Keith at 01:16, 11 October 2025

2025-10-11T01:16:07Z

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	The Petit Palais (French: [p(ə)ti palɛ]; English: Small Palace) is an art museum in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France.		The Petit Palais (French: [p(ə)ti palɛ]; English: Small Palace) is an art museum in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France.

Keith at 01:08, 11 October 2025

2025-10-11T01:08:27Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:08, 10 October 2025
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	;[[Paris - La Belle Époque#8th Arrondissement\|Paris - La Belle Époque]]		;[[Paris - La Belle Époque#8th Arrondissement\|Paris - La Belle Époque]]

			The Petit Palais (French: [p(ə)ti palɛ]; English: Small Palace) is an art museum in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France.

			Built for the 1900 Exposition Universelle ("universal exhibition"), it now houses the City of Paris Museum of Fine Arts (Musée des beaux-arts de la ville de Paris). The Petit Palais is located across from the Grand Palais on the former Avenue Nicolas II, today Avenue Winston-Churchill. The other façades of the building face the Seine and Avenue des Champs-Élysées.

			The Petit Palais is one of fourteen museums of the City of Paris that have been incorporated since 1 January 2013 in the public corporation Paris Musées. It has been listed since 1975 as a monument historique by the Ministry of Culture.

			==History==

			In 1894 a competition was held for the 1900 Exhibition area. The Palais de l'Industrie from the 1855 World's Fair was considered unfitting and was to be replaced by something new for the 1900 Exhibition. Architects had the option to do what they pleased (alter, destroy, or keep) with the Palais de l'Industrie. In the end, Charles Girault won the competition and built the Petit Palais as one of the buildings that replaced the Palais de l'Industrie.

			The construction of the Petit Palais began on 10 October 1897 and was completed in April 1900. The total cost of the Petit Palais at the time of the construction was 400,000 pounds sterling. In 1902, the Petit Palais officially became the Palais des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris.

			===Inspiration===

			Girault largely draws on the late 17th and early 18th century French style for the Petit Palais.[5] Additionally his work, such as the domed central porch and the triple arcade, has many references to the stables at the Château de Chantilly.

			===Plan of the building===

			Girault's plan for the Petit Palais had minimal alterations from the design to the execution. The plan was original and fit perfectly in its given location.[5] The Petit Palais is a trapezoid shape with its larger side as the main façade facing the Grand Palais.[2] The building's shape makes a semi-circular courtyard at the center.

			===Architecture===
			The Beaux-Arts style Petit Palais was designed by Charles Girault,[3] and is around an octi-circular courtyard and garden, similar to the Grand Palais. Its ionic columns, grand porch, and dome echo those of Les Invalides across the river. The tympanum depicting the city of Paris surrounded by muses is the work of sculptor Jean Antoine Injalbert.

			The Petit Palais was built to be a lasting building that would become a permanent fine arts museum after the exhibition.[8] The materials of the building—stone, steel and concrete as well as the decoration were to demonstrate that the Petit Palais was built to be enduring.

			====Entrance====
			The main façade of the building faces the Grand Palais.[2] The focal point of the façade is the central entrance: "a central archway set in an archivolt topped by a dome and reached by a broad set of steps".[5] Two wings flank the main entrance. These wings, continuing to the end (corner) pavilions, are embellished with free-standing columns that frame the tall windows.[5]

			====Pavilions====
			The exterior of the pavilions are embellished with arched windows from the side around to the rear façades. These grand windows provide side lighting for the outer three galleries of the interior museum.[5]

			====Decoration====
			The exterior of the Petit Palais was embellished with many contemporary sculptures.[5] Several famous sculptors at the time, such as Louis Convers, Charles Desvergnes, Léon Fagel, Desiré Maurice Ferrary, Jean-Baptiste Hugues, Jean Antoine Injalbert and Émile Peynot, worked on the exterior decoration of the building.[5]

			====Interior====

			The trapezoidal shape of the Petit Palace forms an open area at the centre of the building. This enclosed area creates a semicircular, peristyled courtyard. The architecture of the courtyard incorporated many different architectural elements. The elegant courtyard is considered Beaux-Arts style because of the "symmetrical composition" and "rich decoration in high relief". Coupled columns made of pink Vosges granite and gilt-bronze encircle the courtyard and bordering covered gallery. Although the courtyard is in the central part of the Petit Palais, one of the main structures of the Exhibition, its purpose was to provide visitors with a relaxing space apart from the busy Exposition.

			==Museum==

			The museum is split into two levels with two series of rooms running parallel and juxtaposed. The interior of the Petit Palais was designed to create exhibition spaces "suited to every aspect of a collection: the outer galleries for objects, the inner, skylit ones for paintings, the lower galleries for reserves and the entrance rotunda and main gallery for sculptures". The entrance rotunda and main gallery was especially grand. The floors were tiled with mosaics, the walls were lined with marble, whereas the dome and vaults were filled with allegorical paintings.

Keith: Created page with ";Paris - La Belle Époque"

2025-01-12T04:10:44Z

Created page with ";Paris - La Belle Époque"

New page

;[[Paris - La Belle Époque#8th Arrondissement|Paris - La Belle Époque]]

Petit Palais - Revision history

Keith at 01:16, 11 October 2025

Keith at 01:08, 11 October 2025

Keith: Created page with ";Paris - La Belle Époque"