Henri Cartier-Bresson died in 2004 and is remembered as one of the most important French press photographers of the past century (he co-founded Magnum Photos agency in 1947). In 2003, he and his family decided to create this foundation in order to conserve his works and to organise lectures and exhibitions related to photography.

Not to be confused with contemporary art orientated Fondation Cartier which is in the same neighbourhood, Fondation Cartier-Bresson is located in an elegant building (once an atelier) in a small and isolated cul-de-sac. A bench and 5 birches confer an original charm to the place. The building has four floors, with the reception (plus vast convenient lockers) on the ground floor, exhibition rooms on the first and second, and a relaxing space on the third floor.

Temporary exhibitions are not focused only on Cartier-Bresson’s photographs, but generally display other artists whose style, period or favourite themes are similar to Cartier-Bresson’s.

The top floor is a relaxing area with a dozen of Cartier-Bresson’s photographs, and a resource centre, with books and audiovisual material.

On Wednesday evenings, it’s possible to visit the foundation for free between 18:30 and 20:30 (last admission 20:00). For photo lovers on a budget, it can thus be combined with the Maison Européenne de la Photographie (check the Maison Européenne de la Photographie article), also free on Wednesdays after 17:00.

Current exhibition (until 29th July): Yutaka Takanashi

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Fondation Cartier-Bresson | Art & culture | Entrance € 6.00
2 impasse Lebouis | Montparnasse | +33156802700
Tue – Sun 13:00 – 18:30, Sat 11:00 – 18:45, Wed free 18:30 – 20:30

The Russian born artist and sculptor Ossip Zadkine settled in Paris in 1910. In 1928 he moved to the rue d’Assas where he lived and worked in the (now museum) house/studio until his death in 1967. Zadkine was part of the Cubist movement (1914-25) and his work is said to have been influenced by aspects of the primitive arts as well as by his experiences as a stretcher-bearer in the First World War. Look out for one of his best known pieces in the garden: La Ville Détruite: a memorial to the destruction of Rotterdam by the Germans in 1940.

Thoughtfully arranged in this lilliputian gallery are some 300 or so sculptures in wood, clay, marble, bronze and stone, in addition to drawings, photographs and tapestries. Inside, light from the huge atelier (studio) windows illuminates these intriguing works – some subtly sensual, others intricate and obscure – against the oak-floor and white-walled interior.

Outside in the semi-wild garden, powerful, contorted metal structures sprawl amid the greenery whilst twisting metallic limbs and sections of intertwined machinery protrude from the foliage.

Far off the standard Paris museum trail, the Zadkine allows for a more intimate glimpse at the life and works of an inspiring and influential artist.

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Musee Zadkine | Art & culture | Free
100 bis rue d’Assas | Montparnasse | +33155427720
Tue – Sun 10:00 – 18:00

I love a second-hand book shop. I’m not sure whether it’s the musty smell, the odd-looking man lurking as if he has nowhere else to go (and more than likely he doesn’t), or the weird and very wonderful things you can pick up on the cheap (cookery book where everything looks as if its coated in slime, DIY book in which every piece of advice is now illegal or extremely dangerous, calendar from 1990… to name just some of the treats I’ve come across).

Also, these places always make me feel (smugly) like I’m cheating the system somehow. Like when you find exactly what you want and its on sale, but not like a normal shop sale, more like 90 per cent off. And it’s a book, so somehow just a little bit better. Glorious.

Anyway, in Paris, second-hand book shops are both better and worse than the ones at home (mine’s the UK). Better as there are so few of them and English/US literature is such a treat when you live abroad, worse because the books can be so shockingly expensive and the selection is often poor.

Hurrah then for Tea and Tattered Pages which has both a wide and varied selection of stock, all at reasonable prices.

Its a little off the usual tourist track out in residential Montparnasse but well worth the journey. What’s more, the lovely American lady who runs the shop will serve you English tea, scones and carrot cake in the tiny tea-room at the back. Fab.

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Tea and Tattered Pages | Coffee & tea, Shopping, Snacks
24 rue Mayet | Montparnasse | +33140659435
Mon – Sat 11:00 – 19:00, Sun 12:00 – 18:00