Paris is coming to Bellas Artes.

This November, Centre Pompidou Mexico City becomes a reality as works from the Paris institution arrive at the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes for Las formas de la energía. Obras emblemáticas del Centre Pompidou.

Opening November 12, the exhibition brings a selection from one of the world’s most important modern and contemporary art collections to Mexico. The show forms part of La Gran Fiesta Franco-Mexicana, a major cultural program celebrating 200 years of diplomatic relations between Mexico and France.

What Centre Pompidou Mexico City Will Bring to Bellas Artes

Rather than attempting to summarize the Pompidou’s enormous collection, Las formas de la energía follows a specific idea: what happens when energy becomes part of the artwork itself?

The exhibition traces experiments with movement, light, color, geometry, and perception across the 20th century, with a particular focus on kinetic and Op Art. A bronze sculpture by Francesco Somaini and an experimental film by Marcel Duchamp are among the works announced for the show.

The arrival feels particularly significant right now. The Centre Pompidou in Paris is undergoing a major transformation, temporarily shifting attention toward exhibitions and collaborations beyond its famous Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers-designed building.

In Mexico, the show is part of an even bigger cultural exchange. La Gran Fiesta Franco-Mexicana includes nearly 200 artistic, academic, and scientific activities across 21 Mexican cities, bringing together institutions from both countries.

The setting also makes sense. The Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes has a long history of presenting international modern art within one of Mexico City’s most recognizable cultural landmarks.

For a few months, that relationship becomes particularly direct: Parisian modernism, Mexican architecture, and decades of experimentation with how art can move, shift, and alter what we see, all under the same roof.

Las formas de la energía opens November 12, 2026 at the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes.