© JR / Courtesy of Perrotin by Claire Dorn - Mark Seliger, Britney Spears / Courtesy of Marty de Montereau - Sarah Sze / Courtesy of the artist and Gagosian.
Skip the long lines at the most popular museums in the capital and dive into the buzzing art scene at Parisian galleries. These venues showcase their protégés through ultra-inspiring exhibitions. Explore the quirky collages of Sarah Sze at Gagosian, photographs celebrating the Seine at Quai de la Photo, a Britney Spears-themed exhibit at Les Filles du Calvaire gallery, sports accessories reimagined in Yves Klein's blue at Artcurial, and JR's striking images at Perrotin gallery. Ready for an art adventure?
The Most Celebrity-Focused
Upon entering Les Filles du Calvaire gallery, you're greeted with Britney Spears' "Baby One More Time", setting the tone for "Failures". Curated by art collector Marty de Montereau, this exhibit features works from 15 artists who are fans of Britney. The challenge? Create pieces inspired by her tumultuous life. The connections to the pop icon vary, allowing viewers to form their own interpretations.
Standout pieces include Frances Goodman’s "Pillar I", a sculpture of pills reflecting Britney's struggles with addiction, and Julia Haumont’s sculptures of a crying child, symbolizing Britney's troubled childhood. But it's not all dark; part of the exhibition celebrates the glamor of her career with extravagant costumes, glitter, and LED lights. A must-see for Britney fans!
Failures, until September 21 at Les Filles du Calvaire, 21 rue Chapon, Paris 3rd. Open Tuesday from 2 PM to 6:30 PM and Wednesday to Saturday from 11 AM to 6:30 PM. Free entry.
© Courtesy Galerie PACT - Mark Seliger, Britney Spears / Courtesy Marty de Montereau - Julia Haumont.
The Most Deconstructed
This summer, Gagosian invites you into Sarah Sze’s luminous, deconstructed world. The American artist reimagines the photographs she captures, reconstructing them in her own unique way for "Pictures at an Exhibition". As you enter the gallery, projections and reflections immerse you in her massive installation of moving images. Everyday objects and threads spill beyond the main room, blurring boundaries.
Upstairs, you'll find paintings and collages of all sizes, connected in a seemingly endless flow of paint reminiscent of Jackson Pollock. Through her vibrant collages and installations, Sze addresses the overwhelming influx of images in our daily lives. Spectacular pieces one after another!
Pictures at an Exhibition, until September 28 at Gagosian, 4 rue de Ponthieu, Paris 8th. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 10:30 AM to 6:30 PM. Free entry.
© Sarah Sze / Courtesy the artist and Gagosian.
The Most Sports-Centric
Don’t miss Artcurial’s exhibition "Les Bleus rencontre le maître du bleu", celebrating Yves Klein’s passion for sports. Before becoming a world-renowned painter, Klein was a high-level judoka, even earning a black belt and authoring a book on judo!
In a charity auction benefiting "Le sport a du cœur", an association helping underprivileged people access sports, top French athletes have donated personal items to be entirely coated in Klein's signature blue. Highlights include Zinedine Zidane’s soccer jersey, Teddy Riner’s judo belt, Brahim Asloum’s signed boxing gloves, a basketball signed by Tony Parker, and Laura Flessel’s mask and sword. These items, used in competitions including the Olympics, are true treasures!
Les Bleus rencontrent le maître du bleu, until July 26 at Artcurial, 7 rond-point des Champs-Elysées Marcel Dassault, Paris 8th. Open Monday to Friday from 9:30 AM to 6 PM. Free entry.
© Nicolas le Provost - Harry Shunk and Janos Kender J.Paul Getty Trust - Charles Wilp BPK, Berlin.
The Most Street Art
This summer’s must-see exhibition is at Galerie Perrotin, featuring JR, the photographer known for his Panama hat and black sunglasses. "Dans la lumière" reveals the secrets behind his massive piece "Chiroptera", displayed on the Opéra Garnier’s façade last September. Depicting a cave opening to a passage of rocks and light, the piece accompanied a ballet performance themed around Plato’s allegory of the cave.
JR translates "Chiroptera" into fifty drawings, photographs, inks, and a film, offering a new perspective on this work and performance. The exhibit explores themes of perception, questioning what we see as reality. Shadow or light, reality or illusion, chaos or harmony—JR plays with our senses. A gem!
JR, Dans la lumière, until July 27 at Galerie Perrotin, 76 rue de Turenne, Paris 3rd. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 10 AM to 6 PM. Free entry.
© JR / Courtesy Perrotin by Claire Dorn.
The Most Parisian
Vanessa Paradis and M sing about the enchanting Seine in “Tellement jolie, elle m’ensorcelle”. The Parisian river has always inspired artists, and Quai de la Photo presents over 80 photographs featuring the Seine in two new exhibits: “Rive droite, rive gauche” and “La Source”. The first showcases photos from the late 19th century to the 1960s, highlighting the evolution of this Parisian emblem like never before—traditional booksellers, houseboats, cafés, and older scenes of barbers, coachmen, and Samaritaine’s basins bustling with all social classes along the quays.
On the outdoor terrace of this floating art center, photographer Frédéric Stucin creates a dreamlike journey blending reality and imagination. He traces the Seine’s source from ancient times to the present, through the lives of riverside inhabitants. These exhibits reveal the Seine in a whole new light!
La Seine, la Seine, until September 8 at Quai de la Photo, 9 port de la gare, Paris 13th. Open Sunday to Wednesday from 12 PM to 1 AM and Thursday to Saturday from 12 PM to 2 AM. Free entry.
© Charles Lansiaux / BHVP / Roger-Viollet - Hasselblad H4D - © Maurice-Louis Branger / Roger-Viollet
Also, discover Géricault's horses on display at the Musée de la Vie Romantique and three good reasons to visit the Swedish Institute.
