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Recommended Reviews - Centre Pompidou
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We decided to come here because we heard that they are scheduled to be closed for a multi-year renovation. I'm not really a modern art guy. I think most of it to be a fraud propped up by hype and snooty arrogance. This visit didn't change my mind. The center is quite large but the exhibitions were not as large as I would have thought. We were able to walk all of them in under 3 hours. The location is cool. It feels like it is a central square and is surrounded by many tourist oriented restaurants and cafes. The view from the top floor observation deck was my favorite thing about the place.
Review is based on museum visit. Centre Pompidou was huge. I wanted to visit because I thought the red tubes escalate was interesting. It's in a great location near many food restaurants, bakeries and cafes. There was a line to enter where they check your bag and belonging, while you go through a security scan. There was a lot of people, even on a rainy night. You can spend a whole day here. It's a library with restaurants, food, and a 2 floor museum. 6 levels in total. I didn't see the entire museum as I had planned our my trip and didn't expect the museum to be as big as it was. But if you took a quick glance at everything, you'd probably be able to finish in about 2-3. They also have cute videos playing as part of their videography/media exhibit, that you might not be able to complete. Tl;dr - beautiful museum/restaurant/library, outside is beautiful at night. Museum is just okay, more of an extra time visit than a must visit.
What a fantastic venue! There is something for every age. The industrial architecture is futuristic. Don't miss the exterior escalators and the incredible views of Paris. Go to the top floor for the best views. We enjoyed several art exhibits during our visit. Centre Pompidou is included in the museum pass, which I highly recommend.
Wow, this was one of the, if not the, coolest art museum I've ever been to! The building itself is marvelous, and I loved all the exhibits they had featured when I went. I loved that it wasn't too packed, and that they stay open super late. The layout is somewhat confusing, but easy enough after walking around a bit. I will definitely come back here each and every time I come to Paris!
Pompidou is a building design as inside out. They building structure frame, plumbing, air and heating duct are all located at outside of building. Normally is enclosed in the building. This building name is after a France President. It is a multi use building. The building has art museum, public library, government sector and more. The roof top have cafe and view. The escalator was set outside of the building make it fun to visit. We have visit the modern art museum. It is interesting two floors. This museum may be one of the largest in Europe. It has some Picasso collection, sculpture, interesting art. The visit may need 2.5 hour. You can go to top sculpture garden. Overlooking the the city.
Of course, this art museum is five stars. In fact, of all the art museums in Paris, Centre Pompidou has always been my favorite. What you will find here, in the museum galleries, is a vast collection of modern art. They also feature a rotating collection of the art of specific artists. What this gives the viewer is a non-stop immersion of the visual senses and the ability to view some of the greatest art, by the best modern art creators. Centre Pompidou is also a visually stunning architectural superstructure. It is really a sight to see. Once inside, you travel upwards to the various galleries via these great, very visual, escalators. As you move upwards, you are provided with an exceptional view of Paris. One of the nice things about Centre Pompidou is that they have a free coat-check room, on the ground floor, where you can place your jackets or bags in lockers. With this, it frees you up to enjoy the art without the burden of holding or wearing your coat. Keep in mind, Centre Pompidou is a very popular museum. The lines to get in here can get very long. It's a good idea to buy your tickets in advance if you can. If you can't, the best idea is to get here early, when they first open, as then you have the potential to beat a lot of the crowds. If you like modern art, this is one of the best museums in the world!
This is a modern art museum with modern being defined as any art since the early 1900s. I tend to like this kind of art if it is the modern art from the early 1900s. Some of the early modern artists that I liked were Rouault, Delaunay, and Rupka with Rouault as my favorite. He used heavy brush strokes to give emotion to his characters. Instead of creating smooth, realistic facial features, he would have different colored brush strokes right next to each other, adding emotion, and in a sense, disfigurement to his characters. It was as if he was painting in a way to accentuate the characters flaws rather than clean them up. The more recent art is less interesting to me but that is mainly because I don't understand it, similar to what most people would say. Aren't there recent artists that paint real things? They should show some of those in the modern museum. The top floor has the most recent art. We quickly glossed over it before moving on to the next thing. Even if we were not interested in modern art, the Pompidou Museum was a great place to view Paris from above the rooftops. The Eiffel Tower is the more well know method of seeing Paris from above, but you would need to invest an entire day of waiting in line to go up the Tower.
