Paris has opened three designated stretches of the Seine River for public swimming, marking a significant shift in the relationship between the French city and its central waterway. The move follows a €1.4 billion ($1.64 billion) program that combined infrastructural upgrades with environmental objectives to reestablish the river as a shared civic space.

This transformation builds on years of advocacy from local swimmers and civic groups who pressed for legal access to the river. For the first time since 1923, Parisians and visitors can enter the water under the watch of lifeguards and alongside daily water-quality monitoring.

swimming at the bras de Grenelle | image © Joséphine Breuder / Ville de Paris

infrastructure and design for a cleaner seine

The reopening of the Seine for public swimming reflects a complex design effort in Paris, extending beyond cosmetic improvements. More than 20,000 homes were connected to upgraded sewer systems to prevent untreated waste from flowing into the river. Engineers constructed large rainwater storage reservoirs able to capture storm runoff equivalent to twenty Olympic swimming pools. These systems help maintain safe conditions for public swimming during heavy rain.

Additional measures include improvements to water treatment facilities and daily testing of water quality, with results communicated to swimmers using a colored flag system. Together, these interventions have created an environment where swimming is managed as an organized public amenity.

a wooden terrace allows bathers to lounge in the sun | image © Joséphine Breuder / Ville de Paris

a new way to experience the river

Each of the three bathing areas — bras de Grenelle, Baignade Bras-Marie, and Baignade Bercy — offers a different view of the city’s landmarks. Near the Eiffel Tower, the bras de Grenelle bathing area site is designed for families with small children, while the Bras-Marie stretch by Notre Dame Cathedral attracts swimmers interested in the historic riverfront. A third location at quai de Bercy, close to the National Library, is part of broader plans to enhance cultural access along the Left Bank.

Showers and changing facilities are available to visitors, supporting the experience of moving between the city and the river. Diving is prohibited due to shallow water, and lifeguards are present throughout swimming hours.

swimmers attended the historic public opening on July 5th, 2025 | image © Joséphine Breuder / Ville de Paris

Paris’s efforts have contributed to similar initiatives across Europe, where cities have worked to reclaim rivers and canals for swimming. The project has also been shaped by concerns about providing spaces for cooling off during increasingly hot summers.

Authorities expect daily usage to reach up to 1,000 swimmers through the end of August. Additional sites along the Seine and Marne rivers are planned, with two locations on the Marne already open.

While health concerns affected some training sessions and events during the Olympic Games preparations last summer, competitions proceeded as scheduled, helping to build public confidence. Tourist authorities predict that swimming in the Seine will become a popular seasonal pastime, likening the city to Copenhagen with its harbor baths.

swimmers at the bras-Marie, facing the Saint-Louis island | image © Jean-Baptiste Gurliat / Ville de Paris

the bras de Grenelle location includes a small pool for children | image © Joséphine Breuder / Ville de Paris

swimmers at the foot of the Sully Bridge | image © Henri Garat / Ville de Paris

the quai de Bercy swimming area | image © Guillaume Bontemps / Ville de Paris

visitors enjoy the space with public seating on deck | image © Joséphine Breuder / Ville de Paris

project info:

name: Seine opens for Public Swimming

opening dates: July 5th — August 31st, 2025

locations: Bras de Grenelle, Baignade Bras-Marie, Baignade Bercy

photography: © Ville de Paris

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French President Emmanuel Macron unveils Nouvelle Renaissance, an ambitious renovation of the Louvre designed to tackle overcrowding and improve the visitor experience. With annual attendance nearing nine million, the Louvre’s Pyramid entrance, designed by I.M. Pei, has become overwhelmed by the success of the museum. With this in mind, the initiative includes reimagining the museum’s historic Perrault Colonnade to create a new, more efficient entrance and relocating Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa to a dedicated, standalone gallery.

Nouvelle Renaissance also addresses the long-term sustainability and accessibility of the Louvre, aiming for a more balanced visitor flow, better conservation, and a focus on education. The transformation will be underpinned by a global architecture competition, a nationwide art-sharing initiative, and a partnership with the Ministry of Education to improve art history education in schools. Macron describes the project as a ‘rebirth,’ uniting the 230-year legacy of the Louvre with today’s demands for accessibility, sustainability, and community engagement.

UPDATE July 1st, 2025: French Culture Minister Rachida Dati announced via X the launch of the international architecture competition for the Louvre’s Nouvelle Renaissance transformation. Framed as the world’s largest architectural call for a museum project, the competition invites proposals to rethink key public areas of the institution, including a new entrance through the historic Perrault Colonnade and a standalone gallery for the Mona Lisa. Backed by President Emmanuel Macron, the initiative follows rising visitor numbers, approaching ten million annually, and seeks to improve circulation, sustainability, and educational outreach. The project will be partially self-financed through a revised pricing policy and expanded patronage campaign, signaling a new cultural and architectural chapter for the Paris landmark.

all images courtesy of the Louvre, unless stated otherwise

transforming Perrault Colonnade and relocating mona lisa

On January 28, 2025, Emmanuel Macron held a press conference in front of the Mona Lisa painting at the Louvre, unveiling the transformative Nouvelle Renaissance project aimed at reshaping the museum‘s visitor experience and addressing overcrowding. 

The renovation plans include a global design competition inviting architects to imagine the 17th-century Perrault Colonnade as the Louvre’s new entrance. The challenge is to integrate current visitor flow solutions, respecting the classical grandeur of Claude Perrault’s original design. Funded by the own revenues of the museum, the competition seeks to alleviate pressure on Pei’s Pyramid while sustaining the Louvre’s role as a cultural beacon. The competition will be launched in the coming months, with a projected deadline to choose a winning design by the end of 2025. The project will be phased over six years, with 2031 as the target for completion.

