The must-see exhibitions in Paris for 2026

October 25 to August 23, 2026

To mark the reopening of the Fondation Cartier and its new spaces, the exhibition “Exposition Générale” invites visitors to revisit forty years of contemporary art through its collections. From architectural laboratories to poetic and technological installations, the exhibition winds its way through the museum's iconic works and extends beyond its walls to the Place du Palais-Royal and the underground Valois gallery, a former passageway that connected the metro to the Grands Magasins du Louvre department store. An immersive experience that reveals the Foundation's creative audacity and its role in contemporary creation.

Visit the Fondation Cartier for Contemporary Art

November 26 to August 31, 2026

Rediscover one of the greatest masterpieces of early 16th-century French painting with Jean Hey's recently restored Moulins Triptych. This exceptional restoration has revealed the vibrant colors of the three panels and provided a better understanding of the pictorial experiments of the “Master of Moulins.” Presented in Paris for the first time since 1937, the triptych is accompanied by paintings, drawings, and illuminations from the Louvre's collections to explore the richness and finesse of French art at the turn of the Renaissance.

Visit the Louvre Museum

December 13 to October 18, 2026

Textile designer, embroiderer, feather worker, floral decorator... In 2026, the Palais Galliera will shine a spotlight on several often overlooked fashion professions in a series of exhibitions dedicated to the exceptional craftsmanship for which Paris is renowned. Through 350 works, this first installment reveals the extraordinary diversity of techniques, from the brocade fabric of an 18th-century waistcoat to the laser printing of a Balenciaga ensemble, not to mention the delicacy of Chantilly lace and Gabrielle Chanel's iconic camellia. The exhibition explores the floral decorations and motifs that enhance the creations of leading fashion houses and contemporary figures such as Lesage, Hurel, and Baqué Molinié.

Visit the Palais Galliera

March 4 to August 31, 2026

Through the works of some twenty modern and contemporary artists from the Pinault Collection, this new exhibition explores the legacy of chiaroscuro and transforms the Bourse de Commerce into an immersive landscape where light, shadow, and perception of the visible intermingle. From Bill Viola's iconic works to Victor Man's pictorial universe, via Pierre Huyghe's metaphysical ritual filmed under the dome of the Rotonde, the exhibition questions the materiality of light as well as the mysterious realms of the unconscious. A sensory journey that reveals how this visual language continues to illuminate our relationship with the world.

Visit the Bourse de Commerce

March 25 to August 24, 2026

For this contemporary exhibition, the Musée de l’Orangerie presents four never-before-seen canvases by Alexandre Lenoir, a French painter born in 1992. Using personal photographs as his starting point, the artist slowly builds layered landscapes filled with ghostly silhouettes, applying paint in stages and using adhesive tape to conceal and then reveal the image.

In dialogue with Claude Monet’s Water Lilies, his works play with light, reflections, and the movement of water, blending familiar scenes with almost dreamlike visions.

Visit the Musée de l'Orangerie

April 2 to November 1, 2026

Pac-Man, Mario, Zelda, Final Fantasy... Iconic video games, also famous for their soundtracks, which bring back memories of frenzied gaming sessions. From the first sound chips of the 1980s to contemporary symphonic arrangements, the Philharmonie de Paris explores the sound universe of video games through more than twenty interactive installations, where players become part of the musical creation. The exhibition also reveals how international artists such as Jean-Michel Jarre, Yellow Magic Orchestra, and Radiohead were inspired by video games to offer a unique musical and sensory experience.

Visit the Philharmonie de Paris

April 15 to August 16, 2026

Moving sculptures, suspended abstract forms, fragile balance: Alexander Calder, a major figure in modern art and abstraction, is celebrated in a major anniversary exhibition at the Louis Vuitton Foundation. His iconic mobiles and stabiles interact with works by his contemporaries, Barbara Hepworth, Jean Hélion, Piet Mondrian, Paul Klee, and Pablo Picasso, placing his inventive genius at the heart of the 20th-century avant-garde. Set within the spectacular architecture of Frank Gehry's museum, this immersive retrospective offers a unique visual and sensory experience.

Visit the Louis Vuitton Foundation

May 6 to August 30, 2026

For the first time in France, the Grand Palais dedicates a major exhibition to Hilma af Klint, the Swedish artist recognized as one of the pioneers of abstraction. Presented in collaboration with the Centre Pompidou, the exhibition features the monumental Temple Paintings series, where spirals, circles, geometric shapes, and vibrant colors express her fascination with science, spirituality, and invisible forces.

Long kept secret at the artist’s request, these works reveal a creator ahead of her time and highlight the essential yet often the overlooked role of women in the history of modern art.

Visit the Grand Palais

May 19 to September 13, 2026

The first contemporary artist invited to engage with the Orientalist galleries of the Musée d’Orsay, Youssef Nabil creates a dialogue between his photographs and videos and the works that have inspired him since his first visit in 1992. His black-and-white prints, hand-colored in soft hues, evoke a dreamlike Egypt and explore themes of exile, memory, and identity across the Mediterranean.