Came to Paris this last visit specifically to see the homage to YSL. The fashion brand Yves Saint Laurent was celebrating the 60th anniversary of its first show by commandeering six of Paris's mightiest institutions with exhibits at the Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Pompidou Centre, Museum of Modern Art, Picasso Museum and Yves Saint Laurent Museum - all to celebrate YSL's life and works. Each museum had a different focus and theme. The Pompidou focused on his modernity. It was super cool to see drawings from YSL and the actual, finished garment.......or the specific work of art that inspired YSL to create a specific garment His artistry knew no bounds and the pieces were jaw-droppingly amazing The Pompidou had a fantastic layout to get to the exhibit and a guide to tell exactly which rooms helps pieces. I loved how they interspersed YSL among other pieces of art so that the theme carried over to other artists and it seemed like the larger exhibition was all part of the plan Bravo for magnificent curation! Bravo for YSL! Bravo for Centre Pompidou!
A must if you like modern art of the recent (Space Invaders tiles) or classical (Frida Khalo, Yves Klein) variety. Keep in mind that the Serge Gainsbourg exhibit is located inside the 2nd floor library which opens 1 hour after the rest of the enter. The guards insisted that they control the time the exhibit opens, not the guests.
The Centre Pompidou is a unique experience in Paris. The exterior of the building definitely stands out from the surrounding buildings and you can see it clearly from many of the monuments in Paris. A very contemporary building housing contemporary art...perfect. My son's french teacher highly recommended the museum and so glad we worked this into our schedule. We enjoyed the exhibits we saw on the two floors...think it was five and four...really opens one's mind to possibilities and interpretation. The only issue (and it was a minor issue) was that it was confusing in locating where to start and to move around the exhibits...we sorted it out. It was a very positive museum experience and happy to recommend Centre Pompidou when in Paris.
There is a special architecture exhibit on the top floor (June 2023) pay more to see the special exhibit, it is worth it. As with other museums of modern and contemporary art there are a lot of nice chairs/areas to sit and relax. To beat the lines are with any popular museum get your time stamped ticket for the first time of the day and arrive about 20-33 minutes early.
So many artists here on 3 floors. I loved the Picasso pairings the best. You can spend hours here admiring all of the artwork, exhibits, and sculptures. The smashed up cars, the French colourful house, the Andy Warhol, the huge composition book, the Cezanne, all should not be missed. At the end of all of your walking, relax on the outside terrace, Georges.
Interesting and unique museum in Paris. B bought up a question about where they determined to put the artwork. It is a contemporary museum. You can find lots of modern artwork ranging from couple decades till now. It is a two floors museum. To enter the museum was awkward. Entrance was on the third floor. There are two checks to get into the museum. The entrance requires a lot of walking to get to. You would have to take 2 super long escalators before arriving to the entrance. Overall a good museum and highly recommend coming here for a visit. Note you need about 1.5 hours to 2.5 hours here to spare depending on how interested you are into the galleries here.