Alongside the entrance redesign, the Mona Lisa will move to a self-contained gallery with timed entry and its own independent access, mitigating the relentless crowds that have long dominated its display. Museum officials explain that this dual strategy is crucial for conservation and visitor experience, ensuring Leonardo’s masterpiece remains accessible without jeopardizing its safety. The museum will also implement a differentiated ticketing system with higher ticket prices for visitors from outside the European Union to help finance the transformation. This approach is expected to increase visitation to 12 million annually by 2025.

a global design competition inviting architects to reimagines Perrault Colonnade

Subterranean axes and sustainable gardens complete the project

Beyond the headline transformations, Nouvelle Renaissance introduces a subterranean east-west axis beneath the Cour Carrée to streamline navigation, while the Carrousel and Tuileries gardens will be upgraded into climate-resilient green spaces. Additional infrastructure upgrades prioritize accessibility, staff well-being, and energy efficiency, with a nationwide art-sharing initiative dispersing Louvre collections to regional museums. This initiative aims to bring Louvre collections closer to local communities, promoting regional engagement with the museum’s artistic treasures. The French President also pledges to double annual student visits to 900,000, framing the Louvre as a ‘book’ for global audiences. Macron’s plan focuses on teaching art history on a national level, with a new partnership with the Ministry of Education to improve the teaching of art history in middle schools. At the same time, the Louvre plans to train teachers in the museum to help guide students through art history, making the museum a hub for education.

The announcement for the renovation was also shared through Macron’s and the Louvre’s Instagram accounts, where they posted two images to convey the vision of the project. The first image features a sad Mona Lisa with the French text translating to ‘when the state of the Louvre deteriorates.’ The second image shows a happier Mona Lisa with the French text ‘le projet Louvre Nouvelle Renaissance,’ meaning ‘the Louvre New Renaissance project,’ in meme-style font, emphasizing the positive transformation.

Mona Lisa will move to a self-contained gallery with timed entry and independent access

all images courtesy of the Louvre, unless stated otherwise

Crowd looking at the Mona Lisa at the Louvre by Victor Grigas via Wikimedia, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International

Nouvelle Renaissance also addresses the long-term sustainability and accessibility of the Louvre

project info:

name: Louvre Nouvelle Renaissance 
location: the Louvre | @museelouvre, Paris, France

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Acne Studios unveils a new permanent gallery space in Paris, Acne Paper Palais Royal, with ‘2025’, a solo exhibition by photographer Paul Kooiker on view through July 27th, 2025. Located at 124 Galerie de Valois, beneath the historic arcades of the Palais Royal and overlooking its iconic gardens, the space marks a significant chapter for the Swedish fashion house as it extends its presence beyond fashion into the realms of art, exhibitions, and cultural events.

images courtesy of Acne Studios

from magazine to life

The gallery is named after Acne Paper, the biannual magazine of the Stockholm-based house, featuring fashion, art, design, and writing. Much like the magazine, this new space is designed to host a mix of creative content that spans from art shows and photography exhibitions to talks, book signings, and cultural events. It’s intended as a space for dialogue and experimentation, where both well-known and emerging artists can share work and ideas.

The first exhibition at Acne Paper Palais Royal will feature new works by Dutch photographer Paul Kooiker, known for his unusual, stylized images that often explore the human body in surreal or theatrical ways. This choice fits well with Acne Studios’ visual identity and its longtime interest in photography and conceptual image-making. Since its founding in 1996 in Stockholm as a multidisciplinary collective, Acne Studios has treated fashion as just one part of a larger creative practice. This gallery in Paris reinforces that approach, placing the brand in one of the most iconic cultural locations of the city.

2025 by Paul Kooiker is on view through July 27th, 2025

2025 photographic exhibition by Paul Kooiker

Paul Kooiker’s 2025 photographic exhibition, on view through July, 27th, 2025, gathers forty-two portraits of art students from Amsterdam’s Gerrit Rietveld Academie, offering a sharp yet nuanced meditation on the ambivalence of young adulthood. While formally echoing the conventions of school portraiture, Kooiker’s images resist nostalgia and instead document a generation caught between uncertainty and resilience.

Each portrait stands as a rite of passage and a snapshot of emotional ambiguity. The familiar format, head-on, tightly framed, and meticulously lit, serves as a canvas for psychological tension. These are not celebratory tokens of academic progression but rather open-ended reflections on a volatile moment. The students’ expressions, neither entirely hopeful nor wholly anxious, channel the complexity of a world where optimism is tempered by crisis.

forty-two portraits of art students from Amsterdam’s Gerrit Rietveld Academie are on display

a sharp yet nuanced meditation on the ambivalence of young adulthood

each portrait stands as a rite of passage and a snapshot of emotional ambiguity 

Acne Studios opens a new permanent gallery space in Paris

the gallery opens to the public on June 26th, 2025

the first exhibition at Acne Paper Palais Royal will feature new works by Dutch photographer Paul Kooiker

a major step for the Swedish fashion brand

the gallery is named after Acne Paper, the biannual magazine of the brand | via @acnestudios

the students’ expressions channel the complexity of a world where optimism is tempered by crisis

project info:

name: Acne Paper Palais Royal

brand: Acne Studios | @acnestudios

location: 124 Galerie de Valois, Palais Royal, 75001 Paris, France

opening date: June 26th, 2025

inaugural exhibition: 2025
photographer: Paul Kooiker | @paulkooiker
dates: June 26th – July 27th, 2025

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After four years of renovation, the Grand Palais in Paris fully reopens following a major transformation led by Chatillon Architectes (find designboom’s previous coverage here). The project, which began with the unveiling of the restored Nave for the 2024 Olympics, is the most extensive restoration in the building’s 120-year history. Spanning 77,000 square meters, the work improves public access, brings back long-concealed architectural elements, and adapts the historic structure to meet modern cultural and technical needs. During the Centre Pompidou’s own renovation period, its exhibitions will be temporarily housed in the newly restored galleries of the Grand Palais.

images © Charly Broyez for Chatillon Architectes, unless stated otherwise

Chatillon Architectes reveals the true identity of the building

Paris-based Chatillon Architectes focused on restoring the original layout of the building, which had become fragmented over time. They studied over 3,000 archival plans and drawings to guide the work, aiming to respect the original design of the monument while updating it for contemporary use. New exhibition spaces, restaurants, and circulation routes are added, with over 40 elevators and 30 staircases introduced to make the building fully accessible.

