Full art-world immersion doesn’t have to end when you leave the Grand Palais. If you stay at Le Royal Monceau — Raffles Paris during Art Basel Paris, it follows you home.
In 2010, French industrial architect Philippe Starck reenvisioned the 1920s hotel as a contemporary home for the arts, adding over 300 works to the on-site collection and curating exhibitions that collapse boundaries between Le Royal Monceau and its neighboring galleries.
Among the hotel’s constellation of borrowed artworks are a selection of paintings by French-American artist Jaouad Bentama, who plumbs the carnal depths of the human experience in his abstract works. His latest series, “Déchirures” features sliced canvases that bleed bursts of color. Bentama traces his fascination with the body back to a life-threatening traffic accident that left him in a coma. The work he made in the aftermath of this event captures a sense of physical vulnerability while also thrumming with resilience.
Bentama’s work will be on view in the hotel’s lobby through Oct. 30, and is an entry point to accessing the week’s programming—for fair veterans and curious travelers alike. “Exhibiting at Le Royal Monceau – Raffles Paris is an honor,” the artist said in a statement. “Every corner of this Palace embodies French elegance and Art de Vivre. My works have found an ideal setting, resonating with the energy and artistic sensibility of the place.”
What’s more, Le Royal Monceau – Raffles Paris is the only hotel in Paris with a dedicated Art Concierge, offering itineraries curated for visitors’ interests. Conceptualized by Starck, the service crosses galleries, ateliers, collectors’ homes, and more to provide insight into the city’s art scene and artistic movements.
Elsewhere on the grounds, the Katara Cinema hosts private screenings, Sunday Art brunch invites whole families to create, and Painting in the Parc sees guests capturing the Paris light under the guidance of a Beaux-Arts professor before enjoying a gourmet picnic and a glass of champagne.
At Le Royal Monceau — Raffles Paris, hospitality and the arts are inextricable, just as the Palace’s architect intended.
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