Le Bateau-Lavoir
Le Bateau-Lavoir
3.5
About
This collection of small apartment buildings in Montmartre served as the homes and studios of numerous artists, including Picasso, in the early 20th century.
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The area
Neighbourhood: 18th Arrondissement - Butte-Montmartre
How to get there
- Abbesses • 3 min walk
- Lamarck – Caulaincourt • 5 min walk
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4,796 within 10 kms
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3.5
34 reviews
Excellent
6
Very good
14
Average
12
Poor
2
Terrible
0
Auggie
La Plata, Argentina79 contributions
Apr 2024 • Couples
It's just the window of a shop you can peek through. However, it has some historic significance any art lover should be familiar with.
If you are touring Montmartre, you definitely want to make a stop at the beautiful Place Goudeau, where this shop is located.
If you are touring Montmartre, you definitely want to make a stop at the beautiful Place Goudeau, where this shop is located.
Written 29 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
gillespradere
Fontenay-aux-Roses, France30 contributions
June 2018 • Solo
There is little to see in Bateau-Lavoir except for a shop-window on the lovely Place Goudeau. But, it's worth passing by remembering the incredible role the then shabby building played in early 20th century art history.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Paris was the capital of modern art. Montmartre became its heart, thanks in particular to the Bateau-Lavoir. In 1889, the owner of the place, built a dozen small workshops distributed along a corridor running as on a boat. Only one water point, no heating, ice-cold workshops in winter, turn into an oven in summer. The place welcomed its first artist Maxime Maufra in 1892 and quickly became a center of multiple artistic encounters..
Klees Van Dongen lived there from 1905 to 1907, André Derain in 1907, Amadeo Modigliani in 1908, Juan Gris in 1908, Max Jacob in 1911, Pierre Reverdy in 1912. Paul Gauguin, the Douanier Rousseau, Georges Braque, Henri Matisse, Guillaume Apollinaire and Jean Cocteau came as friends.
In April 1904, Pablo Picasso, back from Barcelona, took over the studio of his friend Paco Durrio, sculptor and ceramist and stayed there until 1910. He painted there the Demoiselles d'Avignon in 1907, which began his cubist period. He also met love there in the person of the model Fernande Olivier.
"I know we'll come back to the Bateau-Lavoir. That's where we were really happy, we were considered painters and not curious animals "said Pablo Picasso of this refuge. With the emergence of the artistic scene in Montparnasse after WWI and notably La Ruche, the Bateau-Lavoir lost its beauty. In 1970, the wooden structure did not resist a fire and only the façade, classified as a historical monument, survived this accident. Fortunately, eight years later, the architect Claude Charpentier rebuild the building and allowed the preservation of this part of the story.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Paris was the capital of modern art. Montmartre became its heart, thanks in particular to the Bateau-Lavoir. In 1889, the owner of the place, built a dozen small workshops distributed along a corridor running as on a boat. Only one water point, no heating, ice-cold workshops in winter, turn into an oven in summer. The place welcomed its first artist Maxime Maufra in 1892 and quickly became a center of multiple artistic encounters..
Klees Van Dongen lived there from 1905 to 1907, André Derain in 1907, Amadeo Modigliani in 1908, Juan Gris in 1908, Max Jacob in 1911, Pierre Reverdy in 1912. Paul Gauguin, the Douanier Rousseau, Georges Braque, Henri Matisse, Guillaume Apollinaire and Jean Cocteau came as friends.
In April 1904, Pablo Picasso, back from Barcelona, took over the studio of his friend Paco Durrio, sculptor and ceramist and stayed there until 1910. He painted there the Demoiselles d'Avignon in 1907, which began his cubist period. He also met love there in the person of the model Fernande Olivier.
"I know we'll come back to the Bateau-Lavoir. That's where we were really happy, we were considered painters and not curious animals "said Pablo Picasso of this refuge. With the emergence of the artistic scene in Montparnasse after WWI and notably La Ruche, the Bateau-Lavoir lost its beauty. In 1970, the wooden structure did not resist a fire and only the façade, classified as a historical monument, survived this accident. Fortunately, eight years later, the architect Claude Charpentier rebuild the building and allowed the preservation of this part of the story.
Written 8 August 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
DPattersonInCH
Zurich, Switzerland129 contributions
Apr 2013 • Family
Now a private residence, we were not able to go in. The window in front explained the history and significance. The square (more of a circle) was neat and the ambience inspiring.
Written 27 April 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
d s
Long Valley, NJ2 contributions
Sept 2013 • Solo
You should not visit the site as you will not like it. It sits just down the hill from SACRE COEUR KÄ°LÄ°SES, on the way to the Moulin Rouge. I visited Sept 2013 with my 17 yo son. Many tourists walked through the area yet none seemed to know of it's significance. As someone mentioned there is a storefront window with some pamphlets in it, though even if you were to bother to look at the window you would not likely understand what it was about.
I've read a lot, a real lot on Picasso. Though in to art I really disliked him until I was 26 when a friend kind of forced me to go to the mammoth MOMA retrospective (unlikely to ever be repeated). I walked out of the show in awe of his genius. Having been to multiple Picasso exhibits since and having read Richardson's first 3 volumes of his biography (hopefully the last to come out before he dies), and multiple other books, going to the Le Bateau-Lavior was kind of a quest.