‘The Grand Palais is a powerful symbol of France’s cultural legacy – iconic and instantly recognisable, yet so much of its beauty has been hidden for decades,’ says François Chatillon, founder of Chatillon Architectes. ‘We didn’t set out to reinvent it, but through a process of revelation we wanted to uncover its identity. This renovation was about bringing it back to life, staying true to its spirit while opening it up for the future and giving the monument back to the people.’

Built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition, the Grand Palais was originally designed by a team of architects led by Charles Girault. It combined Beaux-Arts architecture with then-revolutionary materials like steel and glass. In later years, parts of the building were damaged, altered, or closed off, reducing access and hiding many of its key features.

The renovation reopens the original central axis, allowing visitors to move freely from Square Jean Perrin to the Seine. This new connection forms what the architects call a ‘place centrale’, an open area created by combining the Rotonde d’Antin, the Salon Seine, and other interior spaces. One major change was the removal of a wall separating the Nave from the Palais de la Découverte, restoring a sightline that hadn’t been visible since 1937.

the Grand Palais in Paris fully reopens to the public | image © Antoine Mercusot for Chatillon Architectes

Centre Pompidou Moves Exhibits to Renovated Galleries

Lighting and technology enhancements throughout the galleries have transformed them into versatile spaces for a wide range of exhibitions. The Centre Pompidou will use these spaces while its own museum is being renovated. Other public areas include a mezzanine-level café, Le Réséda, led by Michelin-starred chef Thierry Marx, and a new brasserie, Le Grand Café, overlooking the Champs-Élysées gardens with interiors by Joseph Dirand.

Interior partitions are replaced with glass to bring in light and expose the building’s original proportions. Every element, from doors over six meters tall to statues, ornaments, and 150 windows, was carefully restored. ‘At Chatillon Architectes, we strive to revitalize historic landmarks, such as the Grand Palais, as both emblematic monuments and vibrant cultural spaces,’ shares Simon Chatillon, partner of Chatillon Architectes. ‘We approach cultural projects with a strong sense of place, developing thoughtful and innovative interventions that bring renewed energy and help define their future.’

The gardens surrounding the building have also been redesigned, visually connecting to the nearby Champs-Élysées. More than 60,000 plants from 250 species were added to support biodiversity, using a rainwater-fed irrigation system built into the renovated roof. A new pedestrian entrance at Square Jean Perrin replaces a former road and improves the site’s integration with the city.

Chatillon Architectes’ project is the most extensive restoration in the building’s 120-year history

the work brings back long-concealed architectural elements

adapting the historic structure to meet modern cultural and technical needs

Chatillon Architectes focused on restoring the original layout of the building

new exhibition spaces, restaurants, and circulation routes are added

40 elevators and 30 staircases introduced to make the building fully accessible

the centre pompidou will use these spaces while its own museum is being renovated

the renovation reopens the original central axis | image © Antoine Mercusot for Chatillon Architectes

lighting and technology enhancements transform the galleries | image © Antoine Mercusot for Chatillon Architectes

interior partitions are replaced with glass to bring in light | image © Antoine Mercusot for Chatillon Architectes

the gardens surrounding the building have also been redesigned

project info:

name: Grand Palais | @le_grand_palais Restoration
architect: Chatillon Architectes | @chatillonarchitectes
location: Paris, France

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Ernesto Neto has filled the Nef Nord of Paris‘s Grand Palais with a vast, handwoven installation of bark, earth, spice, and fiber. Nosso Barco Tambor Terra invites visitors into a soft and sensory architecture, suspended beneath the glass and iron canopy recently restored by Chatillon Architectes (see designboom’s coverage here). The structure is meant to be entered, touched, and heard. Inside, rhythm and movement unfold slowly through texture and breath.

The woven installation is shaped in looping crochet, cords, and braided skins that hang and seem to grow downward. While Neto’s forms appear intuitive and improvised, they hold their own internal order. The installation connects body to earth, rhythm to breath, and matter to movement.

Ernesto Neto fills the Grand Palais with a woven structure | image © GrandPalaisRmn 2025 / Photo Didier Plow

Rhythm as Structure within the grand palais

There are instruments hidden inside artist Ernesto Neto’s work at the Grand Palais. Some are barely visible, folded into the skins of the structure like bones. Others invite touch directly. On designated days, musicians coax out their voices in performances that feel less like concerts than ceremonies. Drums from across continents — Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America — respond to each other and to the visitors’ presence. The sound emerges from within the piece, resonating through it like a pulse through a body.

This immersive environment forms the center of Nosso Barco Tambor Terra, though the boundaries remain open. Around the structure, the Grand Palais hosts ongoing activations: open conversations, workshops, live music, and play. A Brazilian café serves as a gathering point. The surrounding programming extends Neto’s vision outward, into dialogue and shared attention.

visitors can interact with the organic materials | image © GrandPalaisRmn 2025 / Photo Didier Plow

a woven membrane for gathering

Ernesto Neto speaks in a language of materials that resist polish. Bark and raw fiber, hand-woven mesh, suspended spice bundles — everything points to manual labor, to knowledge passed down through the body. The space becomes a collective membrane, a place where traditions drift together, not diluted but echoed. His approach to scale is as much emotional as physical. 

