Welcome to The Director’s Cut, an interactive column featuring fashion, beauty and career advice from RGNN Director and Founder, @isabelevabohrer.
Want your IG pics to blow up this summer? We’ve got you covered, because you can do that right now, quite literally. The Balloon Museum, which went viral ever since it was featured in the third season of “Emily in Paris,” has just opened its doors again. And at no other location than the Grand Palais in Paris.
Initially established in Rome in 2020, the Balloon Museum has been popping up in cities including Naples, New York City, Madrid and more. The concept? A series of rooms, all centered around inflatable art, each room designed by a different artist or group of artists. Carsten Höller, Philippe Parreno, Martin Creed, Marta Minujín, Hyperstudio, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Ryan Gander, A.A.Murakami, Karina Smigla-Bobinski, Cyril Lancelin, Alex Schweder, Quiet Ensemble, SpY, Nils Völker, Camille Walala, Sun Yitian, Mauro Pace, and Motorefisico are among the artists included in “Euphoria: Art is in the Air,” the title of the exhibition in Paris. “Euphoria is one of the sensations that pervades the emotional relationships of our time, and the inflatable, with its lightness and scale, becomes its ultimate expression,” reads the opening statement when you enter the Grand Palais.
Watch the videos and look at the photos – you’ll see how I got euphoric. It’s an immersive experience for the whole family – kids will love it, but if you’re here for the IG photos, you can definitely get those in, too.
Come prepared for a workout, though. You can play with the inflatable art as much or as little as you wish. And trust me, I speak from experience: wear sneakers if you’re not used to heels. I think I can officially say I have gone swimming in So Kates now, but it’s not something I would do on the daily.
What looks like a mere bunch of balloons is actually an artistic tradition rooted in history. On the way out, you’ll find a timeline that chronicles the trajectory of inflatable art throughout history. Did you know that inflatable art was already a thing in 1924? At the first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to be exact. But before that, Ferdinand von Zeppelin invented the Zeppelin in 1899, and the Montgolfier Brothers the hot air balloon in 1782. In fact, the inspiration behind the balloon as a form of art goes all the way back to 1645, to Jan Lievens’ paintings “The Bubble” and “Memento Mori: Child Making Soap Bubbles,” and Leonardo Da Vinci was the first to sketch a life preserver.
As for today, and specifically, this summer, because the Balloon Museum will be on in Paris until September 6, 2025, here’s everything you need to know. Get ready to blow up – or at least have your photos and videos do the work for you.
Tips for visiting
- The website says the visit takes around 1.5 hours. That’s correct – you can do it in an hour, if there are not a lot of people. But if there are lots of people and you want to spend time getting the perfect shoes, plan for two hours.
- If you are bringing anything other than a mini or crossbody bag, leave it at the coat check (cost for a coat check is 3 euros). Specifically, items exceeding the authorized dimensions of 42x30x20 cm are not allowed inside.
- I would recommend bringing a crossbody bag (I took a top handle bag and it got in the way sometimes).
- Wear shoes you can not only walk in, but get in a pool of balloons in.
- I would not recommend coming in sandals or anything without socks – to participate in all the pieces, you will be asked to take your shoes off at one point.
- For the ball pool, you will be asked to wear shoe covers.
- If you want to wear a mini dress, wear biker shorts underneath. That will make it much easier for you to participate in all of the rooms (you will be lying down in some of them, with mirrors, taking selfies, etc.)
- Come with a friend and have them film you – selfies will be difficult at some point and no tripods allowed inside.
- To get the best pics, book the earliest time slot.
- Book tickets online in advance to avoid long queues or even having them sell out – the museum is very popular!
- The summer in Paris is hot – drink water before entering the museum. There is a bar at the end where you can buy drinks, but no drinks throughout the exhibition.
Plan your visit
Balloon Museum: “Euphoria: Art is in the Air”
- Until September 6, 2025.
- Grand Palais, 75008 Paris.
- Monday through Sunday. Generally from 10.30 a.m. to 8.30 p.m., but also from 9.30 a.m. to 8.30 p.m. on some days. Check the exact schedule here.
- Standard tickets: Adult (+26): 22 Euros. Young (12-25): 20 Euros. Child (4-11): 17 Euros.
- Peak tickets (generally on the weekends, but also in August as a whole): Adult (+26): 25 Euros. Young (12-25): 23 Euros. Child (4-11): 20 Euros.
- Children under 3 years old enter free of charge.
- Last entry is 1.5 hours before closing.
- Book tickets online here.
- More information on the official website here.
Thank you to the Balloon Museum for inviting us.
Questions or comments? Follow me on IG @isabelevabohrer or TikTok and say hi! See you soon!
