Japanese culture can be enjoyed here and there in Paris, through secret places and locations packed with history. At the corner of a street or in a relaxing garden, Japan comes to the French capital city along with a certain idea of relaxation and calm.
Links between Paris and Japan go back to the second half of the 19th century, when Japanism – this poetic cultural movement – influences the greatest French artists, from Monet to Van Gogh to Degas and Debussy, drawing inspiration in Japanese etchings.
In the 1960’s, as the Country of the Rising Sun is opening up, many Japanese people choose to come and settle in the French capital. As an outcome, a period of Japanese emulsion in Paris, with the opening of many stores, grocery stores, bookstores and restaurants.
The Hanami season is the perfect occasion in spring to discover cherry blossoms and their poetic and ephemeral white and pink colors, and discover the Japanese heritage and locations in Paris.
MAISON DE LA CULTURE DU JAPON A PARIS
101 bis Quai Jacques Chirac, 75015
Behind this huge façade made of glass and iron, across the Seine and the Eiffel Tower hides the Maison de la Culture et du Japon à Paris. Inaugurated in 1997 at the initiative of François Mitterand and then Japanese Prime Minister Zenko Suzuki, this cultural center is the outcome of architects Kenneth Amstrong and Masayuki Yamanaka. Covering 7,500sqm, the Maison de la Culture du Japon includes several movie theaters, a library filled with 20,000 books in French, Japanese and English devoted to Japanese culture, and a video library with 800 videocassette tapes.
All year around, the center provides a cultural program shining a light on traditional and contemporary performing arts, Japanese cinema, the art of ikebana, the art of origami, the art of calligraphy, learning Japanese, as well as manga and martial arts, through workshops and introductory classes as well as courses open to small and grown-up curious. As for the tea ceremony, it is shown in a traditional tea pavilion made of wood, tatami and fusuma.
MUSEE GUIMET
6 Place d'Iéna, 75016
Created by Lyon industrial and scholar Emile Guimet, the Musée Guimet also known as “National Museum of Asian Arts” shines a light on far-east arts including the art of the Country of the Rising Sun. One can discover about 11,000 Japanese pieces of work from the birth of Japanese art, under the Meiji era.
It is when traveling in Egypt, Greece, India, China and Japan that Emile Guimet gathers his huge art collection. First displayed in Lyon, his Asian objects eventually have been placed within the Musée Guimet, built by Jules Chatron and inaugurated in 1889. The museum now houses the greatest Asian art collection outside Asia.
Etchings, sculptures, silk paintings, china ceramics, enamels, screens from the 16th to the 19th centuries, as many historic works of art unveiled in the museum, hiding another surprise outside we will explain later.
MUSEE CERNUSCHI
7 Avenue Velasquez, 75008
Set since 1898 within a hotel particulier, a stone’s throw from the parc Monceau, the Musée Cernuschi – Museum of Asian Arts of the City of Paris – holds alongside Chinese and Korean works, a Japanese collection including over 3,600 works that includes 2,000 bronzes and 1,600 ceramics, mostly coming from the Edo era.
The city owes this collection of graphic art and decorative art items, the greatest Japanese art collection ever shown, to Henri Cernuschi, a financier and collector from the 19th century who brings these pieces back from his travels to Asia in 1871 and 1872, and puts them in his hotel particulier.
Among the must-seen pieces of the Musée Cernuschi, the statue of Amitābha – emblem of the place – as well as pieces of Ogata Kenzan’s screen gifted to the museum by painter Umehara Ryūzaburō, as well as an original dōka.
JARDIN JAPONAIS DE NOGUCHI - UNESCO
7 Place de Fontenoy, 75007
Created in 1957, the Jardin de l’Unesco or Unesco’s garden is a well-kept gem. Covering 1,700sqm, this green space was created by sculptor Isamu Noguchi, according to the traditional codes of the Japanese garden, while including a few contemporary pieces and modern art works. Divided into two parts, the garden enjoys a lake, a small bridge and floating stones across a stream, as well as plenty or trees and bushes imported from Japan.
