Close to Montparnasse, the museum grew up around the studio Antoine Bourdelle occupied from 1885 until his death. Left as it was, crowded with sketches and monumental plaster casts, it opens onto gardens filled with bronzes and a contemporary extension by Christian de Portzamparc.
The museum at a glance
Rodin's assistant and later the teacher of Giacometti, Germaine Richier and Vieira da Silva, Bourdelle created the decoration of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, among other works. His daughter bequeathed three thousand sculptures and several thousand drawings to the City of Paris. The museum reopened in 2023 after two years of renovation.
Don't miss
The studio, kept just as the sculptor left it, with its Gothic furniture and unfinished works, is still the heart of the place. The two sculpture gardens offer an unexpected breathing space in this busy district, and Portzamparc's extension shows off the large bronzes in remarkable light.
Visiting tips
It is a quarter of an hour from the hotel by Métro (line 4), or a twenty-five-minute walk to the south-west. Allow an hour and a half to see everything.
Close by
Montparnasse Cemetery, where Baudelaire, Sartre and Beauvoir are buried, is ten minutes away. The historic brasseries of Boulevard du Montparnasse, La Coupole and Le Dôme, are perfect for lingering afterwards.
