At 12 Rue Cortot, the Renoir Gardens surround the Montmartre Museum while overlooking the Clos Montmartre. They span roughly 2,000 m² and have been redesigned to revive the gardens Renoir painted on site, inviting visitors into an impressionist setting with playful nods to the artist’s iconic works.
This is a place that surprisingly stands out for its discretion. While the nearby Place du Tertre is often crowded with visitors, this garden, tucked behind the museum’s old buildings, feels like a peaceful islet kept apart from the bustle. The site sits within a 17th- and 18th-century complex, just a few minutes from the Sacré-Cœur. The lower gardens touch the vignes du Clos Montmartre, which further reinforces the sense of countryside perched above Paris.
Moreover, the garden’s name isn’t a coincidence: Renoir himself frequented the place. He lived in 1876 and 1877 in the studios on Rue Cortot, where he painted several major works. A major renovation project launched after 2011 has allowed redessiner les trois jardins que Renoir avait peints sur place.
The Renoir Gardens are closely tied to two especially famous paintings: The Swing and Le Bal du moulin de la Galette, created during Renoir's Montmartre years. Of course, you shouldn't imagine a garden frozen in time like a 19th‑century postcard: what you see today is a heritage restitution designed to evoke the spirit of the place and the painter's compositions.
If this garden evokes Renoir’s style so vividly, it’s also because it recaptures several hallmarks of the Impressionist world: shifting light, leafy canopies, blooms, meandering paths, open sightlines, and a knack for vibrating a simple moment with life rather than gilding the scene. Impressionism seeks to capture a sensation, an atmosphere, a spark of vitality. In the Renoir Gardens, that spirit is found among the wrought-iron tables, the trees, the neighboring vines, and the ancient façades.
The Renoir Gardens are open during museum hours, with a dedicated option that also grants access to the gardens alone. You can visit for the collections, for the recreated workshop of Suzanne Valadon and Maurice Utrillo, or simply for this green interlude hidden in the heart of the Butte.
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Dates and Opening Time
From October 3, 2026 to December 31, 2027
Location
Montmartre Museum
12, rue Cortot
75018 Paris 18
Route planner
Accessibility info
Access
Lamarck-Caulaincourt metro station
Official website
museedemontmartre.fr
