12 art exhibitions to see in Paris during the August Bank Holiday weekend
Paris may be known for slowing down in August, but for art lovers, the city is far from quiet. From a takeover of the Rotunda at the Bourse de Commerce by artist Céleste Boursier-Mougenot to retrospectives of artists including Niki de Saint Phalle, Jean Tinguely, and American designer Rick Owens, Paris offers a wide variety of exhibitions running through the summer and into the UK bank holiday weekend. Whether you’re drawn to contemporary art at the Palais de Tokyo, couture at the Palais Galliera, or historical narratives at the Louvre, there is plenty to explore. For those planning a trip to Paris this bank holiday weekend, here’s our curated guide to the must-see exhibitions in August 2025.
Céleste Boursier-Mougenot: clinamen
Céleste Boursier-Mougenot, clinamen v.10, 2012-2025, courtesy of the artist, Paula Cooper Gallery (New York), Galerie Xippas (Paris), Galerie Mario Mazzoli (Berlin). Image credit Nicolas Brasseur. Image courtesy of Bourse de Commerce—Pinault Collection
#FLODown: Céleste Boursier-Mougenot has taken over the Rotunda of the Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection with clinamen, an 18-metre-wide pool beneath the museum’s dome in which white ceramic bowls float, drift, and gently collide, producing delicate, melodic tones without human touch. Named after an ancient Epicurean concept describing the random motion of atoms, the installation offers a constantly shifting, multisensory experience that transforms the space into a place of reflection and reverie, inviting visitors to immerse themselves in an ever-changing “symphony of the moment” where sound, movement, and architecture harmonise in unpredictable beauty.
Date: 5 March 2025 – 31 August 2025. Location: Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection, 2 Rue de Viarmes, 75001 Paris. Price: from 15 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Niki de Saint Phalle, Jean Tinguely, pontus hultén
Niki de Saint Phalle, Jean Tinguely, pontus hultén, Grand Palais. Image credit MTotoe.
#FLODown: At the Grand Palais, this exhibition celebrates the extraordinary partnership of Niki de Saint Phalle and Jean Tinguely through the visionary support of Pontus Hultén. The show traces their prolific careers, highlighting their playful, rebellious, and multidisciplinary approach to art, supported by Hultén’s advocacy through acquisitions, retrospectives, and major projects such as Nana in the Hon-en-Katedral (1966) and Le Crocrodrome de Zig & Puce (1977). Drawn from the Centre Pompidou’s collections and major loans, visitors can rediscover iconic works in a historical and engaging presentation which highlights the beauty of art, friendship, and creativity.
Date: 26 June 2025 – 4 January 2026. Location: Grand Palais, 3 Avenue du Général Eisenhower, 75008 Paris. Price: from 17 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Rick Owens: Temple of Love
Temple of Love, Rick Owens. Palais Galliera, musée de la Mode de Paris. Image credit MTotoe
#FLODown: Temple of Love, a retrospective of American fashion designer Rick Owens at the Palais Galliera, presents more than 100 works spanning his Hollywood beginnings to his Parisian career, from sculptural gowns and experimental early designs to provocative installations like the notorious “Piss Chapel.” The show highlights Owens’ inspirations, ranging from 1930s glamour and underground subcultures to avant-garde art and the work of Joseph Beuys, while emphasising his precision tailoring and visionary draping. The exhibition celebrates a designer who has redefined beauty and consistently challenged convention.
Date: 28 June 2025 – 4 January 2026. Location: Palais Galliera, musée de la Mode de Paris, 10 Avenue Pierre 1er de Serbie, 75116 Paris. Price: 14 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Wolfgang tillmans – nothing could have prepared us – everything could have prepared us
Wolfgang Tillmans’s Nothing could have prepared us – Everything could have prepared us, Centre Pompidou, 2025. © Centre Pompidou
#FLODown: Wolfgang Tillmans’s Nothing could have prepared us – Everything could have prepared us is the final exhibition at the Centre Pompidou before it closes for a five-year renovation. Spanning the 6,000 m² of the former Public Information Library, the exhibition transforms the space into an incredible exhibition venue, combining photography, video, music, and performance. Rejecting linear chronology, it presents over three decades of Tillmans’ work, from intimate portraits and rave culture to political activism, creating both a beautiful farewell to the museum and a celebration of Tillmans’ career.