A small patio enables to get an overview of this gorgeous space where harmony and equanimity are the watchwords. Have a look at the Fontaine de la Paix by sculptor Nogushi, an 8-ton granite rock on which the artist graved the Japanese ideogram for “Peace” – hence the nickname of the Unesco’s garden, also called Jardin de la Paix or Garden of Peace.
JARDIN JAPONAIS DU MUSEE ALBERT KAHN
2 Rue du Port, 92100 Boulogne-Billancourt
Back in 1898 from a stay in Japan, banker, traveler and philanthropist Albert Kahn – moved by the beauty of Japanese landscapes and customs – decides to settle a genuine Japanese village in the suburbs of Paris, in Boulogne-Billancourt. To do so, Albert Kahn called in landscapist Fumiaki Takano who comes up with a garden giving pride of place to calm and equanimity, around three major values: life (yang), death (yin) and the female-male axis.
Get in the Albert Kahn garden to discover a unique landscape characterized by plenty of plants, trees and flowers like apple trees, plum trees, maple trees, as well as bamboos from Japan, cherry trees blossoming as soon as sunny days are back, and colorful azaleas. Cross the small red bridge to discover a pond filled with koi carps, a small waterfall with relaxing lapping, and two traditional houses.
JARDIN JAPONAIS DU PANTHEON BOUDDHIQUE
19 Avenue d'Iéna, 75016
Did you know that behind the Musée Guimet hides a fantastic secret garden, the Jardin du Panthéon Bouddhique? Settled within the Heidelbach hotel particulier – housing the museum – this zen garden is a genuine haven of peace. Less known than the Albert-Kahn garden, this 450sqm green space is in the heart of the 16th arrondissement and displays all the codes of the traditional Japanese garden with a stream, a wooden bridge, bamboos and azaleas, as well as cherry trees blossoming in the spring.
Open and free of charge to all, the Jardin du Panthéon Bouddhique was created by French-Japanese architect Agnès Latour-Kurashige and art historian Jean-Sébastien Cluzel. The tea house overlooking the garden – designed by architect Nakamura Masao – houses the tea ceremony performed while complying with the greatest Japanese customs.
MAISON DU JAPON, CITE INTERNATIONALE UNIVERSITAIRE DE PARIS
7 Boulevard Jourdan, 75014
At the heart of the Cité Internationale Universitaire – within walking distance from the Fondation Danoise and the Collège d’Espagne – the Maison du Japon was first set in 1927. When opening, the 60 bedrooms of this Japanese-inspired building were devoted to housing the most deserving Japanese students. Since then, the Maison du Japon maintain dialog between students and searchers within the Cité Universitaire of Paris.
The building – which first stone was laid by Prince Ri, namely Emperor Hirohito’s brother-in-law – was designed by architect Pierre Sardou. Very tall, the Maison du Japon is inspired by Japanese constructions, with the lovely porch adorned with a sculpted wood panel representing the rising sun. inside, the main lounge is opened by sliding doors, like in traditional houses, and holds two mural paintings by Foujita, L’Arrivée des Occidentaux au Japon and Les Chevaux.
MAISON DE KISO
6 Avenue du Mahatma Gandhi, 75016
Set in the heart of the Jardin d’Acclimatation since 2001, the maison de Kiso is an authentic Japanese house built in 1861 and inspired by the minka, these former homes for peasants, artisans and merchants from the 19th century. Arrived in France in 1999 as gifted to ethnologist Jane Cobbi, the maison de Kiso was kept by the Museum d'Histoire Naturelle before being renovated by architect Makoto Furihata and a team of carpenters from Japan.
Built using ancestral methods, the maison de Kiso is made of wood pillars, carved stones and a roof of resinous tree clapboards. Inside, a living room and a bedroom separated by sliding doors, as well as a former stable.
JARDIN DE LA PAGODE
57 bis rue de Babylone, 75007
It used to be a highly charming Japanese venue. The Pagode – iconic art house opened in 1931 with a Japanese pavilion erected in 1896 by architect Alexandre Marcel for François-Emile Morin then manager of Le Bon Marché and his wife fond of Japanese culture – saw its destined transformed for ever by an American businessman.
