In an interview with Le Figaro, Laurence de Car explained that her departure from the position of director was necessary to eliminate "obstacles to the transformation and modernization of the museum." She noted that during her leadership, which began in September 2021, she was able to restore the Louvre's momentum for development. "I could be wrong, but in my opinion, I brought the Louvre back to life," she added.
The reason for her resignation was an incident that occurred on October 19, 2025, when masked criminals entered the Louvre and stole nine exhibits from the imperial collection, including jewels belonging to Napoleon and his wife Josephine. The damage from this robbery was estimated at 88 million euros, and four people were arrested in connection with the case; however, the jewels have still not been found.
It is worth noting that immediately after the robbery, Laurence de Car attempted to resign, but her request was rejected by Emmanuel Macron at that time.
