In 1981 the newly elected french president decided he would like to renovate cultural institutions throughout France. He hired Chinese-American architect I.M. Pei to renovate and reorganize the Louvre Museum Pyramid. He redesigned the courtyard to accommodate for the thousands of daily visitors traveling to the museum. 
Along with the new design of the pyramid itself, Pei also designed a series of underground galleries, storage, and preservation laboratories. The new design featured the steel glass pyramid surrounded by three smaller pyramids which provided light to the courtyard below. The design is definitely an eye catcher, especially when lit at night. The steel frame creates smaller “pyramids” within the the larger pyramid, giving it a really cool effect.
