Air and Space Museum Air and Space Museum Arab World Institute Arab
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Air and Space Museum With more than 150 authentic airplanes, hundreds of scale models and one of the finest collections of aircrafts in the world ranging from 17 th century balloons to Boeing 747, Mirage and Concorde, this museum has the largest collection of originals in the world. It also pays tribute to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, pilot and writer of the Little Prince . In the Planet Pilot area, children can manipulate 40 interactive exhibits related to air and space. Arab World Institute The other-worldly frame of the institute is by architect Jean Nouvel and the Architecture-Studio’s masterpieces of contemporary building design (1981-1987). Above the glass front, a metallic screen unfolds Arabic style motifs. The Arab World Institute showcases Arab and Muslim art through the ages, and important temporary exhibitions. It also houses a library, an auditorium and a tea room/restaurant. The terrace rooftop offers an excellent view of Paris. ArcArcArc hhh ofofof TriTriTri uuumph The Arc de Triomphe is one of most famous landmarks in Paris. It is located at the top of the avenue of les Champs- Elysées. It was commissioned in 1806 by Napoleon I st to glorify his armies. The architect J.F.T. Chalgrin started building the monument, but it was only completed under the July Monarchy by the architects Goust and Huyot (1836). The platform affords an exceptional panorama of the capital. Be sure to be at the foot at 6:30p.m. to witness the Remembrance Ceremony. 1 Architecture and Patrimony Museum Housed in the East wing of the Palais de Chaillot, built for the 1937 World’s Fair, and refurbished in 2005 by the architect Jean-François Baudin, the museum’s diverse exhibits illustrate the developments of French architecture through the ages. Some displays are life size casts of civil and religious architecture from the 12 th – 18 th century. A modern and contemporary gallery shows scale models of famous buildings, and a full size 1:1 model of an apartment of Le Corbusier Cité Radieuse in Marseille. Arena of Lutetium Built around 200 and buried for 1,500 years before accidently being rediscovered in 1869, the arena is one of the important vestiges from the Gallo-Roman period in Paris. Standing at the center, one can still observe the elliptical arena, the stage, its nine niches, and the grilled cages on the wall. This amphitheater could once seat more than 15,000 people, and was used to present gladiatorial combats, circus and theatrical presentations. (Invalides ))) Army Museum Discover the Tombs of Napoleon I, Napoleon II “L’Aiglon”, Joseph and Gerome Bonaparte in the former Royal Church. Today, the outer buildings house the French Army Museum, displaying the world’s largest military collections from the Middle-Ages to the present day: Scale models collection of fortified cities, relief maps, sumptuous royal armors of some of the kings of France in the old refectory, the Charles de Gaulle Memorial exhibit. 2 Art and History of Judaism Museum The Arts and History of Judaism museum displays the collections of the former Jewish museum, of the Ministry of Culture, including the Isaac Strauss Collection, and has benefited from the allocation of the Hôtel de Saint-Aignan by the City of Paris. This museum, opened in 1998, celebrates all forms of artistic expressions related to Jewish culture in all its diversity through its permanent and temporary exhibits. Not to be missed: the painters of the “School of Paris”: Lipchitz, Soutine, Modigliani, or the Dreyfus sculpture. Arts and Trades Museum Since it opened in 1794, the Arts and Trades museum has been considered the “Louvre of technical sciences”. It is housed in the former Priory of Saint-Martin in the Fields. It underwent a major renovation in 1990 and includes 7 departments showing from the Renaissance to modern day: Scientific Instruments, Materials, Construction, Communication, Energy, Mechanics and Transport. The former church presents, aviation, vehicles and scientific masterpieces including Foucault’s pendulum . Asian Art Museum The brain child of industrialist Emile Guimet, who travelled extensively and acquired religious objects from Ancient Egypt, Greece and Asia, the Guimet museum opened in 1889. It was reorganized in 1945, to present exclusively Asian art. Renovated (1997-2001) by architects Henri and Bruno Gaudin, the new spaces host exquisite collections, including, paintings, sculptures, objects from Korea, India, Japan, Cambodia, China, Vietnam, Tibet, Afghanistan/Pakistan, including the famous “Foucher” Bodhisattva. 