Check out the exhibition, “Eiffel, Higher and Higher”

Throughout 2023, the Eiffel Tower is paying tribute to its creator, Gustave Eiffel, to mark the centenary of his death. A highlight of this special year is this free exhibition that can be viewed on the esplanade of the Eiffel Tower. The “Eiffel, Higher and Higher!” exhibition is based on historic research undertaken by the curator, Savin Yeatman-Eiffel, for the Association of the Descendants of Gustave Eiffel (ADGE). 

It features 12 richly illustrated large panels, positioned in the center of the esplanade, and “invites you to rediscover the incredible race to construct the highest buildings, in which Gustave Eiffel was the main contender, and to see his work from a new perspective,” says Savin Yeatman-Eiffel, Gustave Eiffel’s great-great-great-grandson.
Though nowadays, the Eiffel Tower seems like a natural part of the Parisian landscape, the exhibition immerses us in the incredible technical and aesthetic challenges that Gustave Eiffel had to overcome to impose his project, and in particular, the battle that he had to wage, and win, against other plans for tower monuments in competition with his own, which have now been forgotten.

The exhibition recounts the incredible story of various projects for a “1000-foot tower” that followed one after the other for the different World Exhibitions in the 19thcentury, until “ironman” Gustave Eiffel arrived on the scene, for the 1889 World Exhibition. You will learn more about the difficult fight that the engineer and industrialist had to wage to make his project a reality. And the struggle was not over once his Tower was built, because he then had to put up a strong defense to save it from destruction after only 20 years.  

It is an exciting and highly visual story, accessible to all - just head through the security checks at the Tower’s main entries and you can visit the esplanade and gardens of the Eiffel Tower for free. The exhibition will be open until the end of the year.