PARIS (AP) — Paris' Louvre museum is paying tribute to the architect of its giant glass pyramid, I.M. Pei, who has died at age 102.

The Louvre's employees will gather Friday afternoon under the pyramid to commemorate Pei.

The President-director of the Louvre, Jean-Luc Martinez, has expressed his "huge sadness."

France's former culture minister, Jack Lang, who was in office when the pyramid plan was unveiled in 1984, remembers an "extraordinary gentle man" who "inspired respect because he himself was very respectful of the history of the country."

The project launched by President Francois Mitterrand was met with much controversy.

"It shows that you must never fear to be audacious because in the end, when you bet on intelligence and beauty, it's a success", Lang told The Associated Press on Friday.