George Condo at the Mordern Arts Museum

A Major Art Event in the heart of Paris

This autumn, Paris adds to its warm shades of red and orange the rhythms and distorted faces of George Condo, an American painter both baroque and brutal , whose magnetic universe takes over the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris.

The exhibition, George Condo, brings together more than two hundred works — paintings, drawings, and sculptures — retracing forty years of a career as fascinating as it is unpredictable.

A Painter Between Reason and Madness

Born in New Hampshire in 1957, George Condo moved to New York at the end of the 1970s. Working as an assistant in Andy Warhol’s studio, he inherited a taste for provocation and serial repetition before heading to Europe — and to Paris in particular — where he spent a decisive decade.

In Paris, Condo refined his concept of “artificial realism” — a style that fuses the tradition of Old Masters (Rembrandt, Goya, Picasso) with pop culture and American cartoons.
The result: portraits of “humanoids”, fragmented figures of the modern psyche — part angel, part monster — painfully, beautifully human in their deformity.

A New York Trilogy Comes Full Circle

Following its retrospectives on Basquiat (2010) and Keith Haring (2013), the Musée d’Art Moderne completes its trilogy dedicated to the 1980s New York art scene with this major show on Condo.

Designed in close collaboration with the artist, the exhibition avoids a strict chronology; instead, it unfolds like a musical score, weaving together themes and obsessions — from the dialogue with art history to the deconstruction of the human figure, all the way to the shifting frontier of abstraction.
The artist’s works converse within a vibrant, almost hypnotic visual labyrinth.

When Madness Becomes Sublime

In a gallery reminiscent of the great classical museums, Condo revisits the masters of the past — Rodin, Goya, Picasso — transforming them into imagined studio companions.
Then comes “artificial realism”, where time blurs and styles collide.
His collages and combination paintings literally shatter the pictorial frame, while the final section immerses visitors in a series of black canvases and abstract monochromes, charged with restrained tension.
It’s a sensory, almost mystical experience — beauty born of chaos.

An Artistic Stopover for Hôtel Fabric Guests

After diving into Condo’s universe, step back gently into the light. Why not extend the reverie with a drink at the honesty bar of Hôtel Fabric?

And don’t forget to share your experience with our reception team — we love hearing your impressions!

Practical information

Until February 8, 2026. Open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am – 6 pm. Late opening Thursday until 9:30 pm

Photo © wikicommons