Paris’s Centre Pompidou is closing—here’s where to visit instead

The Centre Pompidou, Paris’s largest modern art museum, is closing its doors in September 2025 for a five-year refurbishment. In the absence of this cultural icon, where should modern-art-lovers get their fill? Thankfully, Paris’s contemporary art scene has plenty more on offer, and this temporary closure offers the perfect opportunity to discover some lesser-known but equally enthralling artistic spots.

1. Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris

Where better to house Paris’s second-largest modern art collection than in the Musée d’art Moderne de Paris, a grand, colonnaded 1930s building between the Eiffel Tower and the Champs-Élysées? The museum’s impressive collection of sculptures, paintings and photography from the 20th and 21st centuries features major artists like Picasso, Dufy, Modigliani and Chagall in a combination of temporary and permanent exhibits. The permanent collections reference mainstream artistic movements from the early 20th century to the present day and house Dufy’s La Fée Électricité and the two famous versions of Matisse’s La Danse.

2. L’Atelier des Lumières

Forget admiring canvases from afar, because at L’Atelier des Lumières, you step inside the paintings and let the artistry engulf you. There are 140 video projectors here that beam iconic artwork by famous artists onto the floors, walls and ceilings while a surround-sound music system transforms the space into an immersive, multi-sensory experience. The cavernous venue started life in 1835 as one of Paris’s leading foundries, creating a range of items including cast-iron parts for the city’s emerging railway, until its closure in 1929. In 2018, it reopened as an artistic space dedicated to bringing new, dynamic life to classic artworks. Exhibitions change frequently and range from Van Gogh’s masterpieces to the storybook world of Saint-Exupéry’s Le Petit Prince.  

3. Musée du Quai Branly

Leave Paris—and Europe—altogether to visit the artistic realms of Africa, Asia, Oceana and the Americas at the Musée du Quai Branly. This museum’s permanent collection features 300,000 artworks, 700,000 photographs, 10,000 musical instruments and 25,000 pieces of clothing from Indigenous communities around the world to create an impressive portrait of non-European artistic culture. There are both permanent and temporary exhibitions which change every six months. The cultural diversity continues in the garden where its most famous feature, the ‘green wall’, spans the entire facade of the building and features 150 plant varieties from Japan, China, the Americas and Central Europe.   

4. Suzanne Tarasiève

Gallerist Suzanne Tarasiève opened her primary exhibition space in 2011 at a trendy spot in Le Marais. Despite her passing in 2022, the gallery continues to honour her aim of exhibiting both established and new artists. This focus on fresh talent means visitors can see completely new styles and voices in the art world, creating a unique space in which artists tell their own story, be it personal, political or simply creative. Expect an array of paintings and sculptures, as well as photography, with the gallery representing three famous photographers, Boris Mikhaïlov, Juergen Teller and Jürgen Klauke. Though the focus is on modern art, there’s no theme that unifies the items on display other than a quirky otherworldliness. Lovers of the bizarre will be pleased to hear they need not set their alarms to beat the crowds: this museum is fashionably late, with opening hours between 11am and 7pm, Tuesday to Saturday.

5. Fondation Louis Vuitton

Fans of the Pompidou’s distinct architecture can get their funky design fix at the Fondation Louis Vuitton. Designed by Frank Gehry—the architect behind the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA—the museum looks like shards of glass piercing the grass beneath. The aesthetic intrigue continues inside the building thanks to a constantly evolving body of work categorised into four broad topics: Contemplative, Pop, Music & Sound and Expressionist. The Fondation Louis Vuitton goes further than the typical remit of a gallery—not only does it display important artwork, but it also invites artists to participate in cultural events, conferences and debates that offer fresh perspectives on the collections. Opening hours can vary dramatically depending on the day, so it’s worth checking ahead of your visit.