections, productions and performances. Its iconic institutions will be housed in buildings constituting a statement of the finest architecture at the beginning of the 21st century.

The key institutions are:

Zayed National Museum - At the heart of the Saadiyat Cultural District is the Zayed National Museum, the centrepiece of the island. Fittingly elevated above the rest of the cultural district at its highest point, the museum tells the story of the region’s history and the unification of the United Arab Emirates through the life and person of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, father of the nation.

For further information about the Zayed National Museum visit zayednationalmuseum.ae , the institution’s dedicated website.

Louvre Abu Dhabi - Louvre Abu Dhabi will be the first universal museum in the Arab world. Born of an agreement between the governments of Abu Dhabi and France, the Louvre Abu Dhabi will display art, manuscripts and objects of historical, cultural and sociological significance. Spanning millennia, the items on display will originate from societies and cultures all over the world, but universal themes and common influences will be highlighted to illustrate similarities arising from shared human experience transcending geography, nationality and history.

Guggenheim Abu Dhabi - The Guggenheim Abu Dhabi will be a pre-eminent platform for global contemporary art and culture that will present the most important artistic achievements of our time. Through its permanent collection, exhibitions, scholarly publications and educational programmes, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi will promote a truly transnational perspective on art history.

The Guggenheim Abu Dhabi will move beyond a definition of global art premised on geography by focusing on the interconnected dynamics of local, regional, and international art centres as well as their diverse historical contexts and sources of creative inspiration. In realising this endeavour, the museum will acknowledge and celebrate the specific identity derived from the cultural traditions of Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates, as well as other countries comprising the Middle East, even as it pioneers a novel, visionary model that will redefine the art-historical canon.

Performing Arts Centre - The Performing Arts Centre will be a vibrant home for all forms of artistic performance, set within the futuristic contours of Zaha Hadid’s organic design. Part of Saadiyat Cultural District’s second phase of development.

Maritime Museum - The Maritime Museum will celebrate Abu Dhabi’s maritime heritage and explore the local population’s long relationship with the sea. The deceptively simple building will combine space, light, and water both inside and out, seamlessly blending the building’s interior and exterior to ensure that the Arabian Gulf is, fittingly, the museum’s most stunning exhibit. The Maritime Museum is part of the second phase of development of Saadiyat Cultural District.

For more information on the Cultural District click here and here.