The Bourse de Commerce in Paris is a circular building in the 1st arrondissement, originally erected as the Halle aux Blés between 1763 and 1767 to the design of Nicolas Le Camus de Mézières. It was later converted into a commodities exchange in the late 19ᵉ century under the direction of architect Henri Blondel. In 2016, the City of Paris granted François Pinault a long-term lease, and after extensive restoration the building reopened in 2021 as a contemporary art museum. At the main entrance on Rue de Viarmes, one can now see Giuseppe Penone’s "Idee di pietra – 1532 kg di luce", a monumental sculpture, reminiscent of his "Luce e ombra" installed in the MCBA in Lausanne.
Bourse de commerce
Idee di pietra - 1532 kg di luce by Giuseppe Penone
At the centre of the rotunda, beneath the great glass-and-metal dome, stretches a monumental 19th-century painted frieze encircling the interior. Covering roughly 1,400 square meters, it depicts global trade across the five continents through a series of allegorical scenes created by several painters for the 1889 restoration of the building. The recent conservation work revealed the vibrancy of its original colours and allows visitors to view the cycle from the elevated circular walkway introduced during the museum’s transformation.
ceiling painting
ceiling painting
The building’s most recent renovation was designed by Tadao Ando. Completed in 2020, the project inserted a smooth concrete cylinder into the historic rotunda, creating new exhibition spaces while preserving key architectural elements such as the 19ᵗʰ-century dome and the double staircase.
staircase
staircase
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