We Love Green Festival – June 2-4 in the Bois de Vincennes, an environmental music festival with Phoenix, Bon Iver, The Blaze, and more. They also need volunteers.
Through June 3
CAPITALE(S) is a free exposition at the Hôtel de Ville (4th) celebrating 60 years of Paris street art, featuring the most influential artists, including Invader, Miss Tic, André, Swoon and Banksy. In the Salle Saint-Jean at 5 rue de Lobau, free entry with reservations online, Mon-Sat 10am-6:30pm (Thursdays until 9pm).
June 4 (and every 1st Sunday)
The Avenue des Champs-Elysées is closed to vehicles every 1st Sunday of the month from 11am-6pm April through October, and 10am-5pm November through March, leaving it open for pedestrians and cyclists. Vehicle traffic is also heavily restricted on those days in the center of Paris — 1st through 4th arrondissements — so be sure to make arrangements to get around using public transportation — or your feet! — on those days.
June 4 (and every 1st Sunday)
Many museums and monuments in Paris are open for free the first Sunday of the month. In June, that includes the Orsay, Picasso, Pompidou, Cluny, Arts-et-Métiers, Orangerie, Cité de l’Architecture, Quai Branly, and the Château Fontainebleau. Be sure to check each museum’s website, as some still require you to have a timed ticket; even if the entrance is free. See the full list here.
June 15
Le Food Market is a monthly open-air food festival on Boulevard Belleville (between metro Ménilmontant and Couronnes) with over a dozen stands serving up tasty and affordable dishes of all kinds (kind of like a gathering of static food trucks, but without the wheels) from 6pm-10:30pm. It can get quite crowded, so get there early to avoid waiting (there are huge tables to sit and eat).
Bal à la Cour des Valois – June 16th at Les Invalides, a costumed ball in the spirit of the 16th-century court of French kings
All Month Long
Through July 8
Murmuration is a mesmerizing performance choreographed by Sadeck Berrabah at the 13e Art theatre. “More than 40 dancers will make you travel and dream for 75 minutes.” Tickets €20-59. Get a sneak preview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9IxogvCvxo&t=119s
Through September 3
The Centre Pompidou Library (BPI) is hosting a free exhibit on the private belongings of the late French singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg, “Le Mot Exact” (the exact word) to celebrate the opening of the new Maison Gainsbourg museum in September (tickets are already on sale, reserve yours online here). The free BPI exhibit is “a thematic journey exploring the very special relationship that the artist had with more than 500 songs to literature, through precious manuscripts and annotated typescripts, personal objects, small papers, books from his library and archival documents, is built around three thematic parts. As soon as you enter the exhibition, the photo of Serge Gainsbourg at his office, in which he wrote most of his texts, welcomes visitors, inviting them to enter into the intimacy of his creative process.” Open weekdays (except Tuesday) noon-10pm, weekends from 10am. Follow signs for the “espace d’exposition” in the BPI on the 2nd floor of the Centre Pompidou (downloadable brochure of the exhibit in English here).
Through November 3
Visit the free, open-air exhibition of the Cité Universitaire’s 6th edition of “Gardens of the World in Motion ” festival, featuring six of the competition’s winning gardens spread around the 34-acre grounds of the university campus. “The ephemeral gardens fit harmoniously into the decor by interacting with the emblematic architecture of the City and by integrating sustainable development through the use of biosourced materials, the recovery of rainwater or the creation of ecological niches.” Free and open to the public during daylight hours. Cité Universitaire (17 Boulevard Jourdan, 14th).
Through November 5
Immerse yourself in the art of the iconic Art Nouveau artist Alphonse Mucha at the interactive digital show at the Grand Palais Immersif (110 rue de Lyon, 12th). Tickets €6-€20. Reserve your time slot online.
Planning Ahead – Book it Now!
Rock-en-Seine Festival – August 23-27 at the Domaine de Saint-Cloud, headliners for the 20th edition include Billie Eilish, Placebo, Florence + The Machine, The Strokes, The Chemical Brothers.
Paris Sketchbook Workshop – October 24-29 in Paris, with four world-famous sketchbook artists.
