Paris Pages 16th arrondissement

Musee d'art moderne de la ville de Paris, City of Paris Museum of Modern Art

The paintings on this page are all the the Musee d'art moderne de la ville de Paris, the City of Paris Museum of Modern Art, 11 Avenue du President-Wilson. The nearest metros are either Alma-Marceau or Iena, RER Pont de l'Alma, buses, 32, 63, 72, 80 and 92. Like all other museums run by the city of Paris entry is free to the permanent collections, and there is a free cloakroom. They are open Tuesday - Sunday 10:00 - 18:00, with Wednesday open until 22:00. There is a well-stocked bookshop with a range of books, cards, calendars and other gifts, and a very good, small cafe where I had one of the best brownies I've ever had in Paris.

The museum opened in 1961 in the east wing of the Palais de Tokyo which was built in 1937 for the World's Fair.

On the left is Dufy's La fee electricite. This mural was done for the 1937 World's Fair and was placed in the trophy room in 1964. The painting is huge and tells the history of electricity from ancient to modern times, the section shown here is from the right-hand part of the painting.

Above right is Trios personnages assis dans l'herbe by Andre Derain (1880 - 1954). Painted in 1906 this is an example of Fauvism, where unreal colours are used to structure the painting, and black or coloured outlines simplify the drawing.

Right is La danse de Paris by Matisse. This was painted in 1931-33. It is located in the Salle Matisse which was especially designed to hold the triptich. The paintings were commissioned in 1930 by Dr. Barnes for his foundation in Merion, Pennsylvania in the USA. Matisse made three paintings in all, one is in the foundation, another, La danse inachevee, is shown as you enter the

Salle Matisse, and the one above. If you look very closely you will see pinpricks near the bottom of the painting. These tiny holes were made when pieces of coloured paper where pinned to the canvas. This was a new technique invented by Matisse.