Following the closure of this exhibition, the Centre Pompidou will close entirely for a five-year renovation.
Date: 13 June – 22 September 2025. Location: Centre Pompidou, Level 2 (Bibliothèque publique d’information), Place Georges-Pompidou, 75004 Paris. Price: from 17 EUR. Concessions available. Free on select days including 28 August (bank holiday weekend). Book now
Disco – Vivian Suter
View of the exhibition Vivian Suter - Disco (MAAT, Lisboa, 30/10/2024– 17/03/2025). Photography: Daniel Malhão, courtesy EDP Foundation.
#FLODown: Disco at the Palais de Tokyo presents the largest retrospective of Swiss-Argentinian artist Vivian Suter to date, featuring around 500 paintings created over the last decade in her garden in Panajachel, Guatemala. Immersed in the tropical environment, Suter’s gestural, colourful works capture both her artistic gestures and the traces of the surrounding flora, fauna, and weather, reflecting a serene acceptance of impermanence. Untitled and undated, her paintings are displayed in dynamic installations, overlapping, stacking, and even floating in the gallery space to evoke a vibrant pictorial jungle. The exhibition, organised in collaboration with Lisbon’s MAAT, also includes a selection of collages by her mother, Elisabeth Wild, and coincides with a new monographic publication in four languages.
Date: 12 June – 7 September 2025. Location: Palais de Tokyo, 13 Avenue du Président Wilson, 75116 Paris. Price: 13 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
The Construction of the Suez Canal: Photographs by Louis Robert Cuvier
Louis Robert Cuvier. Chantier d'Asie (amont), Kil.73, 1866. Musée d'Orsay. Achat, 1991. © Musée d’Orsay, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Alexis Brandt.
#FLODown: A rare collection of photographs by Louis Robert Cuvier documents the construction of the Suez Canal in 1866–1867, one of the 19th century’s most ambitious engineering projects. Taken from strategic vantage points along the isthmus, the images capture the scale of excavation, the machinery in use, and the desert landscape, showcasing the technical with a sense of grandeur. Beyond their documentary value, Cuvier’s photographs were also a tool for financial, commercial, and diplomatic communication, showcasing Western modernity and industrial achievement in Egypt during a period of intense Franco-British rivalry. The exhibition offers a unique insight into how photography served both as art and as a medium of industrial reporting.
Date: 18 March – 14 September 2025. Location: Musée d’Orsay, 1 Rue de la Légion d’Honneur, 75007 Paris. Price: from 16 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Corps et âmes
Duane Hanson, Corps et âmes, Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection. Image credit MTotoe,
#FLODown: Corps et âmes delves into contemporary representations of the human body. Featuring over 100 works by artists such as Rodin, Kerry James Marshall, Duane Hanson, Georg Baselitz, Ana Mendieta, and Arthur Jafa, the exhibition spans painting, sculpture, photography, and video. It examines themes of identity, intimacy, and the physical form, offering a profound exploration of the evolving understanding of the body in art and its cultural significance.
Date: 5 March – 25 August 2025. Location: Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection, 2 Rue de Viarmes, 75001 Paris. Price: 15 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Alphabeta Sigma (Side A) – Rammellzee
Exhibition view, ''Rammellzee ALPHABETA SIGMA (Side A)'', Palais de Tokyo, 02.21.2024 - 05.11.2025. Photo credit: Aurélien Mole
#FLODown: Alphabeta Sigma (Side A) at the Palais de Tokyo presents a retrospective of Rammellzee, the pioneering American graffiti artist, sculptor, musician, and rapper. The exhibition explores his unique conceptual language, combining street art, hip-hop culture, and avant-garde aesthetics. Featuring sculptures, paintings, and multimedia works, the show reflects his vision of art as both performance and societal commentary.
