The Centre Pompidou

The concept of a multicultural center that brings together various forms of art and literature was influenced by André Malraux, France's first Minister of Cultural Affairs. Malraux supported the decentralization of art and culture by empowering political forces. In the 1960s, Parisian city planners decided to relocate the food markets of Les Halles, which were historically significant structures, to make way for cultural institutes in the former market area. This move aimed to reestablish Paris as a leading city of culture and art. One of the proposed projects was to move the Musée d'Art Moderne to the new location, and a large free public library was also needed. The Plateau Beaubourg was eventually chosen as the site for the library, and in 1969, Georges Pompidou, the new president, adopted the Beaubourg project as the location for both the new library and a contemporary arts center. The IRCAM was also housed in the complex.

Out of 681 competition entries, the Rogers and Piano design was selected for the complex. The jury consisted of world-renowned architects Oscar Niemeyer, Jean Prouvé, and Philip Johnson. This was the first time international architects were allowed to participate in a French architecture competition. In 1971, the selection was announced at a "memorable press conference" where the sharply-dressed Pompidou contrasted with the "hairy young crew" of architects, representing a "grand bargain between radical architecture and establishment politics."

The Pompidou Centre was a groundbreaking example of an "inside-out" building, where the structural system, mechanical systems, and circulation were all exposed on the exterior. The functional elements of the building were color-coded, with plumbing pipes in green, climate control ducts in blue, electrical wires in yellow, and circulation elements and safety devices in red. The building was designed to be more than just a structure, but rather a town where visitors could find everything from lunch to great art and music. The design was initially met with mixed reactions, with some calling it a monster, but over time it came to be recognized as a revolutionary work of architecture. The Centre transformed museums from elite monuments to popular places of social and cultural exchange, woven into the heart of the city. In 2007, architect Richard Rogers was awarded the prestigious Pritzker Prize, in part due to his work on the Pompidou Centre.

GTM constructed the Centre Pompidou in 1977 at a cost of 993 million French francs. Notably, Peter Rice, who designed the Gerberette, served as the lead engineer. The building underwent renovation from October 1996 to January 2000, with a budget of 576 million francs. During the 27-month closure, the centre was not open to the public, reopening on 1 January 2000.

Recently, it was revealed in September 2020 that the Centre Pompidou would undergo renovations in 2023, requiring either a partial closure for seven years or a complete closure for three years. The projected cost of the renovations is $235 million. In January 2021, Roselyne Bachelot, the French culture minister, announced that the centre would be completely closed for four years in 2023.

The Centre Pompidou faced challenges in the mid-1980s due to its unexpected popularity and complex administrative structure. Dominique Bozo, Director of the Musée National d'Art Moderne, re-installed the museum and displayed its full range of collections, including major acquisitions. By 1992, the Centre de Création Industrielle became part of the MNAM, now called "MNAM/CCI". While the CCI ceased to exist, the MNAM developed a design and architecture collection alongside its modern and contemporary art collection.

Initially intended to handle 8,000 visitors a day, the Centre Pompidou attracted over 145 million visitors in its first two decades, more than five times the predicted number. However, until the 1997-2000 renovation, 20% of the eight million annual visitors rode the outside escalators for views without entering the museum. Since the renovation, visitors can only access the escalators by paying to enter the museum.

Since 2006, global attendance at the centre is no longer calculated at the main entrance, only for the Musée National d'Art Moderne and the public library. In 2017, the museum had 3.37 million visitors, while the public library had 1.37 million. The Musée National d'Art Moderne saw an increase in attendance from 3.1 million in 2010 to 3.75 million in 2013, with the "Dalí" retrospective breaking the museum's daily attendance record with 7,364 visitors.

The Centre Pompidou, a national museum, is owned and subsidized by the government's Ministry of Culture. In 2012, 64.2% of its budget, amounting to €82.8 million out of €129 million, was allocated for its staff. The Ministry of Culture appoints the museum's directors and oversees its management, although it operates independently as an Etablissement public à caractère administratif since its inception. The museum generated $1.9 million from traveling exhibitions in 2011.

The Georges Pompidou Art and Culture Foundation was established in 1977 as the museum's philanthropic arm in the United States. It acquires and encourages major donations of art and design for display at the museum. Since 2006, the non-profit support group has received donations of 28 works, collectively valued at over $14 million, and has purchased many others. In 2013, Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner, art collectors from New York, announced their plan to donate around 300 works by 27 European and international artists to the Centre Pompidou, which would be one of the institution's largest donations.