Supporting a traveling exhibition: keys to success
Presented from September 17, 2025, to January 25, 2026, at Louvre Abu Dhabi, the exhibition “Mamluks: Legacy of an Empire” has been co-organised by Louvre Abu Dhabi, the musée du Louvre, and France Muséums.
First presented in Paris at the musée du Louvre in Spring 2025, this traveling exhibition is now being shown at Louvre Abu Dhabi. It is composed of over 270 works made available by 34 international lenders and covers an area of 1400 square meters. Exploring more than two centuries of Middle Eastern history (1250–1517), it gives one of the most comprehensive overviews ever made of the Mamluk sultanate.
Mamluks are a rare subject of study in major international exhibitions – the last was held in Washington, DC, in 1981. “Mamluks: Legacy of an Empire” pays tribute to a complex civilisation founded by slaves who had become rulers. Based on a wide variety of objects—among which manuscripts, armor, ceramics, coins, textiles, and architectural elements—the exhibition studies different components of Mamluk society: military and political elites, merchants, women, and religious minorities. It also sheds light on the artistic and cultural exchanges between the sultanate and Europe, Africa, and Asia.
France Muséums has been closely involved in this project at every stage: from the provision of assistance to the curatorial team to coordination of the exhibition’s transportation, supervision of the logistics, production, and installation of the presentation in Abu Dhabi. France Muséums will also be responsible for returning the artworks after the exhibition ends.
In this article, we exchange views with Anaïs Desneaux, artwork registrar at France Muséums, and Clémence Chalvidal, conservator and restorer of heritage works with a specialty in metal artworks, on the keys to success underlying the organisation of a traveling exhibition.
ENSURING THE SUCCESSFUL TRANSPORTATION AND CONSERVATION OF ARTWORKS IN A TRAVELING EXHIBITION: WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES?
Can you tell us your professions and respective roles in this project?
Clémence Chalvidal: I am a heritage conservator and restorer specialising in the fire arts and metal in particular. I not only work on metal objects, but also on metal components of composite objects. My work takes in preventive conservation—condition reports, advising—as well as curative conservation and restoration. I work either independently or as part of a team on different kinds of projects, among which permanent exhibitions, artwork acquisitions, storage evaluations, and collection campaigns. For temporary exhibitions, my role is to appraise the condition of artworks before their departure, to check their condition on arrival, and, if necessary, to ensure their stability or enhance their presentation. I also offer more wide-ranging support to the institutions involved in an exhibition, providing advice and signaling points of concern or fragility, and suggesting alterations to methods used in a presentation if there is a need.
Anaïs Desneaux: As France Muséums’ registrar of artworks, I direct and oversee all stages of the movements and installation of works involved in temporary exhibitions. It may also happen that I work on institutions’ permanent collections, or direct training classes, or help implement new processes in museums on artwork conservation, storage procedures, or emergency plans. For the exhibition “Mamluks: Legacy of an Empire”, I coordinated the logistics regarding the artworks to be displayed, from their presentation in Paris to their arrival and installation at Louvre Abu Dhabi. This involved managing the list of artworks, liaising with lenders, dealing with the insurance concerned, organizing the transport, supervising the installation of the works, and coordinating all the different parties involved: the transportation companies, mountmakers, conservators, and arthandlers. For the transportation of the exhibition to Louvre Abu Dhabi, I was also a point of contact between those lenders who were unable to travel to Abu Dhabi and the local team. It’s this continuity between Paris and Abu Dhabi that represents the added value that France Muséums offers.
What is it about a traveling exhibition that makes it particularly complex?
Anaïs Desneaux: A traveling exhibition is never simply a Copy and Paste operation. On paper, the exhibition is the same, but in fact the list of works and exhibition settings are both different. The exhibition “Mamluks: Legacy of an Empire” in Abu Dhabi displays more than 270 works, of which 39 are new to the show mounted in Paris. Each place has its characteristics: space, climate, infrastructure, and local teams. The exhibition design must be rethought, the mounts adapted, and environmental constraints imposed by lenders implemented. This necessitates resolving scientific standards with technical realities for each new presentation. We not only had to organise the transportation of the works from Paris to Abu Dhabi but plan international air transportation for all the new pieces too. Each transfer increases the number of people involved, the conservation protocols adopted, and the obligations related to international transport. Coordinating all these demands is a real exercise in mediation.
