Petit Palais, the Petit Palais (like his "brother" Grand Palais) is located near the Champs-Elysées in the place where previously housed the Palace of Industry, built for the World Exhibition in 1855. The two "brothers" were built next to the World's Fair in 1900. Upon its completion, the Petit Palais was given to the Museum of Modern Art.

On the part of the owner of the palace, the city of Paris, it was a visionary step. The building of the Petit Palais was the most modern of its era and offers a rare beauty. This reputation has pushed serious collectors to transfer the paintings and sculptures it here. Brothers Dyutyui transferred from Rouen museum collection of antiquities, they collected all his life - art of ancient Greece, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, Flemish paintings.

In the museum you can see works by artists of the XIX century: Courbet, Monet, Sisley, Gauguin, Maillol, Renoir, Toulouse-Lautrec. In the gallery of the palace alone exhibited "a collection so" - a collection of paintings and sculptures, transferred Petit Palais American philanthropist Edward Tuck and his wife Julie in 1930. Widely represented the art of century XX. The funds - a rich collection of works by the Fauves and the Cubists.

Petit Palais is also interesting for its rich collection of icons. Icons for a long time in the West were not considered art, because it does not participate in the development of European painting. For example, exported white emigration to Europe icon more often than not found buyers. It is for this reason philanthropist Roger Cabal managed on modest means to collect the outstanding private collection of icons, which gave the museum. Collection seriously replenished during the war in Lebanon - from there managed to take and save icons that have found refuge in the Petit Palais.

In 2005, the palace was renovated. Prior to repair it was covered with not very transparent glass dome, a courtyard, was closed to visitors. Now fully restored mosaic dome, marble floors, frescoes. Expand the area exhibits: a collection of the museum devoted to five thousand square meters for temporary exhibitions - two thousand. A collection of the Petit Palais currently has 45,000 works of art.

Palace, property of the municipality, is completely restored with funds received from the tax on lodging in Paris. Now it is one of the few free museums.