Each year for an event known as Monumenta, an artist is commissioned to used the space of the Grand Palais for a new work. This year Richard Serra, known for his monumental metal sculptures, will be presenting his creation ‘Promenade’. A major artistic event in this most particular of places…


After Anselm Kiefer in 2007, Richard Serra has the tough job of creating something that will impress people more than the building it’s staged in. As the official site says, “Each year, Monumenta invites a leading artist to engage with the monumental nave of the Grand Palais through the creation of a series of new works”.

Preparation for the event has been going on for nearly two years, yet it is still difficult to know exactly what the great man is to show. Apparently you will experience it “as a radical, poetic landscape of steel, minimalist yet full of movement. An alarming confrontation with the space of the Grand Palais, guaranteed to move and disturb”.

In fact, the site is very well done, rich and informative, with full information about the events surrounding the exhibition, the history of Richard Serra’s work, the context, the materials used… It would be fairly pointless to repeat everything it says here, so perhaps it’s is best to point you in the direction of the site so you can check everything out yourself (it’s all translated into perfect English!).

Here’s all the practical information for Monumenta 2008 – Promenade by Richard Serra at the Grand Palais

When: 7th May – 15th June 2008
Where: Grand Palais, Avenue Winston Churchill, Paris 8th arrondissement, métro Champs-Élysées-Clemenceau (lines 1 & 13). Bus n°s 28, 32, 42, 49, 72, 73, 80, 83 & 93
Opening hours: Monday & Wednesday, 10am – 7pm, Thursday – Sunday, 10am – 11pm, closed Tuesdays
Admission: Adults 4 euros, concessions 2 euros, information pack and guided tour (at advertised times) 8 euros
More information on Richard Serra: here
Check out the trailer for the event: here

Bigger map here