The small Palace, Petit Palais (like his "brother" the Grand Palais is located near the Champs-elysées to the place where once was located the Palace of industry, built for the universal exhibition of 1855. Both "brother" were built for another world's fair of 1900. After the Petit Palais was turned into the Museum of modern art.

By the owner of the Palace, the city of Paris, it was a visionary step. The building of the Petit Palais was the most modern for its era and was uncommonly handsome. This reputation prompted serious collectors to transfer the paintings and sculptures here. Brothers Dutyi from Rouen to the Museum collection of antiquities, which they collected my entire life, the art of ancient Greece, middle Ages, Renaissance, Flemish painting.

In the Museum you can see works by artists of the nineteenth century: Courbet, Monet, Sisley, Gauguin, Maillol, Renoir, Toulouse-Lautrec. In the gallery of the Palace separately exposed "collection" - a collection of painting and sculpture transferred to the Petit Palais, an American philanthropist That Edward and his wife Julie in 1930. Widely presents the art of the twentieth century. In the funds – a rich collection of works of the fauves and the Cubists.

The Petit Palais is also interesting for its rich collection of icons. Icons for quite a long time in the West was not considered art, because it was not involved in the development of European painting. So, removed the white emigration to Europe icons most often found buyers. For this reason, philanthropist Roger cabal managed on modest means to collect the outstanding private collection of icons, which was given to the Museum. The meeting was seriously replenished during the war in Lebanon - it is possible to export and save icons that have found refuge in the Petit Palais.

In 2005, the Palace was thoroughly renovated. Before the repair it was covered is not very transparent glass dome, the courtyard was closed to visitors. Now fully restored mosaic of the dome, marble floors, frescoes. Expanded area of exposures: under the Museum's collections allocated five thousand square meters for temporary exhibitions – two thousand. The collection of the Petit Palais now has 45,000 works of art.

The Palace, property of the municipality, fully restored with funds received from the tax on accommodation in Paris. Now this is one of the few free museums in the city.