Clémence Chalvidal: Traveling and temporary exhibitions increase the handling of artworks and the risks they are exposed to. Each journey subjects them to stress, whether caused by vibrations, variations in the climate, or inappropriate packaging. Even artworks that are very stable in their usual environment may react differently in a new setting. The fast turnover of temporary exhibitions may therefore impair collections in the short or long term: artworks travel much more than in the past, with a rapid turnaround that exposes them to greater hazards. This reminds us that artworks are created from materials that are sensitive to their environment. Hence, the importance of planning and adapting the conditions of their transportation, storage, and display.
The journey is itself a critical stage. How is the transportation supervised?
Anaïs Desneaux: Transportation is a phase of conservation in its own right, and every move must be carefully planned. This means choosing specialised carriers, using suitable transport crates and frames, and coordinating couriers stipulated by the lenders. The issue at stake is clear: the artworks must arrive in the same condition as when they departed.
Clémence Chalvidal: This is why we always begin with detailed condition reports at both departure and arrival. We use these as diagnostic tools to identify vulnerabilities and foresee potential preventive or corrective measures, such as dusting, maintenance, or minor touch-ups. They may seem trifling, but such adjustments are fundamental to ensuring the protection and clear perception of the objects during the exhibition. In response to the local climate or host country, we also adapt certain materials used to transport or display the artworks. Such pragmatism is essential: recommended conservation methods sometimes have to be modified to be fully effective in a different environmental and museum context.
As a conservator and restorer, I work both prior to transportation and on-site. In Paris, my colleagues who specialise in glass and ceramics made the preliminary condition reports for those materials. In Abu Dhabi, I took over for all the fire arts—ceramics, glass, and metal—to inspect each piece on its arrival and to superintend its installation. I also make recommendations on the mounts used and climate control to best preserve delicate objects.
ADAPTING THE EXHIBITION TO A NEW SETTING: EXHIBITION DESIGN AND THE CONDITIONS OF PRESENTATION
What adaptations were made between the two exhibitions?
Anaïs Desneaux: A traveling exhibition is never simply a question of transporting artworks between sites. It requires careful adjustments to the exhibition design and the conditions of presentation. The spaces in Louvre Abu Dhabi have different dimensions and lighting from the galleries in Paris. Before any installation, we study the spaces and their visitor flow, humidity levels, and technical equipment. This determines what can be reused, adjusted, or recreated.
Some elements of the display designed for the Paris setting could be reused, but others had to be modified or completely rethought to be useable in the new spaces. The twin goals remained unchanged: to ensure the clarity of the curatorial narrative and to preserve the artworks in optimal conditions. The greatest technical challenge for this exhibition was to adapt the mounts. Reusing custom-built mounts or adjusting setups proved to be a headache, especially when artworks were wall-mounted in Paris but displayed on rods at the back of display cases in Abu Dhabi. As the artworks were exhibited in display cases in Paris, the mounting team couldn’t inspect the objects beforehand. Consequently, modifications had to be made to the mounts on-site during installation in Abu Dhabi, which required constant adaptability throughout the three-week installation phase.
Clémence Chalvidal: These adaptations are not without consequence for the artworks. Each adjustment, whether of the lighting, mounting, or microclimate, influences their stability. As a result, exhibition design cannot be considered as independent of preventive conservation. Conservators are not always involved in the planning stage, but their presence during installation is crucial to signal difficulties and suggest changes if a setup causes problems.
How do you harmonise the diversity of the objects’ materials with constraints imposed by conservation and the exhibition design?
Anaïs Desneaux: The exhibition “Mamluks: Legacy of an Empire” covers almost the full range of museum materials: from such inorganic objects as metal, ceramics, and glass, to organic ones like wood, ivory, the graphic arts, textiles, and a large painting.
What has made this project so stimulating has been the requirement to interact with the great diversity of materials, to understand their response to the new environment, and to integrate those constraints into the exhibition design. Each material calls for a specific approach, and each lending institution has its own standards. Our role is also to harmonise these constraints and create a consistent presentation. This means working in partnership with conservator-restorers, who contribute their material expertise, and with exhibition designers, who adapt the display supports to the new space. We install humidity sensors in all exhibition rooms, and, for certain very sensitive artworks, the climate is regulated by a variety of systems. As a registrar, I inspected all these systems and worked with the exhibition designer to ensure their integration into the presentation design.
Clémence Chalvidal: It is this diversity of materials that makes a traveling exhibition so interesting, but also so challenging. A single display case may need to contain objects with very different sensibilities. The conservator’s role is to evaluate whether the proposed conditions are suitable and, if necessary, to recommend adjustments: mounting, microclimates, filtering of the light. It’s a constant negotiation between preventive conservation and the public’s demands.
