Agnès Varda’s Paris, here and there
Agnès Varda filmed and photographed Paris like no one else. His unique vision transformed the city into a living, vibrant character.
From April 9 to August 24, 2025, the Carnavalet museum celebrates her work with the exhibition Le Paris d’Agnès Varda, de-ci, de-là.
This exhibition explores his little-known photographic work and his intimate connection with the courtyard-atelier on rue Daguerre, his creative refuge from 1951 to 2019.
Paris, setting and inspiration
The exhibition features 130 photographic prints, some previously unseen, and extracts from films shot in Paris.
Cléo de 5 à 7 (1962) opens the tour with a Paris in motion, capturing the wanderings of a woman awaiting a medical diagnosis.
Other films illustrate this approach:
- The MacDonald Bridge Bride and Groom (1962), silent film pastiche
- Far from Vietnam (1967), a committed look at political tensions
His films give Paris a strong emotional dimension, where the streets become an echo of the characters’ feelings.
A social and poetic look
Agnès Varda has always filmed the invisible. She has immortalized everyday figures with tenderness and commitment.
- L’Opéra-Mouffe (1958) illustrates the Mouffetard district and its inhabitants.
- Daguerréotypes (1975) portrays the shopkeepers of Rue Daguerre.
The exhibition also features portraits of women made for L’une chante, l’autre pas (1977), a film about women’s emancipation.
A vibrant heritage
The exhibition closes with portraits of the artist in his studio courtyard, which has become a symbol of his prolific oeuvre.
Personal objects, posters and a sculpture of his cat Nini enhance this immersion in his world.
A catalog book accompanies the exhibition, with texts by the curators and the scientific committee.
Through this retrospective, Paris becomes the mirror of Agnès Varda’s poetic and committed gaze.
📍 Carnavalet Museum, Paris
📅 April 9 – August 24, 2025
