New Art Museum in Laos to Open in 2024

Source: Vientiane Times

A new museum under construction in Phonesa-at a village near the Nongseuam Lake in the Xaythany district is now 60 percent complete and is expected to be finished sometime next year.  

President of the Lao Journalists Association, Mr. Savankhone Razmountry, other officials, and guests from Thailand and China visited the construction site last Thursday.

The museum and associated facilities are being built on a 17-hectare site at a cost of 500 billion KIP. The complex will include exhibition rooms, a hotel, a gift shop, and restaurants. Visitors will be able to reach the museum by taking a boat across the Nongseuam Lake.

It is expected that the museum will attract visitors from ASEAN and other countries, and will be a place of interest for people coming to Laos to attend the ASEAN
Summit next year when Laos assumes the chairmanship of Asean for 2024.

Mr. Phisithxay Yathit and his family are behind the construction project, having decided to support the building of a new museum to house artwork that reflects Lao culture and to inspire others to take a greater interest in the arts.

The existing Lao Art Museum is housed in a small venue in Xangkhou village in the Xaythany district and does not have a car park, which discourages people from visiting.

In recent months, several government leaders have visited the construction site to monitor progress. The new museum is situated about 10 kilometers from the old museum.