The setting amplifies this intention. After several years of restoration led by Chatillon Architectes, the Grand Palais reopens with renewed clarity just in time for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The freshly restructured envelope now plays host to something profoundly unmechanical, unhurried. The juxtaposition feels deliberate. Neto’s project is one of slowness and attention, rooted in the body and the ground beneath it.

Presented in collaboration with Lisbon’s MAAT and as part of the France–Brazil Season 2025, this exhibition expands the idea of architecture beyond construction. Neto frames it as something we move through with care, something that listens back. It makes room for rest and for ceremony and leaves traces in the senses. And in the center of Paris, it becomes a vessel for learning and for dreaming.

drums inside the work are played during live shows | image © GrandPalaisRmn 2025 / Photo Didier Plow

the piece hosts workshops, concerts, and communal events | image © designboom

materials reflect ancestral craft and manual labor | image © GrandPalaisRmn 2025 / Photo Didier Plow

the restored Grand Palais offers a luminous setting | image © designboom

the project is part of the France–Brazil Season 2025 | image © designboom

the installation is co-produced by MAAT in Lisbon | image © designboom

project info:

name: Nosso Barco Tambor Terra

architect: Ernesto Neto | @ernestonetoart

location: Grand Palais, Paris, France

event: France–Brazil Season 2025

collaboration: MAAT

photography: © designboom, © GrandPalaisRmn 2025 / Photo Didier Plow

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On arrival at the Grand Palais in Paris, the contrast is immediate. Beneath the glass canopy of the Salon d’Honneur, a sweeping, pink, textile structure cuts across the historic setting with the ease of something entirely new. This is Fun Palace — an architectural and curatorial experiment designed by Studio Ossidiana and staged by the Centre Pompidou during its five-year closure. Named after Cedric Price’s legendary unbuilt project, the interactive installation rethinks how we gather, how we share space, and how collective life can be shaped by design.

Jean-Max Colard, Head of Programming at the Centre Pompidou, frames the event in both spatial and political terms: ‘We have this idea to explore a new form of assembly. It’s the pleasure of gathering, but also how we speak, how we come together in a space.’ The ten-day program at the Grand Palais, he explains, becomes a living laboratory, where each day is imagined as a room in an evolving architecture of thought, action, and intimacy.

The decision to invoke Cedric Price was not incidental. The original Fun Palace, imagined in the 1960s, proposed an adaptable cultural complex shaped by users, not hierarchies. Though never built, its ideas remain foundational, particularly for institutions like the Centre Pompidou. ‘Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers studied Cedric Price,’ says Colard. ‘This is a way of relaunching that utopian project.’

Studio Ossidiana transforms the Grand Palais into a soft, inhabitable structure | image © Centre Pompidou

soft palace: a textile landscape for collective life

Studio Ossidiana’s contribution for the Centre Pompidou installation, titled The Soft Palace, acts as both landscape and stage. It folds and spills across the floor of the Grand Palais like a garment, offering shelter, invitation, and unpredictability. Made of layered pink felt, the installation encourages barefoot wandering, reclining, and spontaneous use. Its informality is deliberate.

‘It became a sort of encampment,’ say Alessandra Covini and Giovanni Bellotti of Rotterdam-based, Italian practice Studio Ossidiana. ‘The temporary home of the Centre Pompidou while it’s being renovated. Because of time and labor constraints, all the elements are made of rolls. These can extend to accommodate changing programs.’ Visitors drift between talks and performances, often lingering in the folds of the structure itself, part of its spatial choreography.

The soft materiality is central. ‘We imagined a place where you could play, listen, discuss, or find a moment of privacy a few steps from a crowd,’ the studio adds. ‘We hope every visitor becomes both actor and spectator in the choreography of its daily life.’

The Soft Palace invites barefoot exploration where visitors can recline and gather | image © Centre Pompidou

virtually explore the grand palais with ‘nightcrawlers’ game

Elsewhere in the Grand Palais, another form of architecture unfolds — this time virtual. Nightcrawlers, a video game by artist Alice Bucknell, maps the building through the sensory logics of bats and flowers. ‘It’s a pollination simulator,’ Bucknell explains. ‘You’re either the bat or the flower, navigating underground root networks or flying through the halls. You collect charms using echolocation or electric pulses. Each one makes a sound. You and your partner play them back to each other like a musical score.’

The game is multiplayer and cooperative by design. ‘You can’t play alone,’ Bucknell says. ‘It’s about becoming attuned to someone else, without words. Pollination becomes a kind of duet.’ As players succeed in these musical exchanges, the architecture changes. French formal gardens slowly give way to wild, overgrown ecologies. ‘The more you cooperate, the more the palace transforms.‘

Formafantasma and Fernando Laposse contribute works that reframe relationships between material and society | image © Centre Pompidou

Amid these interactive works is a more meditative zone: a small, focused presentation of design pieces from the Centre Pompidou’s collection, curated by Olivier Zeitoun. These recent acquisitions underscore design’s capacity to assemble both materials and people. ‘We called it The Assembly of Objects,’ Zeitoun notes. ‘Each project here is the result of a collective process, either in how it was made or what it represents.’

