You could spend a week just exploring the museums located on the edge of the 16th arrondissement, between the neighbouring metro stations of Trocadéro and Iéna. It’s hard to process how much art, history and culture is packed into just a few blocks. The Palais de Chaillot, the pale stone building most appreciated by tourists … More Le Musée national des arts asiatiques Guimet
Paris has a long, complex and often controversial history with its anthropological museums. I’ve written before about the history of the Cité Nationale de l’Histoire de l’Immigration, which is now a modern immigration museum, but was once the imperialist Musée des Colonies, home to the 1931 Exposition Coloniale Internationale. I’ve also written about the network … More Le Musée de l’Homme
In all my years of living in Paris, I’ve never really been to the Bois de Boulogne. Sure, one time I set off on an ill-advised walk from the Musée Marmottan Monet, imagining I would soon find myself among tranquil gardens filled with robins and swans. Instead, I just wandered, confused, through a lot of … More La Fondation Louis Vuitton
Some readers may be surprised to see this grand icon as a post on this blog. After all, the Arc de Triomphe is a stone archway located on the world’s most famous traffic circle, not a traditional museum. But there are many reasons why a monument like the Arc de Triomphe deserves a place among … More L’Arc de Triomphe de l’Etoile
Paris’ museums cater to lovers of all manner of art forms. Fans of sculpture can head to the Zadkine, Rodin or Picasso museums. Lovers of Impressionism flock to the Marmottan, Orangerie and Orsay museums. Fashion enthusiasts love the Galleria, Fondation Louis Vuitton or Mona Bismarck. But perhaps some of the finest museums in Paris are … More La Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine
What’s your idea of a perfect day ? It seems like such a casual question, yet people set so much stock in someone’s description of their perfect day. We seem to see it less as an opportunity to daydream and more of a chance to prove something about ourselves; to show how cultured/motivated/admirable/unique/selfless/just generally ”together” we … More Le Musée d’art moderne de la ville de Paris
Where I come from, more often than not, museums are located in specially-built spaces; dedicated public buildings, often in the ‘white cube’ style. But in Paris, many museums are housed in places not originally intended for exhibition purposes. For example, the Musée du Jeu de Paume, the city’s finest photography museum, sits in a 19th-century ‘royal tennis’ … More Le Musée Clémenceau
At the start of every semester, during that unavoidable ‘get to know you’ part of the first lesson, I ask my new students why they are taking French. Some get nervous and say something like “the language sounds nice” or “I don’t know” (that’s ok; I can work with a blank slate). Others cite French … More La Fondation Lecorbusier et la Maison La Roche
One of the things I like most about contemporary and installation art is how it reaches across boundaries; out of the canvas, off the wall, into so many of our senses. The most engaging contemporary works are interactive, unexpected and even disconcerting. They draw you out of your comfort zone, challenge your preconceptions and engage … More Le Palais de Tokyo
Looking back on the fairy tales and children’s stories I loved when I was little, I’m starting to realise that what I thought were sweet stories of happiness and destiny were really rather morbid. How was I not disturbed by Belle’s imprisonment in a fortress by an aggressive, talking beast? Why did I find Alice’s adventures … More Le Musée Baccarat
Les Musées de Paris 