The Centre Pompidou, located in the centre of the Beauburg district, has been a major tourist attraction in Paris since its opening in 1977. It houses a library and a museum of modern art, whose collections include numerous works by renowned Polish artists from the early 20th century to the present day.

History of the Centre Pompidou

The Centre Pompidou was created in 1969 on the initiative of Georges Pompidou, the newly elected President of France. Later that year, an architectural competition was launched for the development of Beauburg Square. The competition was won by a post-modern design with a distinctive skeletal structure by Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers. The construction, which took five years, was finalised in 1977.

Layout of the galleries

Temporary exhibitions are held on the first and sixth floors. The museum's permanent collection occupies the fourth and fifth floors: avant-garde realisations from 1905-1960 can be found on the upper floor, while the lower floor is dedicated to contemporary art. The works on display change throughout the year, but in the room associated with suprematism, one can invariably admire works by, among others, Kazimierz Malewicz and Katarzyna Kobro, who are associated with Poland. Libraries are located on the first, second and third floors. The lower floors host events accompanying the exhibitions - theatre and music performances, film screenings and activities for children.

History of exhibitions devoted to Poles

To date, there have been two temporary exhibitions dedicated to Polish artists, 'Presences Polonaises' (Presence of Poles) in 1983 and 'Une avant-garde polonaise: Katarzyna Kobro et Władysław Strzemiński' (Polish avant-garde: Katarzyna Kobro and Władysław Strzemiński) in 2018.

Polonica

The museum's collection includes a large collection of polonics. These include realisations by Polish avant-gardists working in the first half of the 20th century, such as Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz (Witkacy), Władysław Strzemiński, Katarzyna Kobro, Wanda Chełmońska and Karol Hiller. Numerously represented in the collection is a collection of works by Polish artists from the circle of the Ecole de Paris (Paris School). Among them are paintings by Alicja Halicka, Moise Kisling, Louis Marcoussis, Mela Muter and Eugeniusz Zak. Against this background, a monumental canvas by the Polish-Jewish painter Henryk Hayden, who was associated with Cubism in the 1920s, entitled 'Jazz-Band', also known as 'Three Musicians', undoubtedly stands out. The collection also included works by Polish contemporary artists: Magdalena Abakanowicz, Roman Cieślewicz, Władysław Kijno, Alina Szapocznikow, Wilhelm Sasnal, Roman Opałka, Ewa Partum or Joanna Piotrowska. Interestingly, the museum has a large collection of films, including works by Jan Młodożeniec, Stefan and Franciszka Themerson, Agnieszka Polska, Józef Robakowski, and photographs by Maciej Szlaga or Zbigniew Dłubak.