Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris

We are now beginning our 7th month here in Paris, and let's just say we're beginning to think about stretching every euro so that we make it home with at least a few centimes in our pockets. One easy solution: visit FREE museums! That's right, there are some free things in Paris (not many, though). The museums in Paris that are free are those run by the city of Paris. A few weeks ago, we visited the Musée Bourdelle, and this past weekend, along with our friend Damien, we checked out the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.

Albert Gleizes, Les Baigneuses, 1912

The collection runs the gamut of post-impressionist 20th-century artists, styles, and media. If you're looking for big names and famous works, you should probably check out the Centre Pompidou, Musée de l'Orangerie, or the Musée Picasso, which are all "national" museums. But the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris has received its fair share of donations over the years, and there's lots of interesting stuff to be found.

Jacques Lipchitz, Personne assis jouant de la clarinette II, 1920

Modigliani, Brauner, and Cueco

Along with its sister-museum across the way (the Palais de Tokyo), the museum is a hot spot for temporary exhibitions and contemporary installations. When you go, be sure to check out the Salle noire (black room) and its installations by Christian Boltanski. In one, you can browse hundreds of phone books from all over the world. Damien discovered long lost family members in Italy!

Another highlight of the museum is the big, colorful reinstallation of a massive painting executed by Raoul Dufy for the 1937 Exposition Internationale. It's a celebration of the history of electricity - thanks, Ben Franklin!

Thanks, City of Paris, for running wonderful, free museums like this one! Can't wait to visit another one next weekend!

Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris
11, avenue du Président Wilson
75116 Paris
Tues - Sun 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.