The hitherto president of the Palace of Versailles Christophe Leribaut will be the new head of the Museum of the Louvre, French media report.

Christophe Leribaut, 62, was director of the Musée d’Orsay, is a diplomat at the Louvre and a professor of art history. He has been a member of the Paris Academy of Fine Arts since 2023, succeeding Pierre Carden, an icon of French haute couture.

According to French media, French PresidentEmanuel Macron made the decision after the resignation of the current director, Laurence de Carre, four months after the Louvre robbery.

“New impetus”

Laurence de Carr had resigned shortly after the Louvre robbery in October. But it had not been accepted by the culture minister.

Yesterday, Macron described her action as an “act of responsibility”, appreciating that the museum was in need of “a new impetus”.

The robbery has caused a crisis at the Louvre Museum as it has brought its problems to the surface. Ongoing, workers have resorted to strike action, while damage to the building has been seen in the public eye, as has the busting of a ticket fraud ring, with losses estimated at “more than 10 million euros.”

In an interview with Le Figaro after her resignation, de Carr estimated that she had put the Louvre “back in motion”. “This clarity may have been painful at times, but it was necessary to put the Louvre on the road to transformation. Perhaps today I am paying the price,” he said. He also assured that he was doing everything he could to “protect the institution.”

Anique Lemoine at the Orsay and Orangerie museums

Meanwhile, Macron is expected to appoint Anique Lemoine to the presidency of the Orsayet and Oranchery museums.

The Musée d’Orsay remained without a director after the sudden death of its president Silvain Amick from a heart attack last August at the age of 58.

Lemoine has been through several museum institutions, and until recently was head of the Petit Palais.