The Paris School of Fine Arts is located in the 6th arrondissement between Rue Bonaparte and Quai Malaquais, and despite its historical importance, it is not considered a major tourist attraction.
Perhaps the reason for this is that it is an active school and many tourists think, and quite rightly so, that entry is only allowed to art students or lecturers. However, this is a mistake because it is definitely possible to visit the place, although, as you will see later in the article, it is not always easy. However, those who manage to do so will enjoy a beautiful complex that contains an ancient chapel, several spectacular buildings and quite a few works of art.
A few years ago, thanks to a temporary exhibition held in the main building of the School of Fine Arts, I managed to get inside. I was amazed by the artistic and architectural richness of the place and fell in love with it immediately. I walked mesmerized among the sculptures and works of art, entered some of the rooms and courtyards, and really didn't want to leave. Since then, the place has become one of my favorites in Paris, and I hope that by the end of this article you will fall in love with it too.
In order to convince you to include the art school inPlan your next trip to Paris, allow me to invite you on a short journey through its fascinating history. During this journey, we will discover a beautiful and unknown palace that once stood there, the story of the most important artists who worked there, and of course, we will not forget to talk a little about the life of the bohemian community that was born in the nearby streets.
Put on your beret, it's time, take the paintbrush and palette out of the closet and let's get started!
History of the Paris School of Fine Arts
Queen Margaux's Palace
Marguerite de Valois (1553-1615), better known to us as “Queen Margot”, was forced to marry Henry of Navarre (future King France Henry IV), in order to try and make peace between Catholics and Protestants in France (the plan was not very successful, as can be seen from the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre that occurred shortly after their wedding).
If you are not familiar with the fascinating life story of Marguerite de Valois, I highly recommend watching the film “Queen Margot” starring Isabelle Adjeny. Here is the “coming soon” video of this beautiful film, which was re-released in 2014 in a special 4K edition.
Over the next few years, Henry and Marguerite lived separately, each having many affairs with different lovers. However, in 1589, the situation changed. Henry of Navarre became King Henry IV (reigned 4–1589) and as king he had to produce an heir to prevent a political vacuum after his death. Since his legal wife was unable to bear children, the new king had no choice but to divorce her.
Queen Margot took advantage of the fact that the Catholic religion, which the king was forced to accept (“Paris is worth a mass”), did not allow for easy divorce, and therefore conducted tough negotiations with the king. After lengthy discussions, Margot agreed to divorce Henry IV and in return received a very large sum of money and the right to bear the title of queen, even after the king remarried. This created a unique situation in French history in which, between the years 4-1600, France had two queens.
With a large sum of money in hand and the title of queen, Margo decided to build a palace that would be worthy of her status and would allow her to spend the rest of her life in comfort. For this purpose, she chose a large tract of land on the left bank, which belonged toUniversity of Paris and is located in front of Louvre Palace.
If we wanted to map the area of the palace that was to be built, its northern border was the Seine River, and its eastern border was the Nell Tower (where are The French Institute Building and the Font des Arts In our days), its western boundary was the Rue Saints-Pères while its southern boundary was, more or less, a monastery. Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
While the palace was being built, the queen moved between several residences, the most famous of which was the Hôtel de Sens. During her stay there, the queen suffered a great deal of trouble when one of her previous lovers murdered her current lover. If you would like to read more about this tragic story, I highly recommend the article Queen Margo and her hapless lovers.
But eventually the construction work was completed and the queen was able to move into her permanent home. And what a home it was!
Unfortunately, there are no surviving drawings of this palace, except for the map you see above. However, according to the testimonies of those who lived in the 17th century, it was one of the most beautiful palaces in Paris. Fortunately, an impressive chapel remains from this palace (which can be visited, as we will see later) and it was part of a monastery that the queen established on the grounds of her palace.
The monastery was given to the order of the “Barefoot Augustins” (Augustins Déchaussés) who were asked to sing hymns in honor of our father Jacob every day, which the queen herself composed. However, musical talent was apparently not one of the qualities required to be accepted into this order, and after five years of incessant forgeries, the Barefoot Augustins were expelled and replaced by the “Little Augustins” (Les petites Augustins). These managed to sing the queen’s hymns without forgery and were allowed to remain there until French RevolutionThis is why one of the streets in the area is named after them.