Among them is FormaFantasma’s Cambio, which interrogates the timber industry through material storytelling, Fernando Laposse’s Corn Kumiko Cabinet, and Mash.T Deign Studio‘s Hlabisa Bench, a tribute to Zulu craftsmanship. Also on view are works by ibiyanε, whose poetic forms draw on diasporic memory and shared experience. ‘These objects are sensitive to ecology, memory, and postcolonial narratives,’ says Zeitoun. ‘Design becomes a tool for connection, for transmission.’

While the project is inspired by Cedric Price’s Fun Palace, this version is more tactile, more embodied. You sit in it. You nap in it. You echolocate in it. You play. Its strength lies in what it offers without prescription, It is an open architecture shaped by those who use it. ‘Cities aren’t born in beautiful solitude,’ says Alessandra Covini. ‘They emerge from conflict, negotiation, the mess of being together.’

Olivier Zeitoun curates a design assembly that functions as a tool of connection and knowledge transmission | image © designboom

Jean-Max Colard sees Fun Palace as an experiment in how we share space | image © designboom

with the two-player game, players explore a virtual Grand Palais | image © Centre Pompidou

Fun Palace builds on Cedric Price’s legendary unrealized vision | image © designboom

Studio Ossidiana | image © designboom

project info:

exhibition title: Fun Palace

location: Grand Palais | @le_grand_palais

on view: June 6th — 15th, 2025

host: Centre Pompidou | @centrepompidou

installation design: Studio Ossidiana | @studio_ossidiana

video game designer: Alice Bucknell | @alicebucknell

curators: Jean-Max Colard, Joséphine Huppert, Alice Pialoux, assisted by Daphné Carreras,
curators of The Assembly of Objects: Olivier Zeitoun, in collaboration with Iris Carton Eldin
head of design and industrial prospective: Marie-Ange Brayer
collection attachée, design department: Mathilde Vallée
production manager: Barbara Kugler
sceneographer: Celine Coffin
space manager: Charlotte Cochelin
artworks manager: Nina Genonceau
audiovisual management: Alexandre Lebugle,
stage management: François Pegalajar, Robin Vieville, Fabrice Pleynet
producer of The Soft Palace: Arguzia
interpreters: Marguerite Capelle, Caroline Ferrard, Adèle Hattemer, Yves Tixier
partnership coordination: Anaïs Izard, Camille Gorret

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ABERTO arrives at Maison La Roche in Paris, France for its fourth edition, once again casting contemporary Brazilian art in architectural conversation with Le Corbusier’s modernist masterpiece. For Filipé Assis, the curator behind the concept, the house’s polychromatic walls and open plan were meaningful catalysts. ‘La Roche was projected already to host the client’s art collection,’ he tells designboom in an interview, noting how the team made full use of Le Corbusier’s original hanging system to respect the building’s heritage status. In this unique exhibition setting, forty newly commissioned works by twenty-five Brazilian artists unfold in dialogue with both structure and history. ABERTO4 is on view from May 14th — June 8th, 2025.

At the heart of the exhibition is the lasting imprint of Le Corbusier on Brazilian architecture and design. La Roche becomes a lens through which these connections sharpen, revealing how architectural form seeps into visual culture. ‘The Ministry of Health and Education in Rio was one of the very first skyscrapers in Latin America,’ Assis points out, marking a moment when Le Corbusier’s partnership with Lucio Costa and Oscar Niemeyer initiated a seismic shift in Brazil’s architectural trajectory. These reverberations shaped Brasília, as well as movements like Neo-concrete art and Tropicália music, demonstrating how architecture served as a launchpad for creative expression across many disciplines.

Liuba Wolf (sculptures) | image © Thomas Lannes

between france and brazil

Throughout ABERTO4, the architecture of Maison La Roche frames a chromatic and spatial logic that many of the artists embraced from the outset. ‘Maison La Roche has a curious palette of colors,’ Assis notes, ‘easier to create dialogs with than his later, bolder palettes.’ Works by Luísa Matsushita and Marina Perez Simão respond directly to this chromatic character, deepening the show’s spatial sensibility. Claudia Moreira Salles, one of the exhibition’s curators, emphasizes how ‘color accentuates the perception of space‘ — a principle that guided the positioning and selection of each work within the home’s rooms.

The exhibition also surfaces deeper currents of cultural exchange. Historic documents and models recount Le Corbusier’s urban studies for Rio and São Paulo, while pieces like Oscar Niemeyer’s rarely reproduced Marquesa bench — granted special release by his foundation for the occasion — offer a material embodiment of the friendship between France and Brazil. ‘France welcomed Niemeyer during the Brazilian dictatorship,‘ Assis reflects. ‘This piece is part of that legacy.‘ Overall, ABERTO4 proposes a Brazil drawn together by dialogues between geometry and gesture, art and ideology, and architecture and nationhood.

from left to right: Liuba Wolf (sculpture), Sérgio Camargo (sculpture), Lygia Pape (sculpture), Hélio Oiticica (painting), Lygia Clark (sculpture) | image © Thomas Lannes

in conversation with filipé assis

designboom (DB): As the creator of the ABERTO exhibition concept, what drew you to explore the link between Le Corbusier and modernist architecture in Brazil?

Filipé Assis (FA): The main point that marked modernism in Brazil was the the Ministry of Health and Education in Rio de Janeiro that was projected by Le Corbusier in partnership with Oscar Niemeyer, Lucio Costa, and other modernist architects. This was one of the very first skyscrapers of Latin America. Since then, Niemeyer and Costa, the two main architects behind Brasilia, were already saying that Le Corbusier’s influence completely changed their perspective on architecture. From that point on, both architects started to explore their own paths.

