Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
collection—the entrance is either on the fourth or fifth floor (it varies). Enter, show your
ticket, and get the current floor plan
(plan du musée)
.
The 20th century—accelerated by technology and fragmented by war—was exciting
and chaotic, and the art reflects the turbulence of that century of change. In this free-flow-
ing and airy museum, you'll come face-to-face with works from the first half of the 20th
century, including pieces by Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Henri Matisse, Wassily Kand-
insky, Piet Mondrian, Paul Klee, Salvador Dalí, Max Ernst, Jackson Pollock, and many
more.
The contemporary collection highlights post-1960 works, including Andy Warhol's
pop art. You'll also see fewer traditional canvases or sculptures and lots of mixed-media
work, combining painting, sculpture, welding, photography, video, computer program-
ming, new resins, plastics, industrial techniques, and lighting and sound systems. Even
skeptics of modern art will find that after so many Madonnas-and-children, a piano
smashed to bits and glued to the wall is refreshing.
View from the Pompidou:
Ridetheescalatorforagreatcityviewfromthetop(tick-
et or Museum Pass required), and consider eating at the good café.
Nearby:
The Pompidou Center and the square that fronts it are lively, with lots of
people, street theater, and activity inside and out—a perpetual street fair. Kids of any
age enjoy the fun, colorful fountain (called
Homage to Stravinsky
) next to the Pompidou
Center.
Looking more like a grand château than a public building, Paris' city hall stands proudly.
The Renaissance-style building (built 1533-1628, and reconstructed after a 19th-century
fire)displayshundredsofstatuesoffamousParisiansonitsfacade.Peekthroughthedoors
to see elaborate spiral stairways, which are reminiscent of Château de Chambord in the
Loire. Playful fountains energize the big, lively square in front.
This spacious stage has seen much of Paris' history. On July 14, 1789, Revolution-
aries rallied here on their way to the Bastille. In 1870, it was home to the radical Paris
Commune. During World War II, General Charles de Gaulle appeared at the windows to
proclaim Paris' liberation from the Nazis. And in 1950, Robert Doisneau snapped a fam-
ousblack-and-whitephotoofakissingcouple,withHôteldeVilleasaromanticbackdrop.
Today, this is the symbolic heart of the city of Paris. Demonstrators gather here to
speak their minds. Crowds cheer during big soccer games shown on huge TV screens. In
summer, the square hosts sand volleyball courts; in winter, a big ice-skating rink. There's
often a children's carousel, or
manège.
Now a Paris institution, carousels were first intro-