However, the highlight of the royal complex was undoubtedly the magnificent gardens that were opened to the public, which made the Queen of Margaux very popular. Her popularity was appreciated by Marie de Medici, the new wife of King Henry IV, who in response built the Cour de la Reine on the right bank opposite (you can read about this garden inArticle about the Tuileries Gardens).
By the way, Marie de Medici was not satisfied with creating royal gardens open to the public, but also wanted a new and even more magnificent palace than Queen Margaux's. The result is, of course, the Luxembourg Palace and its beautiful gardens, which you can read about in the article. Luxembourg Gardens – A walking tour of Paris’ most beloved garden.
The Academy of Fine Arts is looking for a home
After the death of Queen Margaux, her palace passed to King Louis XIII (reigned 13-1610). However, along with the palace, the king inherited her enormous debts and was forced to sell the royal complex to cover them. As a result, the palace was demolished and the rue de Seine was built in its place, while other houses and streets were built in the place of the gardens. Fortunately, not everything was destroyed and part of the complex remained as it was until the 1643th century, when it became the home of the Academy of Fine Arts.
Before we continue our story, let me say a few words about that academy and tell you how it was created.
The Academy of Painting and Sculpture, the predecessor of the current Academy of Fine Arts, was created in 1648 by the painter Charles Le Brun (1619-1680), nicknamed by Louis XIV “The greatest painter of all time. Its aim was to deal with both the theory and practice of these arts and to train a new generation of talented artists.
One way to do this was by awarding prizes to particularly talented students, the most important of which was the Prix du Rome. This prize allowed students to study for a year in Rome, in order to be exposed to the great artists of the Renaissance and Baroque, and throughout history it has been won by quite a few famous painters and architects, such as the famous Rococo painter François Boucher (1703-1770), his student Jacques Louis David, the architect Charles Garnier (1825-1898), known to us for Paris Opera Building And many others.
Ultimately, it was decided to unite the academies of sculpture, painting, and architecture into one academy, and thus the “Academy of Fine Arts” (Académie des Beaux-Arts) was created, where all of the above subjects were taught. Such a distinguished school needed an equally distinguished residence, and so, after a few years in the Collège de France building, it was decided to take the convent founded by the Queen of Margaux and turn it into a school of arts.
This school moved to its new home in 1816 and between 1819 and 1829 its main building was built in the Neo-Renaissance style. In 1883 the School of Arts expanded and annexed several neighboring mansions, the most famous of which was the Hôtel de Chimay. Thus, at the end of the 19th century, the School of Arts took on its final appearance.
The result is a magnificent Renaissance building, alongside which you can also find a number of palace parts and statues, which they managed to save from palaces that were destroyed long ago. We will talk about this in more depth in the chapter dealing with a visit to the place, but before that let me tell you a little about the artists who studied and taught there, some of whom became some of the greatest artists in France.
Examples of artists who studied at this prestigious institution include painters Antoine Watteau (1684-1721), Eugène Delacroix (1803-1869), Edgar Degas (1834-1917) and many others. However, great artists not only studied at the academy but also taught there, and one of the most famous of them was Henri Matisse Who demanded that his students break through the boundaries of art and express their inner truth.
Somewhat surprisingly, and unlike the French Academy, the Academy of Fine Arts has admitted women to its ranks since the 17th century. The most famous painter to be admitted to its ranks was Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun (1755-1842), whose fascinating life can be read about in the article Elisabeth Villegas Le Bern, the painter who fought for the image of Marie Antoinette.
Even during the twentieth century, a place in the Academy continued to be the aspiration of many, and several non-French artists were also elected there. The most famous of them were the famous director and actor Orson Welles (1915-1985) and the actor Peter Ustinov (1921-2004), who took his place after the death of the above (in my opinion, Ustinov is the actor who played Hercule Poirot better than all of them, but that is certainly debatable and not relevant to this article).
La Boheme
While the members of the Academy of Fine Arts lived a comfortable life, the fate of the students was completely different. They were forced to live in cheap hotels in the 6th arrondissement and sometimes suffered the humiliation of hunger.
The poet and writer Henri Murger (1822-1861) best described the lives of those students in his book “Scenes from Bohemian Life.” This book contains a collection of stories about the lives of students in Paris in the first half of the 19th century, and from them we can learn just how poor they were.
An example of this can be found in the story of the Christmas Eve that Rudolph and Marcel celebrate in a shabby hotel, where they discover that the cheap tree they managed to buy with their last pennies is unable to burn and warm them.