3 years ago
7 months ago
Centre Pompidou was due to close its doors for a years-long renovation when I went. Thought not completely shut down (Wolfgang Tillmans was showing his photographs), the lack of exhibits make this arts center a shell of its former self; even the long escalator, a prominent feature, wasn't in operation. Also, there was no access to the rooftop viewing platform. The building is very cool with its "inside out" design as giant pipes decorate the exterior. I remember Centre Pompidou as full of life, I hope when it returns to be able to experience its full art programming once again. Two stars because it's depressing to see the building half done & half alive. read more
1 year ago
The best museum in Paris for the views and vibes! Even on a winter weekend at sunset, it wasn't overcrowded--a refreshing change from the city's more packed museums. The main collection is on the 5th floor, with special exhibits on the 6th, and the panoramic views from the balcony are stunning--you can see both the Eiffel Tower and Sacré-Cœur. Entry is affordable at €15 per person, and the museum has several shops, dining options, and restrooms inside. It's also easily accessible by public transportation, with plenty of great spots to eat and drink nearby. A must-visit for art lovers and architecture enthusiasts alike! read more
We decided to come here because we heard that they are scheduled to be closed for a multi-year renovation. I'm not really a modern art guy. I think most of it to be a fraud propped up by hype and snooty arrogance. This visit didn't change my mind. The center is quite large but the exhibitions were not as large as I would have thought. We were able to walk all of them in under 3 hours. The location is cool. It feels like it is a central square and is surrounded by many tourist oriented restaurants and cafes. The view from the top floor observation deck was my favorite thing about the place. read more
2 years ago
Review is based on museum visit. Centre Pompidou was huge. I wanted to visit because I thought the red tubes escalate was interesting. It's in a great location near many food restaurants, bakeries and cafes. There was a line to enter where they check your bag and belonging, while you go through a security scan. There was a lot of people, even on a rainy night. You can spend a whole day here. It's a library with restaurants, food, and a 2 floor museum. 6 levels in total. I didn't see the entire museum as I had planned our my trip and didn't expect the museum to be as big as it was. But if you took a quick glance at everything, you'd probably be able to finish in about 2-3. They also have cute videos playing as part of their videography/media exhibit, that you might not be able to complete. Tl;dr - beautiful museum/restaurant/library, outside is beautiful at night. Museum is just okay, more of an extra time visit than a must visit. read more
What a fantastic venue! There is something for every age. The industrial architecture is futuristic. Don't miss the exterior escalators and the incredible views of Paris. Go to the top floor for the best views. We enjoyed several art exhibits during our visit. Centre Pompidou is included in the museum pass, which I highly recommend. read more
Wow, this was one of the, if not the, coolest art museum I've ever been to! The building itself is marvelous, and I loved all the exhibits they had featured when I went. I loved that it wasn't too packed, and that they stay open super late. The layout is somewhat confusing, but easy enough after walking around a bit. I will definitely come back here each and every time I come to Paris! read more
Pompidou is a building design as inside out. They building structure frame, plumbing, air and heating duct are all located at outside of building. Normally is enclosed in the building. This building name is after a France President. It is a multi use building. The building has art museum, public library, government sector and more. The roof top have cafe and view. The escalator was set outside of the building make it fun to visit. We have visit the modern art museum. It is interesting two floors. This museum may be one of the largest in Europe. It has some Picasso collection, sculpture, interesting art. The visit may need 2.5 hour. You can go to top sculpture garden. Overlooking the the city. read more
Of course, this art museum is five stars. In fact, of all the art museums in Paris, Centre Pompidou has always been my favorite. What you will find here, in the museum galleries, is a vast collection of modern art. They also feature a rotating collection of the art of specific artists. What this gives the viewer is a non-stop immersion of the visual senses and the ability to view some of the greatest art, by the best modern art creators. Centre Pompidou is also a visually stunning architectural superstructure. It is really a sight to see. Once inside, you travel upwards to the various galleries via these great, very visual, escalators. As you move upwards, you are provided with an exceptional view of Paris. One of the nice things about Centre Pompidou is that they have a free coat-check room, on the ground floor, where you can place your jackets or bags in lockers. With this, it frees you up to enjoy the art without the burden of holding or wearing your coat. Keep in mind, Centre Pompidou is a very popular museum. The lines to get in here can get very long. It's a good idea to buy your tickets in advance if you can. If you can't, the best idea is to get here early, when they first open, as then you have the potential to beat a lot of the crowds. If you like modern art, this is one of the best museums in the world! read more
