Best for
Modern art fans, budget travellers, anyone in the Trocadéro/Eiffel Tower area
Time needed
1–2 hours
Worth it?
Yes — free and genuinely excellent for Fauvist and Cubist art
Skip if
You've already had your fill of modern art at the Pompidou-era collections elsewhere
About Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris
Built for the 1937 International Exposition alongside its counterpart building across the courtyard (now the Palais de Tokyo contemporary art centre), this wing has served as the City of Paris's museum of modern art since the exhibition ended, distinguishing it administratively from the Centre Pompidou's national modern art collection despite covering an overlapping period.
The collection's centrepiece is Henri Matisse's La Danse de Paris, a monumental three-panel mural painted specifically for the museum's stairwell in 1932–33, one of only two versions of the composition Matisse completed (the other, an earlier attempt, hangs in the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia). Beyond Matisse, the museum holds strong Fauvist, Cubist and School of Paris collections, including Modigliani, Dufy and Delaunay, alongside a growing contemporary art programme in its temporary exhibition spaces.
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Raoul Dufy's La Fée Électricité, an enormous 600-square-metre mural commissioned for the same 1937 exposition and depicting the history of electricity through mythology and science, occupies its own dedicated room and is one of the largest paintings in the world.
Because the permanent collection is free, and the building sits directly beside the Palais de Tokyo and a short walk from the Eiffel Tower and Trocadéro, it's an easy, no-cost stop for anyone spending an afternoon in that part of the 16th arrondissement.
What to See: Highlights
- 1Matisse's monumental La Danse de Paris mural, painted for the museum's stairwell
- 2Raoul Dufy's La Fée Électricité — one of the largest paintings in the world
- 3A free permanent collection of Fauvist, Cubist and School of Paris art
- 4Built for the 1937 International Exposition alongside the Palais de Tokyo
- 5A short walk from the Eiffel Tower and Trocadéro
Insider Tips
It's free — easy to combine with the Palais de Tokyo next door or an Eiffel Tower visit
Seek out La Fée Électricité's dedicated room — it's easy to walk past given its size
Thursday evening opening (until 9:30pm) is a quieter option
No reservation required for the permanent collection
Check current temporary exhibitions if you want paid special shows too
Getting There
11 Avenue du Président Wilson, 75116 Paris
Open in Google Maps →- 1Metro 9 to Iéna or Alma-Marceau, both a short walk. RER C to Pont de l'Alma also works.
Where to stay
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Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know before you visit.
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Should You Visit?
Visit if...
- You want to see Matisse's La Danse de Paris and Dufy's La Fée Électricité
- You enjoy Fauvism, Cubism or the School of Paris movement
- You're already near the Eiffel Tower or Trocadéro
- You want a free, high-quality museum stop
Skip if...
- You've recently covered this period of art elsewhere
- You're not in the 16th arrondissement this trip
- Modern art from this specific period doesn't interest you
More to See in Paris
Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris
A museum inside Yves Saint Laurent's original haute couture studio, tracing his revolutionary fashion career — currently closed for renovation until autumn 2027.
Palais de Tokyo
Europe's largest contemporary art centre, occupying a deliberately raw, unfinished-looking 1937 exhibition building with some of the longest opening hours of any museum in Paris.
Trocadéro Esplanade
The Palais de Chaillot's grand esplanade across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower — the single best free viewpoint for photographing the tower in full.