3 Auvers ---sursursur ---Oise Castle The town of Auvers-sur-Oise is linked forever to the memory of Vincent Van Gogh, and to the impressionists’ artists who lived there. The castle presents audiovisual projections on screens which focus on a painting or in a detail, taking us back to the times of the impressionists through music, Parisian voices, songs, old movies, photography and authentic objects. Please note that there are no original canvases in this museum. Paris Baccarat Museum Housed in the prestigious mansion of art patron Marie-Laure de Noailles (1920-1970) and refurbished by trend setting designer Philippe Stark. The Baccarat Museum features 4 rooms of dazzling commissions including, legendary pieces, as well as limited-edition collections created by famous designers such as Georges Chevalier, Ettore Sottsass, the former dining room in which Starck chose to preserve its original design while giving it a necessary touch of daringness. Balzac’s Museum During Balzac’s time, the house was concealed by a building, into which it was necessary to enter, go down two floors and give a password in order to arrive at the author's pavilion. Balzac lived in this house (1840 - 1847) where he wrote a significant part of his monumental masterpiece, La Comédie Humaine, as well as other acclaimed novels. Officially transformed into a museum in 1949, it features, manuscripts, engravings depicting the characters which populated Balzac’s fictional world. 4 Bastille Opera House The Bastille Opera House was built to commemorate the bicentennial of the French Revolution, in the historic site of the state prison under the French Monarchy. The building, designed by architect Carlos Ott, is a massive, curved glass and concrete structure. The main auditorium has a seating capacity for 2,700 people. The backstage with 4 storage areas of the same dimensions of the stage allows the presentation of several productions concurrently. Backstage visits include workshops and machinery. Beaux Arts School The origins of the Beaux Arts School go back to 1648 when the Academy of Fine Arts was founded by Cardinal Mazarin. Today, it owns around 450,000 artworks and historical books, making it one of the largest public collections in France. Many artistic productions were created by the students themselves, who contribute, along with scholars to enlarge the holdings with gifts and donations to the institution, which displays them regularly. Bourdelle Museum Located in Montparnasse, the Bourdelle museum is the former studio of the sculptor Antoine Bourdelle (1861-1929). It became a museum in 1949. It was expanded in 1961 by architect Henri Gautruche and in 1992 by Christian de Portzampac. Today it contains more than 500 works including marble, plaster, and bronze statues, the original plaster casts of some of his finest works, including 21 studies of Beethoven, as well as his personal archives, fine art collection including Delacroix, Ingres. 5 Brancusi Wor kkkshop Constantin Brancusi (1876 - 1957) bequeathed part of his collections to the French state on condition that his workshop be rebuilt as it was on the day he died. Designed by the Renzo Piano’s workshop after the original studio in its volume, shape, and wooden framework, the Brancusi Workshop was inaugurated in 1997. The new building combines the highest architectural standards with optimized curatorial conditions for displaying the artist’s sculptures, including the sublime sleeping muse. (History of Paris) Carnavalet MMMuseum It is a must visit if you are in the city of lights. The Carnavalet museum, housed in two magnificent mansions, in the fashionable Marais district, displays collections covering a broad span of time from the Neolithic to present time. It traces the cultural heritage of the capital through scale models of the city and its monuments, paintings, sculptures, furniture, period rooms, and features decorations from different Parisian buildings, including the Fouquet Jewelry Shop designed by Alphonse Mucha. Foundation Henri Cartier ---Bresson The Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation, housed in an Art- Deco studio in the Montparnasse area, displays the work of this world known photographer: original prints, contact sheets, drawings, publications, and correspondence from his travels around the world which serve to document his photographs about countries, wars, artists, politicians. It also holds regularly temporary exhibits from other artists whose work is akin with the master of photojournalism and candid photography. 6 Foundation Cartier for Contemporary Art This non-profit Foundation, created in 1984 by Alain- Dominique Perrin in Jouy-en-Josas, moved to its present location in the Montparnasse area in 1994, in a building created by Jean Nouvel with garden landscaping by Lothar Baumgarten. The architect imagined a transparent form to remove the barrier between the inside and the outside, blurring its boundaries and denying a reading of a solid cube. The foundation shows works of established contemporary artists and encourages creations by young artists. Catacombs The Catacombs are an ossuary holding the remains of about six million people. The entrance is located in a former tax- collectors’ toll house. The bones are displayed in a curious and artistic way inside vaults of an old underground stone quarry. It opened on small scale as a tourist attraction in the late 18 th century, and on regular basis since 1867. It is also a place of inspiration for film producers and writers: Umberto Eco’s parchment about the Knights Templar in his novel Foucault’s Pendulum is resting there.