This is a modern art museum with modern being defined as any art since the early 1900s. I tend to like this kind of art if it is the modern art from the early 1900s. Some of the early modern artists that I liked were Rouault, Delaunay, and Rupka with Rouault as my favorite. He used heavy brush strokes to give emotion to his characters. Instead of creating smooth, realistic facial features, he would have different colored brush strokes right next to each other, adding emotion, and in a sense, disfigurement to his characters. It was as if he was painting in a way to accentuate the characters flaws rather than clean them up. The more recent art is less interesting to me but that is mainly because I don't understand it, similar to what most people would say. Aren't there recent artists that paint real things? They should show some of those in the modern museum. The top floor has the most recent art. We quickly glossed over it before moving on to the next thing. Even if we were not interested in modern art, the Pompidou Museum was a great place to view Paris from above the rooftops. The Eiffel Tower is the more well know method of seeing Paris from above, but you would need to invest an entire day of waiting in line to go up the Tower. read more
4 years ago
Came to Paris this last visit specifically to see the homage to YSL. The fashion brand Yves Saint Laurent was celebrating the 60th anniversary of its first show by commandeering six of Paris's mightiest institutions with exhibits at the Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Pompidou Centre, Museum of Modern Art, Picasso Museum and Yves Saint Laurent Museum - all to celebrate YSL's life and works. Each museum had a different focus and theme. The Pompidou focused on his modernity. It was super cool to see drawings from YSL and the actual, finished garment.......or the specific work of art that inspired YSL to create a specific garment His artistry knew no bounds and the pieces were jaw-droppingly amazing The Pompidou had a fantastic layout to get to the exhibit and a guide to tell exactly which rooms helps pieces. I loved how they interspersed YSL among other pieces of art so that the theme carried over to other artists and it seemed like the larger exhibition was all part of the plan Bravo for magnificent curation! Bravo for YSL! Bravo for Centre Pompidou! read more
3 years ago
A must if you like modern art of the recent (Space Invaders tiles) or classical (Frida Khalo, Yves Klein) variety. Keep in mind that the Serge Gainsbourg exhibit is located inside the 2nd floor library which opens 1 hour after the rest of the enter. The guards insisted that they control the time the exhibit opens, not the guests. read more
7 years ago
The Centre Pompidou is a unique experience in Paris. The exterior of the building definitely stands out from the surrounding buildings and you can see it clearly from many of the monuments in Paris. A very contemporary building housing contemporary art...perfect. My son's french teacher highly recommended the museum and so glad we worked this into our schedule. We enjoyed the exhibits we saw on the two floors...think it was five and four...really opens one's mind to possibilities and interpretation. The only issue (and it was a minor issue) was that it was confusing in locating where to start and to move around the exhibits...we sorted it out. It was a very positive museum experience and happy to recommend Centre Pompidou when in Paris. read more
3 years ago
There is a special architecture exhibit on the top floor (June 2023) pay more to see the special exhibit, it is worth it. As with other museums of modern and contemporary art there are a lot of nice chairs/areas to sit and relax. To beat the lines are with any popular museum get your time stamped ticket for the first time of the day and arrive about 20-33 minutes early. read more
So many artists here on 3 floors. I loved the Picasso pairings the best. You can spend hours here admiring all of the artwork, exhibits, and sculptures. The smashed up cars, the French colourful house, the Andy Warhol, the huge composition book, the Cezanne, all should not be missed. At the end of all of your walking, relax on the outside terrace, Georges. read more
