Centre Pompidou

Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers won the 1971 competition with a proposal that turned a building inside out: structure, ducts, water pipes, electrical runs and circulation are all hung on the outside, colour-coded by function, blue for air, green for water, yellow for electricity and red for movement, which left the interior floors entirely free of columns and able to be reconfigured at will. Parisians were divided; the phrase oil refinery was used. It holds the largest modern art collection in Europe, and the escalator tube on the west face climbs to a terrace with one of the best rooftop views of the city.

What you actually see

• The exposed services - colour-coded pipes and ducts on the outside.
• The escalator tube - the glazed diagonal climbing the west facade.
• The modern collection - Europe's largest, from Matisse to the present.
• The roof terrace - a wide view over Paris from the top level.

When to go

Year-round; the building closed in 2025 for a major renovation expected to run to around 2030, with parts of the collection shown elsewhere in the meantime, so current status should be checked before travelling.

Honest expectations

The main building is closed for a long renovation and the collection is dispersed to temporary venues. The square in front remains open. Check what is showing where before planning a visit.

Nearby

Le Marais lies east; the Louvre is southwest.