When the idea of Brasilia came in the 1950s, it was the main driver for not only architecture, but for creativity in general in Brazil. Because at that time, the Brazilian capital was in Rio. Everything happened during this new concept of Brasilia. in terms of music we had Tropicália. In terms of the arts we had Neoconcretism. So with this exhibition we wanted to show how this interaction of Le Corbusier and Brazilian architecture was so important for the arts as well.

from left to right: Sérgio Camargo (sculpture), Mira Schendel (painting), Aluísio Carvão (painting), Lygia Pape (sculpture), Hélio Oiticica (painting), Lygia Clark (sculpture) | image © Thomas Lannes

DB: How did the architectural setting of La Roche House inform the way you approached the curation and installation of the artworks in ABERTO4?

FA: La Roche was commissioned by Swiss banker and art collector, who was still single when he died. The whole house was was projected already to host his art collection. Le Corbusier designed a hanging system for displaying artwork, which we we are using for the show — the house is a UNESCO landmarked building, so we can’t make any holes.

The show will be divided between historical and contemporary sections. Within the chambre du gardien, a room originally designed for the home’s caretakers, we are displaying old documents and letters illustrating this relationship between Le Corbusier and Brazil. We are also producing and displaying physical models of the building, as well as of some urbanistic studies that Le Corbusier did for both Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Within the former gallery that Monsieur La Roche used to hang his collection, we are going to display post war Brazilian art. The rest of the show is contemporary.

Guardian’s Room: Le Corbusier (enameled hand), Roberto Burle Marx (Gouache) and models of the Capanema Palace — Ministry of Education and Health | image © Thomas Lannes

DB: How did you and the curators select contemporary Brazilian artists to respond to this legacy in new ways?

FA: We chose Brazilian artists that already have a relationship with architectural forms — either geometric or more organic. We gave these artists a briefing about the house and about Le Corbusier as an artist. They produced artworks that are related to this story. For instance, Beatriz Milhazes is presenting a collage that’s in dialog with a collage made by Le Corbusier. She was inspired by him as an artist.

Luiz Zerbini painted large canvas of a Brazilian modernist building inspired by Le Corbusier’s Unité d’Habitation in Marseille. You can see that the Brazilian architect drew inspiration from Le Corbusier, and Zerbini drew inspiration from that architect. It’s nice to show these dialogs. We also have Luísa Matsushita, for instance, who explores Le Corbusier’s palette of colors. So every artist chose one point from his work to explore.

Luiz Zerbini | image © Thomas Lannes

DB: Many of the new commissions explore the intersection of geometry and organic forms — how does this visual language connect Brazil’s modernist past to its artistic present?

FA: There is an opposition between the geometric constructivist art, and the other that is linked to the organic, gestural abstraction. The first is linked more to asocializing aspect, while the second is more individualist. These two styles are often linked together because they were based in the same historical moment. But I don’t think this makes any sense, because there’s a fusion between art and ideology. So let’s say that a strong characteristic of Brazilian culture is the fusion of different concepts. Brazil, in the end, is a country that is linked by more bridges than walls.

Red Marquesa bench, Oscar Niemeyer | image © Thomas Lannes

DB: Several works reference political histories, especially Niemeyer’s ties to the French Communist Party. How does the show navigate the relationship between modernist ideals and ideological legacies?

FA: Ideological modernism has run its course in architecture. But if utopias have not come to fruition, the legacy of Brazilian modernism has given us a grammar forms that continues to produce and enable innovative works. Even the Postmodern period references the Modern movement for its forms, and no longer for its ideology.

from left to right: Cícero Dias (painting), Anna Maria Maiolino (sculpture), Luisa Matsushita (painting), Mira Schendel (painting on an easel), and Sidival Fila (textile) | image © Thomas Lannes

DB: Can you talk about the significance of including iconic furniture pieces alongside contemporary artworks in the show?

FA: One especially meaningful work on view is the Marquesa bench designed by Oscar Niemeyer. We chose this piece for several reasons. First of all, because it was designed by Niemeyer who had a connection to Le Corbusier, as I explained. Also because Niemeyer lived in France, a country which welcomed him as a friend during the Brazilian dictatorship back in the 1960s. He did many, many projects there. So as part of the cultural exchange between France and Brazil that celebrates the friendship, we hoped to show a real example of this this friendship.

It’s also worth mentioning that this Marquesa bench is super important because these benches were orignally made for a museum in São Paulo called the Memorial da America Latina. And he never allowed any reproduction of them. And the Oscar Niemeyer Foundation very sensitively allowed for the production of one for us in celebration of ABERTO happening in France.

Maria Klabin (painting) | image © Thomas Lannes

DB: The dialogue between color and space is central to both Le Corbusier’s architecture and many of the works in this exhibition. How did the team approach the chromatic staging of the show?

FA: Maison La Roche has a curious palette of colors. They are easier to create dialogs with than the his later palettes, which include much stronger colors. So when we were choosing the artworks, most of them, as I mentioned, were commissioned by contemporary artists. So the artists themselves took these colors into consideration, as they defined the spaces that they were given to produce these works.

DB: What do you hope visitors will take away from the show?

