Palais de Chaillot

The Palais de Chaillot is defined by two massive, curved wings that sweep outward from a central esplanade, framing a wide-open view of the Eiffel Tower across the Seine. Built for the nineteen thirty-seven International Exposition, this neoclassical structure replaced an earlier, widely criticized palace that had stood on the same hill since the eighteen seventy-eight World's Fair. Architects Louis-Hippolyte Boileau, Jacques Carlu, and Léon Azéma designed the current palace to showcase a cleaner, more modern aesthetic, utilizing the original foundations to create the dramatic, arcing silhouette that greets visitors today.