Address: Place Georges Pompidou, Paris 4 Metro: Hôtel de Ville or Châtelet or Rambuteau Hours: Open everyday except Tuesday from 11 am – 10 pm (exhibition area closes at 9 pm) and Thursdays from 11 am – 11 pm (exhibition 6 only). Last admission 1 hour prior to closing. Closed on Tuesdays and May 1. Fees: for museum and exhibition: 14 € – Kids under 18 Free. Fee applies to workshops. Free for everyone the first Sunday of every month. Phone: +33 (0)1 44 78 12 33
The birth of Centre Pompidou is due to the vision that President Pompidou had for creating a place that various cultural avenues could exist under. His vision also included a massive public library. To achieve this, an international Architectual competition was held and 3 architects were chosen: 2 Itlaians, Renzo Piano and Gianfranco Franchini, and one Englishman, Richard Rogers. Centre Pompidou opened to the public February of 1977 and has been a successful cultural venue of Paris. The project yielded an ultra modern steel / glass structure with reversed engineering.  The reversed construction shows the structural elements  outside instead of inside. The ducts are colour-coded and each represent: Green for fluid, blue for air, yellow for electricity and red for elevators and fire extinguishers. The reason for this type of structure was to gain more internal space. 15,000 tons of steel were used in the construction of Centre Pompidou. The Georges Pompidou National Centre for Art and Culture is located here as well, which contains modern art from 1905 until present. Center Pompidou also offers workshops for kids 2-12 years of age (extra cost).

Centre Pompidou