La Villa des Arts, one of Paris's last artists' housing estates

Hidden behind a heavy iron gate, La Villa des Arts, one of Paris's last remaining artist residences, is an ode to calm and creation. On the front door, 3 worn words seem to belong to another time: "Entrées des artistes". The tone is set.

Inside, more than 6,000 m2 of labyrinthine space mingles artists' studios and social housing. On the floor, a bevy of colorful period mosaics. Upstairs, Eiffel arches, creaky parquet flooring... And the highlight of the show, the fabulous staircase that seems to dance between the red doors of the residence's 4 floors.

If all these marvels can be admired today, it's thanks to the Mairie de Paris. In 2006, the Villa des Arts became too expensive for the Guéret family and fell into the hands of a developer. Not one to be overly sensitive, he wanted to transform the artists' housing estate into luxury apartments and sell them off.

"Some lament, others chant,"Banco! To prevent"Paris from becoming an exclusively residential city", a handful of tenants formed an amicale (today the association La Ville A des Arts) and opposed the planned demolition of their little corner of bold art.

Supported by the Mayor of the time, Bertrand Delanoë (former Mayor of the 18th arrondissement ), the Villa was finally saved from the flames of real estate speculation a year later. Completely renovated and refurbished in 2014, life is changing at the cité. New residents, new workshops, new links and a new adjoining gallery: La Ville A Des Arts.

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Artists, photographers, comedians, typographers, writers, musicians, cartoonists, architects, sculptors, set designers, film-makers... All these fine artists live alongside the residents of some fifteen social housing units, all managed by the town council.

Visitors are not left out either, as they can stroll through the Villa on one-hour guided tours once a month. If you're in a hurry, don't panic: the gallery, managed by the association, is open every day. "We created the association and the gallery to promote the heritage of the Villa des Arts," explains Barberine, a true living memory of the Grand Quarries district.

Workshops, drawing classes, exhibitions, meetings, concerts, conferences... More than a contemplative gallery, the La Ville A Des Arts gallery is a real place of life. "We're part of the life of the neighborhood," sums up the guide for the day.

If you'd like to get involved too, the association regularly recruits volunteers. You know where to find them, but the best thing to do is knock on the door of the Villa des Arts to find out more about the ghosts(Cézanne, Renoir, Signac...) that haunt this authentic and extraordinary place...