While I doubt you would like it there we did find a picnic bench under the trees in the small area the building encompasses, and on this warm Sept there were a number of 19-20ish young men and women sitting there. Two locals who looked to be in their late 20's were standing in front of them. A male with no shirt was playing the guitar (Picasso painted many guitarists/guitars) while the girl sang "Back to Black" by Amy Winehouse. She had an amazing voice. There was another older male, with an open white shirt and he was swigging from a bottle of whiskey. He was perhaps in his late 30 and looked Spanish and in all the right places he let out a wail to accompany the song that pierced the soul.
They invited my son to joint the group for a couple of minutes and he took a sip of whiskey before we moved on.
I didn't get to go inside the Le Bateau-Lavoir. It's not the original building anyway. But I did find Picasso's spirit there under the trees, and it was special
I've read a lot, a real lot on Picasso. Though in to art I really disliked him until I was 26 when a friend kind of forced me to go to the mammoth MOMA retrospective (unlikely to ever be repeated). I walked out of the show in awe of his genius. Having been to multiple Picasso exhibits since and having read Richardson's first 3 volumes of his biography (hopefully the last to come out before he dies), and multiple other books, going to the Le Bateau-Lavior was kind of a quest.
While I doubt you would like it there we did find a picnic bench under the trees in the small area the building encompasses, and on this warm Sept there were a number of 19-20ish young men and women sitting there. Two locals who looked to be in their late 20's were standing in front of them. A male with no shirt was playing the guitar (Picasso painted many guitarists/guitars) while the girl sang "Back to Black" by Amy Winehouse. She had an amazing voice. There was another older male, with an open white shirt and he was swigging from a bottle of whiskey. He was perhaps in his late 30 and looked Spanish and in all the right places he let out a wail to accompany the song that pierced the soul.
They invited my son to joint the group for a couple of minutes and he took a sip of whiskey before we moved on.
I didn't get to go inside the Le Bateau-Lavoir. It's not the original building anyway. But I did find Picasso's spirit there under the trees, and it was special
Written 21 January 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Paul B
Maylands, Australia365 contributions
Apr 2018 • Friends
Worth a look as you walk up the hill through Place Emile-Goudeau which is a lovely small park and connecting terrace where lots of buskers often play.Here is the former studios of Pablo Picasso one of Paris most famous artists who painted in Le-Bateau Lavoir.Musee Montmartre has a display about Picasso in the museum close by..One can imagine Van Gogh and Picasso travelled these streets enjoying the gregarious life.
Written 25 June 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
DezygnHerOriginlaz
Wayne, PA6 contributions
Nov 2017 • Friends
If you want to see the OUTSIDE of the building or check out the neighborhood of all the creative that lived there it is OK. There is no vie view of the inside/studios or rooms. Know your history/art history and get a feel for the environs. Also see or read the Steve Martin play: "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" referencing a nearby bar before the visit.
Written 3 May 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
DipuKV
Pune, India3,302 contributions
May 2019 • Solo
A peek at a shop-window at Place Goudeau is all Le Bateau-Lavoir offers. Nevertheless, if you have made the effort to go all the way to Montmartre, it is worth a visit to appreciate the history of the place once you read up on it!
Written 2 June 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
William F
Sonora, CA540 contributions
July 2015 • Couples
well not much to see here but if you're a Picasso buff like me you go there and imagine what it must have been like in his time. Montmartre transports you back there easily.
Written 20 December 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jolyon67
Melbourne, Australia5,667 contributions
Jan 2015 • Friends
Like much of Montmartre you need a bit of imagination to appreciate the significance of this little building. 100 years ago it was the workshop of some of the greatest artists of the early 20th century. Matisse, Braque, Modigliani and most famously Picasso worked behind these walls. The building was so flimsy it creaked in strong wind, earning it the boat themed nickname.
There is not much to see today, there is a window display with old photographs, an information panel, and walking tours of the area fill you in on other historical anecdotes. In front is a pleasant cobbled plaza with a Wallace fountain in the middle.
An artist's workshop survives just around the corner on Rue d'Orchampt. Look for the long dark green warehouse, mostly made of large windows to let in maximum light.
There is not much to see today, there is a window display with old photographs, an information panel, and walking tours of the area fill you in on other historical anecdotes. In front is a pleasant cobbled plaza with a Wallace fountain in the middle.
An artist's workshop survives just around the corner on Rue d'Orchampt. Look for the long dark green warehouse, mostly made of large windows to let in maximum light.
Written 3 March 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CAnativewanderlust
Seattle, WA472 contributions
Sept 2014 • Couples
Reserve a walk with a local art fanatic. Appreciate Montmartre and then come up to a beautiful square with benches, trees and a view of Montmartre below (about mid hill). Le Bateau Lavoir was burned down and rebuilt as it was originally. The window has some pictures and history of the site. You will miss if unless you are looking for it or with a local that knows the place. Picasso lived here, it is said he was happiest here. Now they still use this site to rent artists studios, there is a waiting list but in the spirit of Picasso the Parisians or community of Montmartre have kept it alive. Nothing to see than the site, no museum other than what is displayed in the window.
Written 2 October 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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