Bourse De Commerce

Bourse de Commerce in Paris has a fascinating history, originally used as a place to negotiate the trade of grain and other similar commodities. 

It was housed in a circular wheat exchange building constructed in the 1760s, with an open-air court that was later capped by a wooden dome (and replaced in 1811 with a copper one). 

The dome constituted a major innovation in industrial architecture. The architects ordered an extraordinarily large panorama from artist Alexis Joseph Mazerolle, to decorate the base of the glass roof. Mazerolle worked with several other artists to portray trade on a world-wide scale on 14,000 square metres of canvas marouflage. 

The building itself was planned by Nicolas Le Camus de Mêzières, and is most famous for its spectacular double helix staircase. 

Together with the 25 arcades on the inner façade, this staircase is the only remaining vestige of the former 18th century Halle au bié. 

Corn was stored on two levels, a ground floor, and a granary to which the double helix staircase led. 

The two ramps, which intertwine in two distinct helixes, allowed the porters who went up and down with the voluminous sacks of corn to avoid crossing each other. 

At the heart of the rotonde, a concrete cylinder, 9 metres high and 10 metres in diameter, fits into the central void. 

The minimalist structure affirms a unique, abstract space, conducive to the display of contemporary artworks. The Japanese architect Tadao Ando is the creative mind behind this strong architectural gesture, whose form echoes the circular shape of the Pantheon in Rome. 

The transformation of the industrial building into a contemporary art centre cost over 100 million euros. 

The museum hosts around ten exhibitions per year, and works in coordination with its Venetian sister museums, Palazzo Grassi and Punta della Dogana.

When entering the space, the visitor is first struck by the vastness of its interiors, as well as how delicately the dialogue between past and present has been carried out through the renovations. 

The history of the building is possible to trace in the old staircase and the cylinder-shaped main exhibition space. 

At the top is a restaurant with views of the neighbouring buildings, a place to pause and reflect on both the art and the architecture of this place. 

Bourse de Commerce / Collection Pinault