Maison des Métallos, Cultural center and historical monument in 11th arrondissement, Paris, France
The Maison des Métallos is a former factory building on Rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud that now functions as a venue for theater, dance, music, and exhibitions. It houses multiple spaces including an auditorium with around 260 seats and smaller areas for galleries and performances.
The building was constructed in 1881 as a factory for brass instruments and has shaped the neighborhood since then. After decades of serving as a union headquarters, it was transformed into a cultural center in the early 2000s.
The building connects working-class history with contemporary art, as it once served as a union headquarters where labor movements gathered. Walking through the spaces, you sense how this industrial past remains part of the place's identity today.
The entrance is at 94 rue Jean-Pierre-Timbaud, in the 11th arrondissement; the nearest metro stops are Couronnes and Parmentier. The tall arched gateway is closed by a wrought-iron gate, and the two red-framed storefronts flank it at street level. The building is a listed monument historique, so step-free access and room layout vary; ask at the desk before a performance.
Look above the arched gateway: a wrought-iron lyre, still in place, recalls the building's first purpose as the Gautrot instrument factory, later Couesnon. The facades and roofs were listed as monuments historiques in 2000, the same year the union put part of the premises up for sale.
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