François Morellet Centenaire: 140 Interventions at Cité de l'Architecture

For the centenary of François Morellet's birth, the Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine presents 140 outdoor interventions, integrated among its full-scale Romanesque portals and Gothic tympana rather than in a white cube. Morellet, who called these works 'désintégrations,' spent fifty years subtly destabilizing straight facades and grand staircases with slight tilts, doubled lines, or skewed neon. Notable pieces include La Défonce, a tilted parallelepiped matching the dimensions of the Fonds national d'art contemporain building, installed at La Défense, and Égarement, sky-blue neon tubes that tilt the facade of the Chinon train station. The self-taught artist imposed rules—grids, angles, sometimes chance—to bypass inspiration. Two works are visible year-round in Paris for free: at the Louvre, seven black-and-white verrières (2010) on the Lefuel staircase replicate existing grille patterns with a slight offset, titled L'Esprit d'escalier; and on the Grande Halle de la Villette framework, 800 meters of red neon (1986) revealed only at night. The exhibition runs from October 16, 2026, to January 3, 2027, at 1 place du Trocadéro, 75116 Paris, open daily except Tuesday 11am–7pm, Thursday until 9pm; admission €13, reduced €10.