The Palais de Tokyo (''Tokyo Palace'') is a building dedicated to modern and contemporary art, located at 13 avenue du Président-Wilson, facing the
Trocadéro, in the
16th arrondissement of
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
. The eastern wing of the building belongs to the City of Paris, and hosts the
Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris (Paris' Museum of Modern Art). The western wing belongs to the French state and since 2002, has hosted the Palais de Tokyo / Site de création contemporaine, the
largest museum in France dedicated to temporary exhibitions of
contemporary art
Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic ...
.
The building is separated from the River
Seine by the ''Avenue de New-York'', which was formerly named ''Quai
Debilly'' and later ''Avenue de Tokio'' (from 1918 to 1945). The name ''Palais de Tokyo'' derives from the name of this street.
History
The monument was inaugurated by
President Lebrun on 24 May 1937, at the time of the
International Exposition of Art and Technology in Modern Life (1937).
The original name of the building was ''Palais des Musées d'art moderne'' ("Palace of the Museums of modern art"). The building has since then hosted a number of establishments, projects, and creative spaces. Among them;
le musée d'art et d'essai (1977–1986), the
FEMIS, the
Centre national de la photographie, and in 1986, the
Palais du cinéma. The current contemporary art center opened to the public in March 2002, under the new name ''Site de création contemporaine'' ("Site for contemporary creation"), specializing in the emerging French and international art scene. It was overhauled and expanded in 2012, by the architects
Anne Lacaton and
Jean-Philippe Vassal, who subsequently won the Pritzker Prize.
With no permanent collection, It is "reputed to be the biggest non-collecting contemporary art museum in Europe",
and produces all of its exhibitions.
Directors
In March 2002,
Nicolas Bourriaud and
Jérôme Sans launched the ''Site de création contemporaine'' in the west wing of Palais de Tokyo. Endowed with a restricted operating budget, but run by a brilliant and committed team, it soon became simply known as Palais de Tokyo, quickly making its mark as a trendsetter in the art world.
The Palais de Tokyo has since been led by the following:
* 2006–2012:
Marc-Olivier Wahler
* 2012–2018: Jean de Loisy
* 2021–2022: Emma Lavigne
* 2022–present: Guillaume Désanges
Le Pavillon
The Pavillon ran from 2001 to 2017, and facilitated over 130 international artists.
Intended as a studio and laboratory space for resident artists and curators invited to the project, the Pavillon was an experimental program, designed to demonstrate the resident artists' youthful creativity.
Since the opening of the building, the director of the programme was artist and filmmaker,
Ange Leccia
Ange Leccia (born 19 April 1952) is a contemporary French painter, photographer and film-maker. He works in Paris primarily with photography and video.
Life and career
Leccia was born in Minerbio, Barrettali commune, in Corsica, and studied fin ...
.
The residency programme was sponsored by
Banque Neuflize OBC, The
Ministry of Culture and Communication, and the
Cité internationale des arts.
Notable Pavillon residents
*
Emma Dusong (
Knight of the Order of the Arts and the Letters, 2020)
* Mati Diop (
Grand Prix
Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour
Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to:
Arts and entertainment ...
Cannes Festival, 2019)
* Angela Detanico and Rafaël Lain (Brazilian Pavilion,
Venice Art Biennale
The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest o ...
, 2007)
*
Laurent Grasso
Laurent Grasso (born 1972) is a French conceptual artist living and working in Paris.
Biography
Laurent Grasso is the recipient of the esteemed Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture and the prestigious Marcel Duchamp Pr ...
(
Marcel Duchamp Prize
The Marcel Duchamp Prize (in French : ''Prix Marcel Duchamp'') is an annual award given to a young artist by the Association pour la Diffusion Internationale de l'Art Français (ADIAF).
The winner receives €35,000 personally and up to €30,000 ...
2007)
*
Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Apichatpong Weerasethakul ( th, อภิชาติพงศ์ วีระเศรษฐกุล; ; ) is a Thai independent film director, screenwriter, and film producer. Working outside the strict confines of the Thai film studio system, ...
(
Palme d’or Cannes Festival, 2010)
* Isabelle Cornaro (the
Ricard Foundation Prize, 2010)
*
Benoît Maire (the
Ricard Foundation Prize, 2010)
*
Koki Tanaka (Special Mention of the Japan pavilion,
Venice Art Biennale
The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest o ...
, 2013)
*
Oliver Beer (
Daiwa Foundation Prize, 2015)
All Pavillon residents
''Palais /''
The Museum also publishes the magazine ''Palais /'', which annually releases three editions (Spring, Fall, and Summer) and was created in 2006 by
Marc-Olivier Wahler. The Magazine features articles centering around a central artistic theme selected for each edition. The subjects are conceptual, and are explored using photography, various artistic media, essays, and often experimental media. The theme generally coincides with the exhibition concurrently featured at the museum.
In addition to ''Palais /'', Palais de Tokyo also published five volumes of a contemporary art encyclopedia, ''From Yodeling to Quantum Physics'' between 2007 and 2011.
See also
* Art Deco in Paris
The Art Deco movement of architecture and design appeared in Paris in about 1910–12, and continued until the beginning of World War II in 1939. It took its name from the International Exposition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts held i ...
* List of museums in Paris
References
External links
*
Palais de Tokyo at Google Arts & Culture
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1937 establishments in France
Art Deco architecture in France
Art museums and galleries in Paris
Art museums established in 1937
Buildings and structures in the 16th arrondissement of Paris
World's fair architecture in Paris
Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne