08-08-2025
My behind-the-scenes tour of art deco Paris
It was a time of change, of modernity and industrialisation, of rejection of the old tropes, and it pervaded all areas of art and design, from architecture to music, dance and fashion. I am talking, of course, about art deco. The movement caused a stir. Take the premiere of Stravinsky's ballet The Rite of Spring in the inaugural season of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, which prompted a near riot in 1913. Or Josephine Baker performing in little more than a banana belt at the Folies Bergère in 1926. Le tout Paris was both scandalised and delighted.
As 2025 marks the centenary of the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes, from which the term art deco is derived, I am here to celebrate. And the Prince de Galles — refurbished in period style by Pierre-Yves Rochon in 2013 — is the ideal base. From the moment I step into the 159-room hotel, in the 8th arrondissement near the Arc de Triomphe, I am transported back to those heady years that began in the Paris of the 1910s and flourished over the next two decades.
Legend has it that the Prince of Wales, the future Edward VIII, was staying at Le Meurice, on the Rue de Rivoli, and declared that Paris needed a more modern hotel. The Prince de Galles, which opened in 1929 and was named in his honour, was the response of the architect André Arfvidson. A paean to the art deco aesthetic, its exquisite colonnaded courtyard of intricate mosaics is now a listed monument. Inside it's all clean lines, wrought iron balustrades, precious woods, geometric textiles and crystal sconces in the shape of the Prince of Wales's feathers.
Guests staying in one of the hotel's eight Mosaic suites — black-and-gold mosaic bathrooms, polished macassar, lashings of black marble and lithographs from the period — are being offered a tour of the city by the 20th-century architectural historian Jacob Simpson. This three-hour tour offers rare, behind-the-scenes access to five seminal buildings and includes a quintessentially Parisian personal shopping experience at Printemps department store, with its sweeping 1924 staircase and luminous stained glass and iron dome.
'Art deco,' writes Andrew Ayers, the architecture journalist and author of the booklet accompanying the tour, 'is a loose term, which was not coined until 1966, to describe a style that was inspired by different sources, and was interpreted in different ways in the countries to which it spread.' Its rejection of the flounces of art nouveau in favour of purity of line, volume and geometric forms would never be as radical as Le Corbusier's modernism. And although art deco moved away from 19th-century historicism, in Paris it never entirely shook off the classical teachings of the École des Beaux-Arts.
Key to this new style was the invention of reinforced concrete, which was both faster and more economical than working with stone. Plus it permitted new forms of construction, exemplified by the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, commissioned by the impresario Gabriel Astruc (who invited Sergei Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes for that infamous Stravinsky premiere). Completed in 1913, it was the first art deco building in Paris, and it is our first port of call, a short hop from our hotel in the chic 'golden triangle'. Despite having been to numerous performances, I had never fully appreciated the building's revolutionary structure. It was the first theatre to offer unobstructed views of the stage from all seats, due to the absence of any pillars in the circular auditorium — which also enabled the aristocratic audience to see and be seen.
Designed by the 'poet of concrete' Auguste Perret, the columns in the foyer were unadorned and the whole interior housed within a complex concrete frame. As a swansong to tradition, however, the façade was clad in marble, with a bas-relief of the Muses by Antoine Bourdelle. Unsurprisingly, Charles Garnier, most famously the architect of the ornate Paris Opéra, hated it. He was not alone in considering the restrained façade ugly.
Some 25 years later, with the Palais d'Iéna, Perret would create his apotheosis of naked concrete, taking the possibilities of this medium to an extreme, and setting himself the not inconsiderable challenge of rivalling the Parthenon. Originally commissioned as the Museum of Public Works, and now a government building, it is viewed by appointment, and is the unmissable last stop on my itinerary.
'Not a bag of plaster has entered here!' Perret boasted. 'Concrete is sufficient unto itself. Concrete is stone we manufacture; more noble and beautiful than natural wood. It must be given the honour of being awakened.' We see the raw exterior, the concrete hammered and textured to imitate fluted stone columns, its aggregate of green porphyry, pink marble, and flint hinting at mosaic.
Inside, a 60m by 18m Hypostyle Hall, with 18 truncated-cone columns supporting the coffered ceiling 7m above, served as the exhibition area. The imposing rotunda houses an amphitheatre — now the councillors' auditorium — crowned by a glass and concrete-ribbed dome with a flame-shaped chandelier. A fresco by Jean Souverbie and three 1940s Gobelins tapestries add warmth to the austere grey walls. For me, the climactic feature is the double horseshoe floating staircase, a mesh of triangular concrete and glass, behind it, filtering a geometric pattern of light onto the steps — Perret's contemporary take on the grand staircase of the Paris Opéra.
Between Perret's two masterworks, Simpson accompanies us to the Palais de Tokyo, opposite the Eiffel Tower. Built for the 1937 Exposition Internationale (the last of its kind to be held in Paris), this architectural showpiece sits above a series of grand terraces that cascade down to the Seine, making it a popular spot for skateboarders. Its massive verticals and Alfred Janniot's stylised reliefs of the Legends of the Earth and Sea framing the façade remind me of both fascist and Stalinist heroic architecture of the period.
But inside, we see a different aspect of art deco. The Musée d'Art Moderne, in the east wing, dedicates a whole gallery to the spectacular furniture and objects of the period, by such luminaries as Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Jean Dunand. And here, in contrast to concrete and restraint, is the use of luxurious organic materials and masterful craftsmanship. I can see myself working at the exquisite angular desk and bucket chair in exotic woods and python skin by Michel Dufet.
Later, in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, home to the largest collection of art deco in the world, we discover not only objets d'art, glassware, textiles and tableware, but entire suites of rooms, including those designed in the 1920s by Armand-Albert Rateau for the couturière Jeanne Lanvin featuring marble, bronze furniture, and silks in Lanvin bleu. It is in this museum, which owns several pieces from the 1925 exhibition, that the Expo's centenary will be celebrated from October 22 with the exhibition 1925-2025: One Hundred Years of Art Deco.
Back at the hotel, drinks await in the duplex Lalique suite, the most luxurious accommodation in the hotel and with panoramic views over the City of Light. A symphony in black and gold, it features custom-made period furniture, textiles and one-off crystal pieces by René Lalique's workshop that perfectly reflect the ethos of those golden Levonian Cole was a guest of Marriott, which has the Unlocking Art Deco package at £2,088pp, including one night's B&B in a Mosaic suite, a three-hour expert guided tour of five art deco venues and a personal shopping experience ( Take the train to Paris
By Agnès Poirier
In August Paris feels almost deserted, inhabited by only a few special breeds: true Paris lovers, eccentrics and poets. And, of course, by all those who have learnt to enjoy all that Paris has to offer in summer for free, from swimming in the Seine to playing pétanque and having a nap on a deckchair along the riverbanks and on the pop-up beaches — not to mention at the open-air cinema at Parc de la Villette. So why not join them?
This wonderful hotel in South Pigalle, in the 18th arrondissement, is a well-kept secret, but it won't remain so for long. With 16 rooms, some of them duplex suites, and reasonably priced, the Elysée Montmartre transports you to a world of complete zen in the heart of belle époque Paris still known today for its colourful nightlife. With a hint of Japanese-style wabi-sabi (the art of imperfect beauty), the interior design is mostly made of eucalyptus wood and stone, and the result is spectacularly refined. Next door is the Elysée Montmartre concert venue, a favourite of Toulouse-Lautrec and, more recently, of David Bowie, Björk and Daft Punk (room-only doubles from £156;
Place Dauphine is a triangular square dating from the beginning of the 17th century, at the western tip of Île de la Cité, near Notre Dame and Sainte Chapelle. In this quiet and leafy refuge, Restaurant Paul is a favourite with locals in all seasons, its terrace giving onto Place Dauphine and the quai overlooking the Left Bank. This discreet Parisian institution has the added quality of remaining open throughout August. Visitors will find traditional bistro fare, from snails to foie gras and beef tartare, with a few vegetarian options (mains from £21; The small café next door, with the same owners, is ideal for early coffee or cocktails at dusk.
The Musée Montmartre on Rue Cortot is one of the most picturesque small museums of Paris. With regular exhibitions on lesser-known figures of the impressionist and post-impressionist era, it harks back to the old village of Montmartre, with its large gardens overlooking Paris's vineyards, the studio of the painter Suzanne Valadon and a small pavilion turned into a bucolic café. Until September 14 the exhibition area is dedicated to Maximilien Luce, an anarchist turned pointillist who painted Parisian daily life between 1887 and 1900. It is the first Luce retrospective since 1983 and is well worth the detour (£19;
The Jardin d'Acclimatation near the Fondation Vuitton in the west of the city has been welcoming families for more than 160 years. Restored to its former imperial glory in 2018, it has kept its historical merry-go-rounds alongside newer ones and 40 other attractions. While wild animals are no longer roaming freely, peacocks can still be seen parading on the lawns. Spread over 44 acres, the Jardin offers events for children and many cafés for exhausted parents. Don't miss the little train, winding through the gardens on a ride of wonder (£6;