Interesting and unique museum in Paris. B bought up a question about where they determined to put the artwork. It is a contemporary museum. You can find lots of modern artwork ranging from couple decades till now. It is a two floors museum. To enter the museum was awkward. Entrance was on the third floor. There are two checks to get into the museum. The entrance requires a lot of walking to get to. You would have to take 2 super long escalators before arriving to the entrance. Overall a good museum and highly recommend coming here for a visit. Note you need about 1.5 hours to 2.5 hours here to spare depending on how interested you are into the galleries here. read more
6 years ago
I L-O-V-E this museum. I wish I had all day to explore but 3 hours was enough time to see most of what I wanted to see. The biggest draw to come to this museum out of all the museums in Paris is it was open until 9 pm. We were struggling with adjusting to the time change from EST, so it was perfect for us night owls. I'm not gonna go through each level or exhibit because these things are best experienced live and in person. I will say the architecture of the building and the layout of the exhibits are a visual dream. I had no idea this place even existed until we were flipping through the guidebook. But I'm glad I did because this museum reminded me that I really, really enjoy visiting museums. I live near D.C. so I decided to visit one at least every month in 2020. Art is an expression of humanity and speaks to your soul if you let it. read more
July 2018. The place is a mess. We have been walking a bit before coming here. Trying to find the main entrance was confusing and frustrating. There is construction until 2019. Barricades all over the place. Some outdoor terraces were closed to the public. The exhibits were worth seeing. We took the famous escalators up to the top floor. Le Georges is a Restaurant on the top floor. It was beautiful and had great views. Very pricey. We just had milkshakes. They cost 12 euros each. The place is worth a visit. Wish we were here when construction had ended, oh well. read more
6 years ago
I am giving this a 4 star rating because my son and I did not have time to go inside. It was a "must see" of our trip so I wanted to at least get photos of the outside. I'm really glad I did because it was awesome to see the "inside-out" architecture and how they painted each part of the mechanics a different color (green pipes are plumbing, blue ducts are for climate control, electrical wires are encased in yellow, and circulation elements and devices for safety (e.g., fire extinguishers) are red). On our next trip to Paris this will be high up on my list of places to visit. I adore modern art and can't wait to see the offerings here. read more
3 years ago
2 years ago
10 years ago
The Location: Metro#11, exit "Rambuteau". The metro station is right next to the museum. The Admission: 11 euro (included in the museum pass) It is one of the world's leading museums of modern and contemporary art. They have a theater for performance. There is a cafe. Big courtyard, during summer time, there are street performers. Many restaurants/cafes nearby. Definitely a fun place to hang out. read more
A very modern building which resides a museum. The outsider's red awning staircase where all the escalators are built on the outside and seen at a distance. The view is amazing from above! It was closing time soon but my former love and I did get to view some exhibits or artwork, and explore the sculptures. We briefly browsed through the square around the structure to maximize our money's worth from the Carte Musee five days pass. read more
Do you have a background in art that allows you to understand the modern, contemporary and post modern movements? Did you pay enough attention in high school art to hear about big shots like Dali, and wanna score some bragging rights? ...wanna see some crazy shit!? If you answered 'YES!' to any of these, step right in. In a city that scores its reputation on the more ancient side of history, it's time to indulge in a giant collection of stuff you don't see every day. Like the tactile art designed for the blind to feel paintings. Or that weird cave to walk into. Lots of interactive art here. Or the "tragicomedy" made by splicing together footage from dozens of scavenged film reels. 12 straight minutes of stuff like blimp crashes...or a model taking off her top, only to be interrupted by war footage of readying and firing torpedoes. I was thoroughly entertained. Of course, you can always view some very novel sculptures as well as early 20th century paintings. They also have traveling exhibits on the top floor, as well as a restaurant that gives you the pleasure of viewing the Parisian skyline at your leisure. I'd gone during "Frida et moi", which was coincidental because most of her work rests in my corner of the globe. The gift shop here is also amazing, and the selections are fairly priced. You can score some practical gadgets here, like the shell lamp or rocket ship juicer. Overall, you might not have heard of this place, but you NEED to give it a try. It kicks ass. read more