Another famous story about the lives of those students concerns their visit to the cheap restaurant on Rue du Four (not far from the church of St. Saint-Germain-des-PrésAs it becomes clear during the reading, the students left the meal at this restaurant, which cost 3 centimes, hungrier than when they entered…
Morger's book was not very successful at first, but once his stories were adapted into a play they became very popular. Morger's work reached its peak of popularity after Puccini used it as the basis for the opera "La Bohème" and the word "bohemian" became synonymous with a talented but poor young artist. Morger himself summed up the life of a bohemian well with the immortal sentence:
Bohemian life is the artist's apprenticeship stage. It is the introduction to the academy, to the Hôtel de la Madeleine (the hospital where the poor of Paris were hospitalized), or to the cemetery.
The Saint-Germain district becomes the gallery district
The location of the Paris School of Fine Arts in the Saint-Germain district meant that dozens of art galleries were established over the years on the streets next to it, especially on Rue de Seine and Rue des Beaux Arts.
One of the most famous galleries is Albert Loeb's, which is still located near the School of Fine Arts at 12 rue des Beaux-Arts. The father of the gallery's founder was one of the most famous art dealers in Paris on the eve of World War I and sold works by some of the most famous modern painters, including André Derain (1880-1951). This is why even today you can find similar works there at prices that would require you to sell your shirt (not recommended as it can be quite cold in Paris).
Other examples of important galleries that have survived to this day are the gallery of Claude Brenner (Claude Bernard) at number 9 on the same street, where works by Giacometti (1901-1966 Alberto Giacometti) and David Hockney were sold. Alternatively, at number 4 inPatrice Trigano Gallery (Patrice Trigano) Quite a few works of art created in the 50s are still being sold today (can what was created in the 20s really be called art? I won't get into that discussion, even though I really want to).
Of course, if modern art is not your cup of tea, these galleries will be less interesting to you. However, I highly recommend taking a stroll through the streets around the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, as you will find not only modern galleries there, but also quite a few shops selling antique furniture and old books. The prices there are often astronomical, but it doesn't cost anything to take a look, right?
Paris School of Fine Arts – Tourist Information
After learning a little about the history of the School of Arts, it's time to go and visit the place. In this part of the article you will find all the information you need to visit the complex, as well as some of my recommendations for accommodation in the area.
Where is the School of Fine Arts in Paris and how do you get there?
The entrance to the Paris School of Fine Arts is at 14 Rue Bonaparte. In my opinion, the quickest way to get there is byMetro whose stations are a short walk away. Here are the two best options:
- Take line 4, get off at Saint-Germain-des-Prés station and walk north on Rue Bonaparte.
- Take line 1, get off at Louvre-Rivoli, cross the Pont des Arts and walk west until you reach the intersection with Rue Bonaparte.
If you would like to get to the place by bus, you are welcome to take lines 27, 87 N12 or N13 and get off near the Pont des Arts and from there continue on foot a few steps.
How much does it cost to enter the School of Arts and when can you visit there?
Let's start with the good news, admission to the School of Fine Arts is free. The not-so-good news is that the only way to visit there, unless there happens to be an exhibition open to the public at the time, is via a guided tour in French. To check when such a tour is taking place, you must call 01.47.03.50.63.
True, getting into art school requires advance preparation and a little luck, but as you will see, it is definitely worth the effort.
What is recommended to see?
Queen Margaux's Chapel
As you pass the guard post, look to your right and you will see a beautiful 16th century church facade. Take a look at it and you will see the letters H and DD. These are the symbols of King Henry II of France (reigned 2-1547) and his mythical lover. Diana of Poitiers (Diane de Poitiers). What are they doing here? You will surely ask.
The church facade was moved here fromAnna Palace (Chateau d'Anet), the home of Diane de Poitiers and belonged to an old church that stood there. Step inside and you'll discover that the place has long ceased to function as a church, but rather as a museum where you can find copies of some of the greatest works in the history of art, including Michelangelo's famous fresco "The Last Judgment."
After you have finished looking at the various pictures and sculptures, you are invited to enter the small chapel that has survived from the time of Queen Margot. The name of the chapel is La Chapelle des Louanges and it is the first chapel in Paris to be decorated with a dome, hence its importance in the architectural history of the City of Lights (by the way, the first church in Paris to have a dome was Notre Dame des Anges and you can read about it inThe itinerary following Madame de Savigny).
