L'Art décoratif by Émile Lafont, Allegorical statue at the Grand Palais, 8th arrondissement, Paris, France

L'Art décoratif is a stone statue by Émile René Lafont on the Grand Palais, set on the building's facade rather than in front of it. The figure stands for the decorative arts, paired across the entrance with a counterpart representing Industry. Lafont received a bronze medal at the 1900 Paris World's Fair, the year the Grand Palais opened.

The sculpture was created around 1900, and its creator won a bronze medal for his work at the Paris World's Fair. It came into being during the period when Paris was establishing itself as the world's leading artistic center.

The figure expresses the value placed on craftsmanship and artistic design that Paris held dear in the early 1900s. Standing at the Grand Palais entrance, it shows how decorative arts were seen as central to city life.

The statue is easy to reach on foot from the Champs-Élysées area, as it sits right on the Grand Palais facade. The neighborhood is very walkable, with metro stations nearby offering quick connections to other parts of the city.

Lafont's figure stands on the Grand Palais's west corner, facing the Avenue Winston-Churchill side, where its counterpart representing Industry balances it across the entrance bay. Look for the tools and attributes each figure carries: they identify which art or trade is being personified.