Paris museums: Modern art at Centre Georges Pompidou
Once you’ve ticked the obligatory tourist boxes, Paris really begins to open up. Though it’s within walking distance of the Louvre and the Musee D’Orsay, the Centre Georges Pompidou seems to get only a fraction of the crowds that besiege its neighboring museum heavyweights.
None of those for me this time around. I decided to dedicate an entire afternoon to the Centre Pompidou’s high-tech urban architecture and vast collection of modern and contemporary art.
The most striking thing about the building, obviously, is the glass-encased escalator that snakes up and across the facade. Architects Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers designed the building so that all facilities for public movement and technical equipment would be funneled (their word was “centrifuged”) outside, leaving the inside floors completely free and usable.
Because I had Tala with me in a stroller, I didn’t get to ride the famous escalators. Boo. But that’s okay. What wasn’t okay was wrestling with the effects of a nasty oyster, leaving me in a less than ideal mindset to, ehem, digest all that modern and contemporary (and, let’s face it, hard to understand) art.
So there I was with a baby, dashing to the bathroom every half hour, soaked in a cold sweat and feeling pukey. But never underestimate the power of art to penetrate even the worst of oyster-induced agonies. Here are few of my favorite works from the museum’s collection, and—I’ll save the best for last—the most spectacularly unmissable thing about the Centre Pompidou.
Ten Lizes by Andy Warhol is a beautiful and mesmerizing welcome.
A typography project for the exterior of a Paris casino, by Neutelings Riedijk Architecten, reminded me of the constantly-changing departure and arrival boards at airports. I’ve always dreamed of heading to the airport, picking a random destination from those boards, and just going. Someday.
To me, Sheila Hicks’ Liane de Beauvais was a fairytale woven out of cotton, silk and wool. But maybe I just love happy endings.
Robert Morris’ extensive Card File made me wish I could catalogue my thoughts and feelings so neatly. I’d need a bigger folder for mistakes—and for possibilities, too.
Sculptures are tucked into the glass and steel framework of the building, creating perfect urban pocket art gardens six stories in the air.
I also saw this sculpture pool from afar, but was too sick to trek all the way down for a closer look.
I promised you something spectacularly unmissable about the Centre Georges Pompidou, and here it is.
This is the best Paris panorama you’ll ever see without waiting in a long queue or climbing a gajillion stairs. Wander among the masterpieces at a leisurely pace to reach the top of the Centre Pompidou at golden hour for foolproof gorgeous pictures.
I forgot my tummy troubles for a while, held Tala up beside me, and just soaked it all up. With art all around me and Paris at my feet, it was one of those perfect Paris moments I’ll remember for a long, long time.