From Puvis de Chavannes to Odilon Redon, the exhibition reveals how the artist reimagines 19th-century references into intimate, nostalgic, and resolutely contemporary images.

Visit the Musée d'Orsay

June 26 to January 11, 2027

The Louvre is presenting, for the first time together, one hundred pieces of French goldsmithing donated by collector Michel Lacoste. Cups, plates, tableware, and decorative objects crafted between the 16th and 18th centuries. Showcase the elegance of their forms, the richness of their materials, and the mastery of renowned goldsmiths. Displayed alongside the museum’s permanent collections, these works offer a glimpse into a lesser-known chapter of French decorative arts and the story of a collector’s passion that became part of the national heritage.

Visit the Louvre Museum

From July 1 to January 10, 2027

Through over 120 works from four continents, this exhibition explores civilizations’ fascination with real and imaginary animals, from the 3rd millennium BCE to the early 20th century. A bronze horse from ancient Greece, a Chinese tiger-shaped belt buckle, a serpent’s head by Fabergé, or a mythical Senoufo bird, each piece reveals the diversity of forms and symbols tied to the animal world. Many of these works are being shown in Paris for the first time, offering a journey through cultures, beliefs, and decorative arts.

Visit the Hôtel de la Marine

July 3 to September 13, 2026

This summer, the Atelier des Lumières presents three immersive experiences in the spectacular setting of a former Parisian foundry.

"Renaissance: Da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo" dives into the masterpieces of the three Italian masters through monumental projections, 3D modeling, light effects, and smoke. The vibrant colors of Sunflowers, The Starry Night, and Van Gogh’s self-portraits also flood the walls and floors, synchronized with an enveloping soundtrack.

Finally, "The Little Prince" takes children and adults alike from the desert to asteroid B612 in a 360-degree journey inspired by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s beloved tale.

Schedule:

• "Renaissance: Da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo": Tuesdays and Saturdays
• "Van Gogh": Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays
• "The Little Prince": Wednesdays and Sundays

Visit the Atelier des Lumières 

Until September 21, 2026

As part of the Clair-Obscur exhibition, Laura Lamiel takes over the display windows of the Passage and the Salle des Machines with installations specially designed for the Bourse de Commerce. Children’s shoes, gloves, chairs, fabrics, enameled bricks, and books come together in compositions where light, reflections, and shadows transform the perception of everyday objects. Along this circular walk, the eye lingers on textures, traces, and details that usually go unnoticed.

Visit the Bourse de Commerce - Pinault Collection

September 11 to January 24, 2027

For the first time in France, the Musée Jacquemart-André traces the entire career of Tintoretto, one of the great masters of the Venetian Renaissance. Around forty paintings and drawings reveal his spectacular compositions, dizzying perspectives, play of light, and rapid brushwork, which lend his religious scenes a theatrical intensity. 

The exhibition also shows how his style, influenced by Michelangelo and Titian, endured through the centuries to inspire 19th-century French painting.

Visit the museum of Jacquemart-André

September 15 to January 31, 2027

To mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, the Musée d’Orsay traces the creation of the Statue of Liberty, designed by Auguste Bartholdi as a gift from France to the American people. 

Models, drawings, documents, and immersive installations recount the artist’s travels, the search for funding, the copper work, and the technical solutions developed with Viollet-le-Duc and later Gustave Eiffel to erect this extraordinary monument. A virtual reality experience complements the exhibition, offering deeper insight into how this 46-meter sculpture, unveiled in New York in 1886, became a universal symbol of freedom.

Visit the Musée d'Orsay

September 16 to January 10, 2027

Far from being limited to the famous screen prints that made him iconic, Andy Warhol drew throughout his life, from his early days in advertising illustration to his final works. Around 150 drawings, alongside paintings, photographs, screen prints, and archival documents, reveal his portraits, graphic experiments, advertising images, and the more intimate themes that run through his work. 

The exhibition shows how drawing fueled the invention of Pop Art and offers a behind-the-scenes look at the artist’s creative process and his legendary New York studio, the Factory.

Visit the Musée du Luxembourg

September 18 to January 24, 2027

For his first exhibition in France, Kerry James Marshall brings together 70 works, including eight never-before-seen paintings, spanning over four decades of creation. His monumental compositions place Black figures at the heart of historical and everyday scenes, from barbershops to pivotal moments in African American history engaging in dialogue with Manet, Caillebotte, comic books, and science fiction. 

The exhibition reveals how the artist reinterprets the great traditions of Western painting to bring visibility to narratives, figures, and experiences long absent from museums.