Can you give a particular example of an artwork that represented a real challenge?
Anaïs Desneaux: The tapestry from Powys Castle (Wales) is a good example. Measuring 5.5 meters in width, it was transported rolled-up in a cargo plane. Its installation required the contributions of a textile restorer, a transporter, six installation personnel, and a cradle. It was not just technically challenging, but also an exercise in professional cooperation.
The horse caparison, a combination of metal and textile elements, posed other issues: it arrived in four separate crates and required the contributions of several installers. Such examples demonstrate that every object requires its own network of specialised expertise.
How do your professions complement one another in such a project?
Clémence Chalvidal: Us restorers and conservators are a bit like “factual anchors.” We bring the discussion back to the object itself. International projects always bring constraints and negotiations. Our role is to ensure that the debate revolves around the materials themselves—what the artwork can or cannot withstand. This helps establish a climate of trust, allows us to give out warnings when necessary, and strengthens the project’s overall credibility.
Anaïs Desneaux: My role is to coordinate the teams involved, but this only makes sense if each person’s expertise is fully integrated. Conservators provide a precise and factual approach on the condition of the artworks, which is essential for reassuring lenders and taking the right decisions. In addition to its technical aspects, my work relies on human and intercultural dimensions: each partner museum has its own practices and standards, which are sometimes very different. Finding common ground requires both thoroughness and diplomacy. This exhibition meant I oversaw more than 50 professionals in conservation, registration, restoration, transportation, installation, and mounting. My job was as much about building consensus as it was about ensuring the preservation and safety of the artworks.
Clémence Chalvidal: Exhibition installations are veritable hubs of activity that bring together professionals and experts from around the world. They are demanding and sometimes exhausting, but they are also highly stimulating on a human level. They also offer privileged experiences: getting close to masterpieces like the Baptistery of Saint Louis, which I had never before had the chance to handle directly or view up close, was absolutely unique.
The exhibition “Mamluks: Legacy of an Empire” in Paris and Abu Dhabi brought together a collective expertise in which registration and conservation worked hand in hand. Representing much more than a question of logistics, supporting a traveling exhibition means anticipating risks, adapting the exhibition design, preserving the integrity of the artworks, and building a climate of trust among all parties involved.
“A traveling exhibition,” concludes Anaïs, “is not just artworks moving between two points. It requires rethinking the conditions of their presentation so they can be understood by a new public while being fully respected in their integrity.”
his behind-the-scenes work, carried out by professionals like Anaïs Desneaux and Clémence Chalvidal, is a reminder that the success of a large traveling exhibition depends as much on the science of objects as it does on the art of human relationships.
Curatorship of this exhibition is directed by Dr. Souraya Noujaim, Director of the Department of Islamic Art at the musée de Louvre (General Curator), Dr. Carine Juvin, Collection Manager – Medieval Middle East at the Department of Islamic Art at the musée de Louvre (Scientific Curator), and Fakhera Alkindi, Senior Conservation Assistant at Louvre Abu Dhabi.
This project would never have seen the light of day without the resourceful team at France Muséums, including Adrien Berthelot, Director of Programming and Production; Francesca Crudo, Head of the Exhibition Department, Deputy to the Director of Programming and Production; Florence Lallement, Project Manager; Camille Molina, Project Manager; Maud Ramier, Project Manager; Clara Bleuzen, Temporary Exhibition Officer; Ines Belchi, Visitor Experience and Interpretation Officer; Elen Lossouarn, Head of Interpretation; Charlotte Clergeau, Digital Project Officer; Isabelle Hyvernat, Chief Registrar and Operations – Deputy to the Programming and Production Director; Anaïs Desneaux, Artwork Registrar; Lise Delpech, Artwork Registrar – Operations Coordinator; Ophélie Guinet, Artwork Registrar; Zain Al-Hindi, Operations manager; and Amandine Sannie, Registrar Assistant—alongside their partners at the musée du Louvre.
The exhibition design was created by BGC Studio, the graphic work by Coline Aguettaz and Brice Tourneux, lighting by Concepto, and production of the mediation devices by Drôle de Trame.
We also extend our sincere thanks to all the teams at Louvre Abu Dhabi, and in particular to Rajeev Gopinadh, Head of Temporary Exhibitions and Special Projects, and Alice Querin, Deputy Head of Temporary Exhibitions, for their leadership on this exhibition.
