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.

History

The idea of a single centre bringing together different arts grew partly from the thinking of André Malraux, France's first culture minister, and from plans in the 1960s to move the markets of Les Halles and to give Paris a large free public library; in 1968 the Plateau Beaubourg was chosen for the library, and in 1969 the new president, Georges Pompidou, made it the site of both the library and a centre for contemporary art, with the music research institute IRCAM added later. The design by Richard Rogers, Su Rogers, Renzo Piano and Gianfranco Franchini was chosen in 1971 from 681 entries by a jury of Oscar Niemeyer, Jean Prouvé and Philip Johnson, the first French competition open to foreign architects, and the centre opened on 31 January 1977. It closed in 2025 for a renovation due to last until 2030, led by Moreau Kusunoki with Frida Escobedo, to remove asbestos, renew its systems and improve access and energy use (Wikipedia, Centre Pompidou).

What to look for

• 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.

Practical notes

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.

Key facts