Visit le Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris

September 22 to April 25, 2027

Photographer, stylist, and visual artist Hassan Hajjaj brings together his vibrant "rock stars" from Madonna and Billie Eilish to Rachid Taha, Alicia Keys, and Gnawa music masters in a colorful installation. Portraits, clothing, objects, and sets blend pop culture, Moroccan traditions, and London influences, creating a world where photography meets fashion and music. 

Complementing the exhibition, the group Acid Arab presents an original sound creation, merging North African and Middle Eastern rhythms with electronic bass, techno, disco, and rap.

Visit le Musée de la musique à la Philharmonie de Paris

September 23 to January 17, 2027

Nearly 180 works explore the enduring influence of Paul Cézanne on generations of artists, from Paul Gauguin and Henri Matisse to Pablo Picasso, Piet Mondrian, Joan Mitchell, Bridget Riley, and Peter Doig. The exhibition reveals how his landscapes, still lifes, and revolutionary approach to form paved the way for abstraction and profoundly transformed modern painting. 

Organized in collaboration with the Centre Pompidou, the Musée d’Orsay, and the Musée de l’Orangerie, the show invites visitors to rediscover Cézanne through the eyes of the artists who admired, emulated, or challenged him.

Visit the Grand Palais

September 26 to February 14, 2027

Through nearly 500 garments, accessories, paintings, and photographs, the Palais Galliera explores how certain 19th-century women adopted men’s fashion codes to gain freedom and assert their place in society. Trousers, tailored suits, ties, top hats, and riding habits, including the complete wardrobe of Rosa Bonheur, displayed in its entirety for the first time feature alongside the stories of figures like George Sand and the active women of 1900s Paris. 

The exhibition reveals how fashion helped challenge traditional female roles and transform the way women presented themselves to the world.

Visit the Palais Galliera, museum of fashion in Paris

September 30 to January 25, 2027

To mark the centenary of Claude Monet’s death, the Musée de l’Orangerie explores how the artist sought to capture the passage of time, the shifting light, and the transformations of the landscape. Nearly forty works, including the Haystacks, Poplars, Rouen Cathedral, and Water Lilies series, demonstrate his practice of painting the same subject at different times of day to reveal its ever-changing nature. 

Set in the museum that houses Monet’s grand Water Lilies murals, the exhibition offers fresh insight into his evolution from fleeting Impressionist moments to painting conceived as an immersive environment.

Visit the musée of l’Orangerie

October 7 to January 25, 2027

The Louvre presents a major retrospective of Francisco de Zurbarán, one of the masters of 17th-century Spanish painting, alongside Velázquez and Murillo. Monumental religious paintings, portraits, and still lifes reveal his striking style defined by simple volumes, bold contrasts, and intensely vibrant colors, while also showcasing works by his son, Juan de Zurbarán.

 The exhibition highlights how this art, long tied to Andalusian monasteries, later inspired modern artists such as Manet, Picasso, and Juan Gris.

Visit the Louvre Museum

From October 7, 2026

To mark the bicentennial of the invention of photography, the Bourse de Commerce brings together around 700 works by over 70 artists to explore two centuries of images. From Gustave Le Gray to Cindy Sherman, and including Dorothea Lange, Man Ray, Barbara Kruger, and Wolfgang Tillmans, the exhibition juxtaposes historical photographs and contemporary creations without following a chronological order. Portraits, everyday scenes, press images, and visual experiments reveal how photography captures memories, reshapes our perspective, and preserves traces of what vanishes.

Visit la Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection

October 9 to March 8, 2027

The Fondation Louis Vuitton reunites, for the first time in a century, over 250 works from the collection of Gustave Fayet, including paintings by Van Gogh, Gauguin, Redon, Cézanne, Matisse, and Toulouse-Lautrec. The exhibition features Van Gogh’s famous Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear, three masterpieces by Gauguin, and Odilon Redon’s grand painted decoration for Fontfroide Abbey. 

A second section highlights Gustave Fayet himself as a creator, showcasing over 300 paintings, ceramics, tapestries, textiles, and illustrated books that reveal his overlooked role in the rise of modern art and decorative arts.

Visit the Fondation Louis Vuitton

 October 22 to February 28, 2027

For his first Parisian exhibition, Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama transforms all the spaces of the Fondation Cartier, collaborating with nine invited artists and collectives. Among the works on display are a reconstructed glass bottle factory using its original materials, a parliament composed of traditional Ghanaian seats, and a textile installation visible from Place du Palais-Royal, each telling the political, industrial, and social history of Ghana. 

Photographs, paintings, textiles, archives, and sculptures come together in a rich and layered journey where materials steeped in the past become the foundation for new narratives.

Visit the Fondation Cartier for contemporary art

Across France, museums, art centers, and cultural sites are hosting legendary names from art history and contemporary creation. From Claude Monet to Frida Kahlo, Henri Matisse, Daniel Buren, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, discover our selection of must-see exhibitions to explore in France.

Discover our selection of must-see exhibitions in France in 2026.