ABU DHABI (AFP) ― The oil-rich emirate of Abu Dhabi announced on Tuesday that it had given the green light for the completion of the Louvre and Guggenheim museums after construction delays.The executive council of Abu Dhabi, which functions like a government for the emirate, said it had “approved the budgets and deadlines for the inauguration of projects on the island of Saadiyat, particularly the Louvre, Guggenheim, and Sheikh Zayed” museums.The statement gave no specific timeline for completio

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― The 14 rooms of the National Gallery of Art in Washington dedicated to French Impressionism and Post-Impressionism are due to reopen Saturday after a two-year renovation.The paintings from artists like Corot, Picasso, Monet, Cezanne and Renoir are displayed in a new thematic arrangement designed to make them have a “conversation” with each other, Mary Morton, director of the museum’s department of French paintings, told AFP. Previously, the paintings were arranged chronologica

MILAN (AP) ― La Scala’s general manager said Tuesday that he hopes Premier Mario Monti’s government will avoid cutting spending for culture, noting that music and theater can help unite people.Stephane Lissner told foreign reporters that La Scala will have a difficult time balancing the famed opera house’s budget in 2012 due to expected drops in public and private contributions, even as the Milan opera house increases attendance and the number of performances.“We are facing a very difficult move

BEVERLY HILLS, California (AP) ― American master Martin Scorsese journeyed to France, putting Hollywood’s newest technology to work for his dazzling 3-D re-creation of 1930s Paris in “Hugo.’’ French filmmaker Michel Hazanavicius came to America, reviving old-time Hollywood with his charming resurrection of early cinema in the silent film “The Artist.’’The two films now head a 21st century Academy Awards show whose top nominees offer loving looks back to the infancy of moviemaking, when flicks re

LONDON (AP) ― Britain’s inquiry into media ethics shifted its focus away from phone hacking Tuesday to look into how women are portrayed in U.K. newspapers.Women’s rights campaigners told the inquiry that newspapers treat women as sex objects and mis-report cases of rape and domestic violence.Anna Van Heeswijk of women’s campaigns group Object said that sexualized images of topless or skimpily clad women in British tabloid newspapers damage the way young women think of their appearances and life

NEW YORK (AP) ― Karl Lagerfeld’s reboot of his own label is happening entirely online.Starting Wednesday, the Karl collection, with an emphasis on more downtown styles ― including denim decorated with a subtle image of Lagerfeld’s likeness, jersey dresses, T-shirts, shoes and handbags all with a rock ‘n’ roll edge ― are offered exclusively for the first month on the Net-a-Porter website. After that, there’ll also be a Lagerfeld-branded site.Among the offerings are the gloves and collar neck piec

PARIS (AFP) ― Now that older men have ditched it to look cool, the stylish young are reclaiming the necktie as their own, with the once-derided accessory making a stealthy comeback on the menswear runways.“I never wear one,” Antoine Arnault, the 34-year-old son of luxury tycoon Bernard Arnault told AFP on the sidelines of the first ever menswear show by the LVMH-owned shoemaker Berluti ― where ties were a full part of the look.“Except on Monday afternoons when I have appointments with my father.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ― Peyton Manning still intends to play football.He’s also no fan of the Colts’ big offseason overhaul that included the firing of coach Jim Caldwell and other executives.In an interview that appeared Tuesday in the Indianapolis Star, Manning touched on everything from his future plans to the difficulty he’s had coping with all the changes. He has not responded to interview requests made by the Associated Press.“It’s 20 degrees, it’s snowing, the building is absolutely empty exc

SAN DIEGO (AP) ― Tiger Woods and Torrey Pines used to be a winning combination.Except for his first full season on the PGA Tour, Woods never missed what used to be called the Buick Invitational, the same brand that happened to be on his golf bag. He not only won six times, his worst finish was a tie for 10th, when he finished two shots out of a playoff.Woods winning at Torrey was so predictable that in 2008, when the public course along the Pacific Ocean was to host the U.S. Open that summer, he

A roster of 21 footballers for the nation’s Olympic squad was set Wednesday ahead of the final road trip in the ongoing regional qualification.South Korea will retain most of the stars from the recently concluded King’s Cup tournament in Thailand. The Koreans came out on top with two wins and a draw after round-robin play against Norway, Thailand and Denmark.Forward Kim Hyun-sung and winger Seo Jung-jin, who each scored twice in Thailand, will be on the Olympic team. They’re joined by midfielder