America at 250: 6 Ways to Celebrate the French-American Friendship in France This Fall

The United States turned 250 this year, and France—America’s oldest ally—has been celebrating right alongside it. From a Loire Valley château with a Revolutionary War secret to Paris museums showcasing major American artists, here are six cultural experiences that bring the Franco-American story to life this fall.

When the 13 colonies declared independence on July 4, 1776, it was France that put money, ships, and soldiers behind the fledgling republic. Two and a half centuries later, that friendship is being honored with exhibitions, events, and heritage trails on both sides of the Atlantic.

To help visitors make sense of it all, Explore France has launched the France–USA Culture Guide. It brings together six leading French cultural institutions—the Musée Picasso-Paris, the Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire, the Bourse de Commerce–Pinault Collection, Paris Musées, the Centre des Monuments Nationaux, and the Musée Rodin—each with its own story of transatlantic connection.

Whether you’re already in Paris, planning a fall getaway, or simply dreaming of your next trip, here are our favorite highlights.

1. Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire: Home of Benjamin Franklin’s French Ally

Of all the stops on our list, the Domaine de Chaumont-sur-Loire has the most direct link to 1776. In the 18th century, the estate belonged to Jacques-Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont, a nobleman who threw his influence—and his fortune—behind the American cause.

Le Ray was a close associate of Benjamin Franklin. He hosted Franklin at his Paris residence, the Hôtel de Valentinois in Passy, and helped finance and supply the revolutionaries. He even commissioned the conversion of a merchant ship into the warship Bonhomme Richard, later made famous by John Paul Jones. After the 1783 peace treaty, Franklin stayed on in Passy as the first envoy of the newly recognized United States.

The château itself, perched above the Loire River, dates largely from the 15th and 16th centuries and was once owned by Catherine de’ Medici. Today it doubles as a Center for Arts and Nature, with contemporary installations scattered throughout the park, outbuildings, and château rooms.

Don’t miss: The 2026 International Garden Festival, themed “The Garden, Star of the Show,” features more than 20 show gardens inspired by the movies, with nods to films such as Avatar, The Truman Show, and Inception. Hurry, though: it closes on November 1, 2026. Check the estate’s website for winter hours for the château and park.

Make a night of it: Le Bois des Chambres, the estate’s own 39-room hotel, has a restaurant led by chef Victor Villatte that holds two Gault&Millau toques.

Getting there: It’s about 90 minutes by train from Paris Austerlitz to Onzain–Chaumont-sur-Loire, followed by a short cab ride, or roughly two hours by car via the A10. Learn more

2. Musée Picasso-Paris: Picasso Through American Eyes

Tucked inside the Hôtel Salé, a grand 17th-century mansion in the Marais, the Musée National Picasso-Paris holds more than 5,000 works by the Spanish master. In recent years, it has also become one of the city’s most exciting venues for American art, thanks to an annual series exploring how Picasso was received across the Atlantic.

That series has spotlighted Faith Ringgold (2023), Jackson Pollock (2024), and Philip Guston (2025). For the 250th anniversary year, the museum hosted Henry Taylor. Where thoughts provoke (April 8 to September 6, 2026), the California painter’s first survey in France, with around 100 paintings, sculptures, and installations spread across 13 galleries. The show has now closed, but a bilingual French–English catalog, co-published with Éditions Dilecta, is available in the museum shop.

On view now: This fall’s headliner is Kurt Schwitters. Le chaos-monde 1918–1948 (October 6, 2026 to February 7, 2027), a retrospective of the German Dada pioneer featuring more than 300 works and documents.

Coming soon: The American thread picks back up in spring 2027 with a major exhibition on the Harlem Renaissance—one to mark on your calendar.

Practical info: 5 Rue de Thorigny, 75003 Paris (Métro: Chemin Vert or Saint-Sébastien–Froissart). Open Tuesday through Sunday, 9:30 am to 6 pm, with late hours until 10 pm on the first Wednesday of the month; closed Mondays. Learn more

3. Bourse de Commerce–Pinault Collection: American Photography Under the Dome

Once the city’s grain and commodities exchange, the circular Bourse de Commerce near Les Halles is now the Paris home of the Pinault Collection, one of the world’s leading private holdings of contemporary art, with some 10,000 works. Japanese architect Tadao Ando inserted a soaring concrete cylinder inside the historic rotunda, and the contrast between old and new is half the thrill of a visit.

François Pinault has long collected American artists—Jean-Michel Basquiat, Cindy Sherman, and Kerry James Marshall among them—and this fall’s lineup puts that transatlantic eye front and center.