Date: 12 June – 7 September 2025. Location: Palais de Tokyo, 13 Avenue du Président Wilson, 75116 Paris. Price: 13 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Fashion on the move #3
Fashion on the Move #3 at the Palais Galliera. Images courtesy of Palais Galliera and Gautier Deblonde.
#FLODown: Fashion on the Move #3 at the Palais Galliera presents the final installment of this dynamic series, exploring how fashion adapts to movement from the eighteenth century to the present day. Featuring over 180 garments from the museum’s collections, the exhibition focuses on winter sports, highlighting how designers have combined style, function, and innovation to accommodate the body in motion. Through historical and contemporary pieces, visitors can trace the evolution of clothing designed for performance while appreciating its aesthetic and cultural significance.
Date: 8 February – 12 October 2025. Location: Palais Galliera, musée de la Mode de Paris, 10 Avenue Pierre 1er de Serbie, 75116 Paris. Price: from 12 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Fashion on the Move #3 at the Palais Galliera musée de la Mode de Paris. Image courtesy of Palais Galliera
Dakar-Djibouti [1931–1933]: Counter Investigations
Mission Dakar-Djibouti (1931–1933): Counter-Investigations, Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, until 14 September 2025. Image courtesy of Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
#FLOLondon: Dakar-Djibouti [1931–1933]: Counter Investigations at the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac revisits one of the most emblematic ethnographic missions of the 1930s. The exhibition examines the “Dakar-Djibouti Ethnographic and Linguistic Mission,” which traversed 14 African countries under French ethnologist Marcel Griaule. Featuring objects, photographs, manuscripts, recordings, and field notes, the show investigates both the scientific methods and the colonial context of the expedition. By presenting new research conducted by African and French scholars, the exhibition offers critical insights into how these cultural artifacts were acquired and highlights the often-overlooked stories of the individuals involved, providing a nuanced perspective on colonial history.
Date: 15 April – 14 September 2025. Location: Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, 37 Quai Branly, 75007 Paris. Price: 14 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
Thao Nguyen Phan: The sun falls silently
Vue d'exposition, Thao Nguyen Phan, « Le soleil tombe sans un bruit », Palais de Tokyo (Paris), 12.06-07.09.2025. Courtesy de l'artiste & ZINK Gallery (Allemagne). Crédit photo : Aurélien Mole
#FLODown: The sun falls silently at the Palais de Tokyo marks Vietnamese artist Thao Nguyen Phan’s first monographic exhibition in France. The show presents a selection of recent and newly produced works, including video, painting, and sculpture, exploring historical figures who link France and Vietnam and offering layered reflections on the country’s past and present. Key works include pieces inspired by the missionary Jacques Dournes and watercolours referencing Jesuit priest Alexandre de Rhodes, one of the first Europeans to codify the Vietnamese language. The exhibition also engages in a dialogue with modernist artist Diem Phung Thi, whose multi-faceted practice Phan honours through reinterpretation and homage. Complementing the exhibition, artist Truong Cong Tung contributes two site-specific works, creating a polyphony of voices and perspectives that illuminate Vietnam’s history and cultural memory.
Date: 12 June – 7 September 2025. Location: Palais de Tokyo, 13 Avenue du Président Wilson, 75116 Paris. Price: 13 EUR. Concessions available. Book now
The Met at the Louvre: Near Eastern Antiquities in Dialogue
The Met au Louvre Near Eastern Antiquities in Dialogue at Musée du Louvre.
#FLODown: Near Eastern Antiquities in Dialogue is a unique collaboration between the Louvre and New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, showcasing ten major works from The Met’s Near Eastern collection while its galleries are closed for renovation. The exhibition spans objects from the late 4th millennium BC to the 5th century AD, representing regions such as Central Asia, Syria, Iran, and Mesopotamia. By pairing these works with related pieces from the Louvre, visitors can explore historical, artistic, and cultural connections, some reunited for the first time. This is the final chance to see this extraordinary dialogue between two world-class collections.
Date: 29 February 2024 – 28 September 2025. Location: Aile Richelieu et Aile Sully, Niveau 0, Musée du Louvre, 75001 Paris. Price: from 22 EUR (permanent collections + exhibitions). Book now