In 2020, the latter decides to entirely renovate the building, perfect replica of a Japanese pagoda yet listed as Historic Monument and its lovely intimate garden, chopping ancient trees, a huge Ginko, a chestnut tree and a weeping beech tree.
LIBRAIRIE JAPONAISE JUNKU
18 Rue des Pyramides, 75001
To find out more about Japanese culture, have a go to Junku, aka the ideal Japanese bookstore in Paris. Among the books, most of them being in Japanese, enjoy books, manga, as well as a great collection of magazines, books for children, books about the Japanese culture and economy, as well as Japanese handbooks.
QUARTIER SAINTE-ANNE
In the triangle created by Avenue de l'Opéra/rue du Quatre Septembre/rue Richelieu
You cannot give an overview of the Japanese culture in Paris without speaking of the Sainte-Anne area, genuine neighborhood devoted to Japanese culture and gastronomy, set in the triangle created by avenue de l’Opéra, rue du Quatre-Septembre and rue Richelieu.
At the origins of this hotspot for homosexual encounters, with the opening of prestigious party venues in the late 60’s, visited by famous writers, actors and designers, such as Le Sept, Le Bronx, and Le Colony, the area has enjoyed a metamorphosis over the following decades with the opening of the first Japanese stores and restaurants first aiming at Japanese people coming for business and staying in hotels close to the Louvre. Now, the Sainte-Anne quarter is the perfect location to have some great ramen, boiling hot udon or sushi made by the book.
MAISON DU SAKÉ
11 Rue Tiquetonne, 75002
Major drink in Japan for years, sake is now to be enjoyed in France. At La Maison du Saké, this rice liquor is to be discovered through over 6,000 references coming from all over the archipelago, from the most famous vintages to the smallest Japanese brands.
At Le Maison du Saké, all sakes are junmai, without added distillated alcohol. Modern sake, tasting more like wine, traditional sake with great scents of rice, or plain sake, many discoveries to enjoy with Japanese tapas, this cellar store doubling up as an izakaya.
LA MAISON DU MOCHI
39 Rue du Cherche-Midi, 75006
Created in 2016 by Mathilda Motte following a trip to Japan where she was introduced to the mochi, la Maison du Mochi serves an infinite range of this traditional pastry. Made with sticky rice, this gluten-free ball, 100% plant-based and free of fat, is to be enjoyed with a cup of tea or herbal tea.
Traditionally made with adzuki core – the famous kidney bean paste – the mochi is served with yuzu, matcha or even black sesame. Thriving, another Maison du Mochi opened on the right riverbank.
MANGA CAFÉ KONBINI
61 Rue des Petits Champs, 75001
After a first venue, then a V2 within walking distance from the Bibliothèque François Mitterand, also of its own success, a third Manga Café Konbini opened in Paris. But whereas the previous venues promoted an incredible collection of manga, from the most famous ones to the most independent ones, this third spot is a genuine grocery store with Japanese products, displaying over 400 references directly imported from Japan.
Treat, cakes, snacks, drinks, ramen, as well as mochis, and doriyakis fill the shelves of this well-stored store. A concept-store corner also provides gorgeous bento boxes, kawaii cooking tools, and many stationary, and decoration items, perfect for creative art fans.
SUISEN SPA
7 Rue de Thorigny, 75003
First ryokan in Paris, Suisen invites to relax thanks to shiatsu, this millennium-old tradition mixing wellness and health benefits. Genuine inn devoted to relaxation, this Japanese spa shines a light on the Japanese lifestyle and artisanal heritage through materials coming from the archipelago: cedar Kumiko was made in the Toyama prefecture, bamboo blinds and roofs come from Kyoto, so do the tea set, futons and Imabari linen.
Shiatsu practitioner, the owner, Sandra Kasparian provides four treatments using paced pressure, drums, stretching and gentle massage of the body for deep physical, mental and emotional relaxation.
KIMONOYA
11 Rue du Pont Louis-Philippe, 75004
This charming store, inaugurated in 1981, is the oldest store in Paris dedicated to Japanese art. The perfect place to find traditional Japanese arts and crafts, like calligraphy, ikebana – floral arrangement – as well as the tea ceremony. Kimonoya also unveils a wonderful selection of traditional kimonos and yukatas.