FA: I would hope that visitors could learn more about this legacy that Le Corbusier left to Brazil, and how the seed of modernism ended up growing into different forms of creativity within the visual arts, design, and architecture. I hope that with this show, visitors can also learn more about our country and our artists.

painting by Anna Maria Maiolino, sculpture by Tunga | image © Thomas Lannes

project info:

name: ABERTO4 | @aberto.art

location: Maison La Roche, 10 Sq. du Dr Blanche, Paris, France

on view: May 14th — June 8th, 2025

photography: © Thomas Lannes | @lannes.thomas

exhibition concept creator: Filipé Assis

curators: Lauro Cavalcanti, Kiki Mazzucchelli, and Claudia Moreira

collaborators: Le Corbusier Foundation, Lucio Costa Estate, Burle Marx Institute, Oscar Niemeyer Foundation
collaborating galleries: Fortes d’Aloia & Gabriel, Mendes Wood DM, Luisa Strina, Nara Roesler, Mennour

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CAMPERLAB, the experimental offshoot of Camper, is setting down roots in Paris with its first dedicated flagship store at 15 rue Debelleyme in Le Marais. The space reflects the brand’s raw, industrial aesthetic through a striking interior concept by Crosby Studios founder Harry Nuriev, using crushed concrete as a design element for product display. A radical departure from conventional retail environments, the Paris store embraces the designer’s signature Transformism philosophy. This movement, which Nuriev invented, captures the essence of how everyday materials and objects can be reimagined and repurposed in unexpected ways to reshape perceptions of the world around us.

all images by Benoit Florencon

crushed concrete as design element for product display

Instead of treating crushed concrete as just a leftover from demolition, the Paris-based team at Crosby Studios turns it into a design element. Shoes are embedded within its rough, uneven texture, contrasting with the clean lines of the footwear and ready-to-wear collections. This approach introduces a fresh way of product display, aligning with CAMPERLAB’s experimental spirit. The debut of sunglasses for Spring/Summer 2025 further pushes this vision, reinforcing the brand’s boundary-pushing aesthetic.

But CAMPERLAB’s transformation doesn’t stop in physical spaces. The Mallorca-based footwear brand is also making a digital leap with the launch of its website. Differing from Camper’s main platform, this fresh website is built with a Brutalist design approach—think bold, stripped-down aesthetics paired with functionality. Developed with Giga Design Studio, it reflects the brand’s independent identity, translating its avant-garde vision into a digital space that’s minimal and innovative.

CAMPERLAB is setting down roots in Paris

the space reflects the brand’s raw, industrial aesthetic

a striking interior concept by Crosby Studios founder Harry Nuriev

the Paris store embraces the designer’s signature Transformism philosophy

Crosby Studios turns concrete into a design element

Shoes are embedded within the rough, uneven texture

the debut of sunglasses for Spring/Summer 2025 aligns with CAMPERLAB’s experimental spirit

the store at 15 rue Debelleyme in Le Marais is the first dedicated CAMPERLAB flagship

a fresh way of product display

project info:

name: CAMPERLAB flagship in Le Marais

architect: Crosby Studios | @crosbystudios

brand: CAMPERLAB | @camperlab

location: 15 rue Debelleyme, Le Marais, Paris, France

lead designer: Harry Nuriev

website developper: Giga Design Studio | @gigadesignstudio

photographer: Benoit Florencon | @benoitflorencon

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Art Paris, the leading spring event for modern and contemporary art is making a grand return! From 3-6 april, 2025, the 27th edition is reclaiming Paris‘ iconic Grand Palais, originally built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition, is brought to its former glory after a four-year renovation. The architectural masterpiece of the Belle Époque once again welcomes 170 leading French and international galleries, expanding the art fair’s reach and ambition. With a focus on artistic discovery and innovation, Art Paris 2025 promises an exceptional lineup of curated exhibitions, thematic tours, and prestigious awards that celebrate both established and emerging talent within the global art scene.

Art Paris is an inclusive art fair that is open to all mediums, launching in 2025 the French Design Art Edition a sector focusing on design and the contemporary decorative arts. Get your tickets here! 

for its 27th edition, Art Paris 2025 makes a triumphant return to the Grand Palais from April 3-6 | all images courtesy of Art Paris

modern and contemporary art fill up the iconic Grand Palais

Art Paris has long been recognized as a key event that bridges regional and international artistic expressions. With 60% of exhibitors from France and 40% from abroad, the fair maintains its distinct identity as both a hub for the French gallery ecosystem and a window into the global art landscape. The 2025 edition introduces significant new initiatives, including the return of ‘Immortal,’ a thematic exhibition dedicated to figurative painting in France, curated by art historian Amélie Adamo and MO.CO. director Numa Hambursin. Simultaneously, ‘Out of Bounds,’ led by independent curator Simon Lamunière, explores the hybridization of contemporary artistic practices, emphasizing issues of identity, culture, and geography.

after a four-year renovation, this architectural masterpiece of the Belle Époque once again welcomes 170 leading French and international galleries

Figurative painting & contemporary hybridization

‘Immortal: A Focus on Figurative Painting in France’ expands on its 2023 edition by showcasing 30 artists across multiple generations, linking historical influences with contemporary expressions. The selection highlights the continued evolution of figurative painting in a digital and abstract-dominated era, reaffirming its relevance and dynamism in the European art scene. Meanwhile, ‘Out of Bounds’ presents a diverse international lineup of artists, addressing themes of displacement, belonging, and the merging of artistic disciplines through a carefully curated thematic journey.

Art Paris 2025 also sees an expansion of the ‘Promises’ sector, occupying the Grand Palais’ balconies and featuring 25 young galleries established less than a decade ago. This initiative encourages emerging talent while maintaining affordability for exhibitors. Additionally, Art Paris continues its commitment to solo presentations, offering 26 monographic exhibitions that allow in-depth exploration of individual artists’ work.

Art Paris 2025 promises an exceptional lineup of curated exhibitions, thematic tours, and prestigious awards that celebrate both established and emerging talent within the global art scene | © Marguo

Two prestigious prizes further elevate the fair’s dedication to artistic excellence. The BNP Paribas Banque Privée Prize, with a €40,000 award, honors an artist from the ‘Immortal’ selection, while the newly launched ‘Her Art Prize,’ created in partnership with Marie Claire and Boucheron, awards €30,000 to a woman artist whose work challenges artistic boundaries. These initiatives reinforce Art Paris’ role in supporting both contemporary and historically underrepresented voices.