What a fun museum! Contemporary and modern art....some a little odd, but interesting. The nice thing is that it's not going to take you all day to go through it and there's always a new exhibit coming. We were able to see a Lichtenstein exhibit, but some images we couldn't take pictures. I think one of the more unusual works was the room of felt rolls with a single piano. We met a family from my old hometown, San Jose, which was great cause it gave us a chance to practice our English...LOL! Oh, there was also performance art in the lobby; a guy walked slowly up stairs leading to a platform, and then jumped onto a large inflated mat. Definitely come check out this museum. read more
8 years ago
I have gone here twice and I was not disappointed with each visit. My favorite exhibit was the relationship between music and the visual (a la Disney's Fantasia). Even if you are not an art lover, a visit to this place is a must! read more
Paris's amazing modern and contemporary art museum is another of my favorite museums to visit. Their modern collection is excellent. Both times I have visited, the museum has not been crowded, and it has been a pleasure to wander and not feel overwhelmed by the crowds. Contemporary art can be polarizing. One of the strengths of this collection is that while you might not enjoy all of the art (or wonder why a particular piece is even in a museum) I think most art fans will find things they do enjoy. I am particular about contemporary art I enjoy and loved many of the pieces and installations (such as the Cave). Much of the structural parts of the museum are exposed from the outside. This includes the tube-like escalator. If you take it all the way up you get a excellent view of the city. read more
Centre Pompidou is one of the many famous museums in Paris. I just did not have the time to go in an admire the art but I had to see the building in person. Such a neat and weird looking design. The architecture is so different and unusual. From afar it looks like a building going through construction but up close you can admire the colors and craziness. The entrance is huge and the stairwells are pretty cool. Looks like a hot mess but awesome at the same time. read more
I've been waiting some time to visit this museum and I finally got it done on this last trip! It was pouring rain, and it was right around the corner, and to my luck the entrance was free this day (Sunday). I explored the free exhibits were on the 4th and 5th floor. It was very contemporary and displayed a lot of cool exhibits (see photos). There's so much to see and I was on a time limit so I swiftly peeked into each room to see if anything would catch my eye, and I got stuck standing in a few rooms for more than 5 minutes admiring the artwork. Nonetheless, I would definitely come back to the museum to check out the other floors I missed. The outside also has a water display which is pretty and trendy. It's called the Stravinsky Fountain. read more
This place is huge. Would probably take up half your day if you want to look at everything. The space was exciting and the content was cool and interesting. I wasn't able to look at everything but as you move in to the more contemporary artworks it does get more interactive and fun than the standard artworks previous to that time period. read more
9 years ago
HUGE and slightly confusing space. Horrendous lines. GREAT location. We purchased our tickets in advance online so we were able to bypass the horrendous line. Instead we just had to stand in the long crazy line that wasn't as crazy. Once we got through the security checkpoint, it was a breeze. Our two tickets were for the day before. We ended up mixing up the dates because of the time difference and so we showed them at the door. They allowed us to still wait in the "online tickets" line and then directed us to speak with the tickets sales counter. We were able to use our tickets from the day before which we were grateful for. I loved that there was SO MUCH to see and not everything required admission fee. The had an extensive modern and contemporary art collection. I didn't actually see any of the featured exhibits because it was already so much and we unfortunately had limited time. So I suggest that if you plan to visit, make this your first stop. We went to another gallery and did a lot of walking before coming here and were POOPED. We couldn't handle walking the entire space and ended up having to take multiple breaks. And we definitely weren't the only ones. The bathrooms were disgusting and also had a line. Almost every stall was out of toilet paper. They should consider increasing the bathroom checks throughout the day because it was only early afternoon when we were here. Definitely a cool space and a must see when in Paris. read more
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More info about Centre Pompidou
Place Georges Pompidou
75004 Paris
France
Beaubourg, 4ème
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01 44 78 12 33
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http://www.centrepompidou.fr
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Centre Pompidou - museums - Updated May 2026
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