Don’t miss:

• Remember Me (October 7, 2026 to January 18, 2027) takes over the entire building to mark the bicentennial of photography, with around 700 works by more than 70 artists. American names include Irving Penn, Annie Leibovitz, Edward Steichen, Lee Miller, Tyler Mitchell, and Cindy Sherman, while Nan Goldin’s slideshow Stendhal Syndrome plays in the auditorium.
• The World According to Penn (through January 10, 2027) traces the legendary American photographer’s career from the 1940s to the early 2000s.
• The History of Tears (through January 25, 2027) sees American artist Barbara Kruger take over the rotunda with her signature bold text.

Insider tip: Admission is free on the first Saturday of each month from 5 pm to 9 pm—the next one is November 7, 2026.

Practical info: 2 Rue de Viarmes, 75001 Paris (Métro: Les Halles or Louvre–Rivoli; RER: Châtelet–Les Halles). Open 11 am to 7 pm, until 9 pm on Fridays; closed Tuesdays. Learn more

4. Paris Musées: Kerry James Marshall and Robert Capa

Paris Musées oversees the City of Paris’s 14 municipal museums and heritage sites, from the Belle Époque Petit Palais to the Catacombs. This fall, two of them are hosting exhibitions with strong American ties—and both are well worth a trip across town.

Kerry James Marshall: The Histories, Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris (September 18, 2026 to January 24, 2027)

After acclaimed stops in London and Zurich, this touring retrospective has arrived in Paris as the first major exhibition in France devoted to the Alabama-born, Chicago-based painter. Around 70 works span more than four decades, including eight new paintings created especially for the tour.

Marshall is celebrated for large, richly detailed canvases that place Black figures at the heart of the Western painting tradition, addressing everything from the Middle Passage to the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement. The show continues the museum’s tradition of landmark exhibitions of Black American artists, following Kara Walker in 2007 and Jean-Michel Basquiat in 2010.

11 Avenue du Président Wilson, 75116 Paris. Open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 6 pm. Learn more

Robert Capa: War Photographer, Musée de la Libération de Paris (February 18 to December 20, 2026)

No photographer is more closely tied to the American experience of World War II than Robert Capa. His grainy, blurred images of GIs wading ashore at Omaha Beach on D-Day remain among the most famous war photographs ever taken. This exhibition pairs them with his shots of the Liberation of Paris in August 1944, using vintage prints, magazines, personal belongings, and archives to show how the Hungarian-born photographer became a legend.

While you’re there, head some 65 feet underground to Colonel Rol-Tanguy’s preserved command post, where the Resistance coordinated the city’s uprising—now brought to life through a mixed-reality experience.

Place Denfert-Rochereau, 75014 Paris—conveniently across from the entrance to the Catacombs. Learn more

5. The Panthéon: Paying Tribute to Joséphine Baker

The Centre des Monuments Nationaux manages more than 100 historic sites across France, from the medieval ramparts of Carcassonne to the Loire Valley’s Château d’Azay-le-Rideau. For the 250th anniversary, its most meaningful site sits right in the heart of Paris.

Crowning the Latin Quarter, the neoclassical Panthéon was built as a church dedicated to Sainte-Geneviève and converted during the Revolution into a resting place for the nation’s greatest figures. Voltaire, Victor Hugo, Marie Curie, Alexandre Dumas, and Simone Veil are all honored in its crypt.

So is Joséphine Baker. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, she became the toast of Paris music halls in the 1920s, took French citizenship, served the Resistance during World War II, and campaigned tirelessly for civil rights on both sides of the Atlantic. On November 30, 2021, she became the first Black woman inducted into the Panthéon, where a cenotaph honors her (her remains rest in Monaco).

Timely visit: November 30, 2026, marks five years since her induction—a fitting moment to pay your respects to the woman who embodied the French-American bond perhaps better than anyone.

Practical info: Place du Panthéon, 75005 Paris (RER B: Luxembourg). The CMN’s interactive map can help you plan visits to its other monuments around France. Learn more

6. Musée Rodin: The Sculptor America Fell For

American collectors and patrons were among Auguste Rodin’s earliest champions, and his expressive, emotionally charged figures went on to shape generations of American sculptors and public monuments. Today, the United States holds some of the most important Rodin collections outside France, most notably at the Rodin Museum in Philadelphia.

To see where it all began, head to the Hôtel Biron in the 7th arrondissement, the elegant 18th-century mansion Rodin himself chose to house his museum. Eighteen galleries trace his creative process through clay models, plaster studies, bronzes, and marbles, including The Kiss.

Don’t miss: The sculpture garden covers about seven acres of lawns and pathways, where The Thinker, The Gates of Hell, the Monument to Balzac, and The Burghers of Calais stand among the trees, with the gilded dome of Les Invalides as a backdrop. With the leaves turning, fall is one of the loveliest times of year to visit.

Go further: Just outside the city, the Musée Rodin–Meudon preserves the house where the sculptor lived and worked for more than 25 years.

Practical info: 77 Rue de Varenne, 75007 Paris (Métro: Varenne). Open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 6:30 pm; last admission at 5:45 pm. Learn more