Beyond the fair itself, Art Paris 2025 integrates a city-wide VIP program, featuring exclusive access to 31 cultural events and exhibitions at major Parisian institutions. With a growing commitment to sustainability, Art Paris continues its pioneering approach by applying life cycle analysis (LCA) to reduce its environmental impact. As Paris undergoes a cultural renaissance, this year’s edition of Art Paris solidifies its reputation as a leading force in contemporary art, offering visitors an unparalleled experience at the intersection of heritage and artistic innovation.

the fair has long been recognized as a key event that bridges regional and international artistic expressions | © Claude Bernard

the 2025 edition introduces significant new initiatives | © Lara Sedbon

Art Paris continues its commitment to solo presentations, offering 26 monographic exhibitions | © Claude Bernard

the event features 60% of exhibitors from France and 40% from abroad | © Lahumière

the fair maintains its distinct identity as both a hub for the French gallery ecosystem and a window into the global art landscape | © Esther Schipper

Art Paris is reclaiming Paris‘ iconic Grand Palais, originally built for the 1900 Universal Exhibition

© Richard Saltoun

© Anne-Laure Buffard

© Capazza

beyond the fair itself, Art Paris 2025 integrates a city-wide VIP program, featuring exclusive access to 31 cultural events

as Paris undergoes a cultural renaissance, the 27th edition of Art Paris solidifies its reputation as a leading force in contemporary art

project info:

name: Art Paris 2025 | @artparisartfair

location: Grand Palais, Paris, France

dates: April 3-6, 2025

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Dominique Perrault Architecture unveils the Villejuif-Gustave Roussy metro station, an essential part of the Grand Paris Express. The large-scale infrastructure project is designed to improve connectivity across the metropolitan region, linking the suburbs together without crossing Paris. With 200 kilometers of automated metro lines and 68 new stations, the project is currently the largest infrastructure project in Europe, aiming to enhance mobility, urban development, and social integration.

Designed by Dominique Perrault Architecture, the Villejuif-Gustave Roussy station is a deeply embedded transport hub, located 50 meters below ground. Its design prioritizes spatial fluidity, creating a transition between the city and its subterranean infrastructure. The station is structured around a vast cylindrical central shaft, which allows natural light to penetrate the underground levels, enhancing visibility and openness. The absence of traditional walls and facades fosters continuity between urban and transit spaces. The station’s materials—concrete, stainless steel, and glass—contribute to durability and energy efficiency, ensuring minimal environmental impact while maintaining a contemporary aesthetic.

image by Arthur Jan, courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

reflective and perforated surfaces optimize light distribution

The station plays a significant role in the broader urban transformation of the Grand Paris area. Located in the ZAC Campus Grand Parc, it facilitates connections between the Institut Gustave Roussy hospital, surrounding residential developments, and public spaces. Integrated commercial spaces and services on the first two levels reinforce its function as a social and economic hub, extending its influence beyond transportation. By linking Line 15 South with the extended Line 14, the station supports intermodal connectivity, enabling smoother transitions between metro, RER, tramway, and bus networks. Dominique Perrault Architecture studio‘s architectural approach aims to create a user-friendly and inclusive space that enhances accessibility and urban interaction.

Energy efficiency and sustainability are central to the station’s design. The use of natural underground resources regulates internal temperatures, reducing the need for artificial heating and cooling. A strategic ventilation system eliminates the need for smoke extraction, further improving energy efficiency. Material selection supports the station’s long-term resilience, with robust, low-maintenance components ensuring durability. The integration of reflective and perforated surfaces optimizes light distribution, enhancing user comfort while reducing reliance on artificial lighting.

image by Michel Denancé, courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

Dominique Perrault incorporates public art into the station

The station also serves as a cultural landmark, incorporating public art to enrich the commuter experience. As part of the Grand Paris Express’ broader artistic initiative, Chilean artist Iván Navarro’s installation, Cadran Solaire, introduces a starry sky of neon lights and mirrors, creating an immersive visual environment.

As one of the 68 stations in the Grand Paris Express network, Villejuif-Gustave Roussy exemplifies the integration of architecture, infrastructure, and urban planning. Through its functional design, territorial impact, and sustainable approach, it sets a precedent for future transit-oriented developments, reinforcing the transformation of Greater Paris into a more connected and dynamic metropolis.

image by Michel Denancé, courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

image by Michel Denancé, courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

image by Michel Denancé, courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

image courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

image courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

image by Arthur Jan, courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

image by Michel Denancé, courtesy of Dominique Perrault Architecte

project info:

name: Villejuif-Gustave Roussy metro station – Grand Paris Express

architect: Dominique Perrault Architecture | @dominiqueperrault

location: Paris, France

client: Société des grands projets (SGP)

engineering project management: SETEC

AMO: Artemis (groupement Artelia + Arcadis + BG)

project management: Dominique Perrault Architect

engineering: SETEC TPI (civil engineering), SETEC bâtiment (construction engineering), Ingérop (coordination, interfaces), TESS (special structure, façades, roofing ETFE), AXIO (economist), Jean-Paul Lamoureux (acoustics and photometrics), Denis Thélot (fire safety and accessibility)

entreprises: Groupement CAP (Vinci construction, Spie Batignolles), Systra, Artelia, Bouygues bâtiment IDF, AXIMA, INEO

site surface area: 7,500 sqm

project surface area: 15,364 sqm

built volume: 203,771 cbm

well diameter: 70 m

depth of moulded walls: 42 m

depth of line 15 South platforms: 49 m

depth of line 14 South platforms: 37 m

number of escalators: 32

studies begin: 2013

works begin: April 2017

completion: December 2024

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