Ok so I am on a museum binge sort of. These wonderful museums is what makes Paris so special ,even if they are so many hard to choose for a visit! I worked across from the Jardin des Tuileries and passed by them many times, even had quick lunch next to them and been there couple times , just to say was there. I like to update this wonderful post and to serve as a reminder to come back for more, more of my Paris. I will tell you a sort of an introduction on the Jeu de Paume Museum of Paris.
The Jeu de Paume, or palm game (many says ancestor of the Tennis) is an art center dedicated to the image of the 20-21C with photography, cinema, video, installation, net art, etc. It is located in the Jardin des Tuileries (Tuileries Garden), at the end of the terrace of the Feuillants, facing Place de la Concorde. The Jeu de Paume is a building of 80 meters in length and 13 meters in width ,with a height under ceiling in most rooms of 4.50 meters, which has a total surface of 2755 m2 for an exhibition surface of 1 137 m2 divided into nine rooms on three levels and 420 linear meters . The easiest to get here is on Metro Concorde lines 1, 8, and 12. Also, bus lines of which 72 is sublime.
A bit of history I like
The building was built in 1861 under the reign of Napoleon III, in order to accommodate palm court play (ancestor of tennis), while resuming the plan of the Orangerie (located at the other corner closer to the Seine), thus becoming its neighbor. From 1909, the building is dedicated to art exhibitions, in connection with the Louvre and the Musée de l’Orangerie.(see posts) At the end of the 19C, the Luxembourg Museum (see post) opened to foreign schools and the foreign section finally became important enough to form an independent museum at the Jeu de Paume in 1922. From this date until its transfer to the National Museum of Modern Art of the Palais de Tokyo (see post) in 1947, the Jeu de Paume Museum presented the collections of contemporary foreign schools.
During WWII, the museum’s collections were sheltered at the Château de Chambord from September 1, 1939. The phenomenal inventory work of Rose Valland,(a heroe!) a simple conservation attaché, will be forwarded to the Director of National Museums Jacques Jaujard, and will allow after the liberation to launch a gigantic search for works of art plundered by the Nazis around the world. From 1947 until 1986, the date of the opening of theMusée d’Orsay, (see post) the gallery of the Jeu de Paume presented the paintings of the Impressionists. After its redevelopment with a suspended staircase, the gallery reopened in 1991, becoming the National Gallery of the Jeu de Paume. The new place is then dedicated to modern and contemporary art in all its forms.
In 2004, it became a center of art and a place of reference for the diffusion of the image of the 20-21C such as photography, cinema, video, installation, Net Art, etc. The Jeu de Paume is intended to produce or coproduce exhibitions, but also film cycles, symposia, seminars, educational activities or even publications. Also in 2004, three associations devoted to photography and contemporary art such as the National Gallery of the Jeu de Paume, the National Center of Photography and Photographic Heritage merge to give birth to the new Jeu de Paume.
The association has another site to organize its exhibitions, the Hôtel de Sully, at 62, rue Saint-Antoine. The Jeu de Paume present exhibitions of a heritage nature highlighting the donations made to the State and the archive collections kept by public and private institutions, French and foreign. Exhibited at the Château de Tours since 2010. The Jeu de Paume Paris is currently closed. It will reopen from June 8 for the “Jean Painlevé. Les pieds dans l’eau” ( the feet in the water) and “Marine Hugonnier. Cinema à l’estomac (in the stomach)”. The Jeu de Paume – Tours is open with the exhibition “Thibaut Cuisset. Loire” until May 29, 2022. Last but not least you can suscribe to the magazine Palm to received by email all the latest on the museum, see webpage.
The official Jeu de Paume museum/Art Center: https://jeudepaume.org/en/about-us/
The Paris tourist office on the museum: https://en.parisinfo.com/paris-museum-monument/71258/Jeu-de-Paume-Paris
The official bookstore of the Jeu de Paume museum: https://www.librairiejeudepaume.org/
There you go folks, a wonderful museum/art center in my eternal Paris. Another dandy ,the Jeu de Paume museum is one that needs a return , eventually.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 
Leave a Reply