TOP: Free exhibitions to see in Paris from September 22nd to 28th, 2026
Some are closing soon, others have just opened. Here are the Parisian exhibitions to see for free from September 22 to 28, from the BnF's reserves to the courtyard of the Hôtel de la Marine.
The Ball of the Ogresses at the Institute of Islamic Cultures
Aïcha Kandisha, the Moroccan ogress whose children are threatened, protects as much as she frightens. Thirteen female artists take hold of her at the Institute of Islamic Cultures and overturn the figure of the monster: what was used to keep girls quiet becomes a power to be claimed. From Nil Yalter to Kubra Khademi, paintings, videos, and installations compose a cohesive narrative from beginning to end.
INSTITUTE OF ISLAM CULTURES - HERE LÉON
From September 26, 2026 to February 7, 2027
Extraterrestrial Exhibition
The CNES (French National Centre for Space Studies) and contemporary artists are taking seriously a question that no one dares to ask openly: what if something came from elsewhere? Sculptures, films, unidentified objects—an exhibition that is as much a scholarly fair as a cabinet of curiosities. Admission is free, and the exhibition is only on display for one weekend.
FORMA
From September 25 to 27, 2026
The 2026 Fine Arts Exhibition at the Senate Orangerie: the second session
The Exhibition unfolds in two parts, and this is the second part. After painting and sculpture, the Senate Orangerie now features ceramics, naturalism, works on paper, and photography. This is the only exhibition officially recognized as part of the 400 Years of the Navy: it features photographs taken at each port of call by the officer cadets of the Jeanne d'Arc, displayed as numbered prints.
SENATE ORANGERY
From September 24 to 29, 2026
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Rayane Mcirdi, Happy Retirement Dad, at the Frac Île-de-France, Le Plateau
Forty years in the factory, and one last day. Rayane Mcirdi filmed his father's retirement, then deconstructed the film for Le Plateau: chapters spread throughout the space, scenes echoing each other from one room to the next, so that one never truly sits down. The camera remains at shoulder height, allowing what is unspoken to emerge.
FRAC ÎLE-DE-FRANCE, LE PLATEAU
From September 24, 2026 to February 21, 2020 2027
Metamorphoses, the hats of Maison Michel, at the Galerie du 19M
Four rooms to follow a hat from raw straw to the head that wears it. Felt, wooden shapes, and the Weismann machine restored in 1975: Maison Michel reveals its craftsmanship rather than its display cases, and the 19M continues to showcase the work before the object. We watch hands grappling with a resistant material, and fashion once again becomes a matter of the atelier.
THE 19M GALLERY
From September 23 to December 13, 2026
François Goudier, Variations in Studios
Chagall, Modigliani, Soutine, and Zadkine had their studios at La Ruche. A century later, François Goudier enters those of today and photographs what the visitor never sees: the workbench, the clutter, the walls bearing the marks of labor. Twenty minutes in the gallery, and you leave having seen behind the scenes.
FAIDHERBE GALLERY
From September 10 to October 3, 2026
Mobile Star in the Courtyard of the Intendant of the Hôtel de la Marine
A car is parked in the Intendant's courtyard. It won't start, it won't go anywhere, and that is precisely the reason for its presence. A car decides to become a sculpture there, in one of the most beautiful courtyards of the 8th arrondissement, and without a ticket to the Hôtel de la Marine.
COURT OF THE INTENDANT OF THE MARINE HOTEL
From September 9 to October 4, 2026
Leonora Carrington, the art of transmutations, at the Almine Rech Gallery
The Musée du Luxembourg closed its retrospective on July 19, and it was thought to be back for another ten years. It returns to the rue de Turenne through a different door: that of sculptures, tapestries, jewelry, and theatrical sets. Almine Rech takes on a challenge no museum has yet undertaken: to move Carrington beyond the sole realm of surrealism and to follow his hybrid creatures from surface to volume, from narrative to object.
ALMINE RECH - TURENNE
From September 8 to October 10, 2026
Johan Creten, Pavlov's Dogs, at the Perrotin Gallery
The title suggests an experiment in conditioning, and that's precisely what it is: Johan Creten's glazed ceramics catch the eye before you've even decided to look at them, then hold it longer than you'd like. This is Perrotin's fall exhibition, and like all galleries, it's free, something that's too often forgotten.
PERROTIN
From September 5 to October 10, 2026
Everything is in order at the Swedish Institute.
Queueing, waiting your turn, behaving well. The exhibition takes the Swedish order at its word and derails it: mannequins of impossible proportions form endless lines, dressed without any hierarchy of brands. Sculptures, sounds, and images mingle, and the familiar becomes frankly strange. Curated by Nicole Walker.
SWEDISH INSTITUTE
From September 2 to October 4, 2026
Julie Glassberg, Being and Neon, at the Pavillon Carré de Baudouin
We expect neon to cut and harden. In Julie Glassberg's work, it envelops. This is the paradox of these photographs, and a good reason to go up to Ménilmontant, as the Carré de Baudouin is one of the most beautiful free venues in eastern Paris, open until 8:30 pm on Thursdays.
BAUDOUIN SQUARE PAVILION Until October 3, 2026 121 rue de Ménilmontant, 75020 · Metro Gambetta (Lines 3/3 bis) - Free admission
Paris, Open at Night, at the Roger-Viollet Gallery
The Roger-Viollet agency doesn't just show photographs: it opens its darkroom to the city's memory. Here, it's Paris after closing time, the kind that photography documented long before cell phones took over. A gallery on rue de Seine, free admission, a stone's throw from the Institut de France.
ROGER-VIOLLET GALLERY Until October 3, 2026 6 rue de Seine, 75006 · M° Mabillon (10) - Free admission
Sumo, Sacred Forces, at the Maison de la culture du Japon in Paris
A handful of salt thrown onto the clay court, a foot striking the ground, the long breaths of two giants facing each other. Television always cuts out this part, keeping only the few seconds of the fight; the Maison de la culture du Japon shows exactly the rest. It closes on Saturday.
Japanese Cultural Center in Paris Until September 26, 2026 101 bis quai Jacques Chirac, 75015 · Metro: Bir-Hakeim (Line 6) - Free admission
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Daniel Brush, the art of line and light, at the School of Jewelry Arts
A ten-micron gold grain, placed on a gold surface, soldered without leaving any visible trace: the technique is called granulation, and Daniel Brush in has created a life's work. The School of Jewelry Arts, on Boulevard Montmartre, provides its facilities and opens its doors free of charge all year round.
SCHOOL OF JEWELRY ARTS Until October 4, 2026 16 bis Boulevard Montmartre, 75009 Paris · Metro: Richelieu-Drouot (Lines 8/9) - Free admission
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Underground! The Alternative Press of the 1970s at the BnF François-Mitterrand
These newspapers weren't meant to last: printed in the thousands, typeset with glue and a box cutter, read and then thrown away. Yet the BnF has kept the stacks and is bringing them out of storage, with their makeshift layouts, shaky headlines, and hand-printed outrage. Visitors come to see documents and leave having seen graphic design.
BnF FRANÇOIS-MITTERRAND Until October 18, 2026 Quai François-Mauriac, 75013 Paris · Metro: Bibliothèque F.-Mitterrand (Line 14) - Free admission
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