The main building
After you have finished visiting the chapel, you are invited to go out into the courtyard and enter the neo-Renaissance building that stands on its western side. In this building you will find the school offices, most of which are closed to the public. However, the main attraction of the building is the magnificent hall that is often used for temporary exhibitions.
This is a spectacular hall that combines a slightly modern style of glass and metal dome with paintings of historical figures from the Renaissance period, such as King Francis I (reigned between 1515-1547), and alongside them are copies of the works of important Renaissance artists, such as Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino 1483-1520).
If you are allowed to continue further, you can also enter the magnificent amphitheater adjacent to this hall. This is where the board of directors of the institution meets and where the “Prize of Rome”, which I wrote about earlier, is awarded. Note the magnificent fresco on the wall, where you can find all the great artists from the days of ancient Greece to the 19th century.
The Mulberry Court (Cour du Mûrier)
This courtyard is named after the mulberry tree planted here by Alexandre Lenoir (1761-1839), director of the Museum of French Monuments that was here before the place was converted into an art school.
This was the cloister (covered courtyard) of the monastery built by the Queen of Margaux, and today you can find a well and a row of ancient statues. A few years ago the place underwent a thorough renovation and the result, as you can see in the video above and the photo below, is simply spectacular.
Hôtel de Chimay
This magnificent palace was built during the 17th century, in part by the famous architect François Mansart (1598-1666), the uncle of an even more famous architect, Jules Hardouin-Mansart (1646-1708), who was responsible, among other things, forPalais des InvalidesThe palace still contains several paintings by the painter Charles Le Brun and it passed through several hands, until it was bought in 1883 by the management of the Paris School of Fine Arts.
In the courtyard of the palace you can find several statues, but in my opinion the most interesting exhibits are the remains of the Tuileries Palace, among which is this beautiful column, which can be seen in the photo below.
Have you finished visiting the Ecole des Beaux-Arts?
I hope you enjoyed your trip to the School of Arts. If you're looking for something else to do in the area, you have two good options.
- The first option is to continue walking through the 6th arrondissement and discover its secrets. I created this article especially for this purpose. Attractions in the 6th arrondissement There you will find not only interesting places but also links to hiking trails and other important tourist information.
- Another option is to move to the right bank of the Seine and stroll through the first arrondissement. To do so, you are invited to enter the article Attractions in the 1th arrondissement.
Recommended places to stay in the area of the Paris School of Fine Arts
The location of the Paris School of Fine Arts is simply wonderful. The picturesque streets, galleries and beauty that can be seen from every alley, and at the same time a central location that allows you to easily jump between the left bank and the right bank. Therefore, if you want to live in the immediate vicinity, here are some recommended (but not cheap) hotels:
A few steps further you will find the Hotel d'Angleterre The three-star hotel with reasonable prices (relative to the location). If all these hotels are booked or too expensive, I invite you to check out the article. Recommended hotels in the 6th arrondissement .
If you are looking to rent a vacation apartment in the area rather than a hotel, you can do so using the article on D.Recommended vacation spots in this district.
Did visiting Ecole des Beaux-Arts make you hungry?
Don't worry! Unlike the poor students who studied here in the 19th century, you won't starve to death because south of the School of Fine Arts, you'll find Saint-Germain-des-PrésThere are quite a few excellent restaurants. You can find information about them in the article Recommended restaurants in the Sixth District.
Side note: The ending song (over the titles) of the film Queen Margot (which, by the way, is not historically accurate) is called Elohei, and was sung in Hebrew by Ofra Haza.
Thank you very much Zeev. I didn't know that and it's very interesting.
I liked it. :)
Good morning Zvi, a very interesting article. I have visited many times with groups and did not know about it. I will visit next time.
Thank you Zvi
Thank you very much 🙂
Very interesting, thank you.
Thank you very much 🙂
Long but interesting and definitely worth reading, many things that are not so well known or not connected are clarified here…. Thank you
Thank you very much 🙂
Hi Zvi. An exhaustive and fascinating article. A small correction: Samuel Beckett did not write “The Rhinos.” The play was written by Eugene Ionesco. The two plays “Waiting for Godot” and “The Rhinos” were later cataloged by Martin Esslin as representing the plays of the absurd. Beckett was also a poet, director, translator and above all a writer, who wrote masterpieces. Winner of the 1969 Nobel Prize for Literature.