In the first decades of the twentieth century, Jewish artists including Modigliani, Soutine, Kisling, Pisarro and Chagall, predominantly from Eastern Europe, were among the many foreigners attracted to Paris to pursue careers as professional artists.

The Jewish artists of the School of Paris (School immigrant artists who lived and worked in Montparnasse from 1915 to 1930) came from various backgrounds, rich and poor, orthodox and liberal. They varied in artistic style, and, with the exception of Marc Chagall and Man3-Katz, didn't paint Jewish themes. But modernist influences did not negate their personal heritage. Most thought of themselves as both artists and Jews. They met at caf3s and in studios. A great camaraderie grew among these artists and the vibrant group of poets, critics, dealers, and collectors who converged in Montparnasse and have since been called the Circle of Montparnasse, referring to the new neighborhood of caf3s and wide boulevards in which they settled.

Chagall, Delaunay, Modigliani, Nadelman, Pascin, and Max Weber arrived in Paris by 1910. During World War I many of the Jewish artists left Paris, including Nadelman, who settled in New York. Both Man3-Katz , who had arrived in 1913, and Chagall went to Russia, their homeland, but were back in Paris by the 1920s. Moise Kisling, served in the French Army.

Those who returned found Paris a place of prosperity, but also discovered an increasingly conservative political, social, and artistic atmosphere. Nevertheless, over the course of the decade, a network of dealers, collectors, and critics would advance the popularity and commercial success of many of these artists, including, in the last two galleries, Kisling, Jacques Lipchitz, Louis Marcoussis, Chana Orloff, and Chaim Soutine. Despite their foreignness, the painterly, coloristic works and expressionistic styles that many of this group developed soon came to define French modernist painting between the wars.

Paintings by Jewish artists, such as Chaim Soutine, can be found at the L'Orangerie. Another interesting collection is the Strauss-Rothschild Collection found at the Cluny Museum.

Located at number 42 rue des Saules, in Montmartre, is the Museum of Jewish Art. Inside one can find Chagall lithographs, sketches by Mane-Katz and paintings by Alphonse Levy. Tombstones, ketubot, and Jewish ritual items can also be found in the museum. Also there is an exhibit of synagogue models from across Europe.

During the 19th century, Jews were extremely active in many spheres of French society. Rachel and Sarah Bernhardt are two Jewish women who became famous acting at the Comedie Francaise in Paris. Bernhardt eventually directed plays at her own theater and was given the title "Divine Sarah" by Victor Hugo. Leading up to the Dreyfus case, French Jews enjoyed equality in exchange for an astounding degree of assimilation. Rabbis began dressing like priests, organs were put in synagogues. It was even proposed that the Sabbath be moved from Saturday to Sunday.

It has been France's fate to be better known for its anti-Semitism than its Semitism. Such national disgraces as the persecution of Captain Alfred Dreyfus and the deportation of a fourth of French Jewry to Nazi death camps are, and should be, well remembered. Jews became involved in politics; for example, Achille Fould and Isaac Cremiuex served in the Chamber of Deputies. Jews also excelled in the financial sphere, two leading families were the Rothschild and the Pereire families. In the field of literature and philosophy, well-known Jews included Emile Durkheim, Marcel Proust and Salomon Munk.

At Arc de Triomphe is the rue Copernic Synagogue, which houses the largest non-Orthodox congregation. The synagogue was the target of anti-Semitic attacks in 1980, killing 4 people. Built in 1906, the synagogue contains plaques for those who died in World War I and the 1980 bomb attack.

The Art Nouveau synagogue, Agoudas Hakehilos, located on rue Pavee 10, is one of the most interesting buildings of the district, the Art Nouveau synagogue. Built in 1913 for Russian and Rumanian immigrants, the synagogue was designed by Hector Guimard, who is most famous for his designs used for Paris's metro system.

Another beautiful synagogue is located near the Eiffel Tower on rue Chasseloup-Laubat 14. Completed in 1913, the synagogue has a yellow-stone facade. It is attended by both North African Sephardim and Russian and German Ashkenazim

Rue des Tournelles synagogue. Built in 1870, the synagogue originally catered to an Ashkenazi population, however, after the influx of North African in the 1950's and 60's, it became Sephardic.

Another beautiful synagogue is located near the Eiffel Tower on rue Chasseloup-Laubat 14. Completed in 1913, the synagogue has a yellow-stone facade. It is attended by both North African Sephardim and Russian and German Ashkenazim

The Musee d'art et d'histoire du Judaisme in Paris is delighted to be showing De Superman au Chat du rabbin, an exhibition on Jewish cartoons and graphic novels illustrating how the comic strip contributed to the construction of contemporary Jewish collective memory. The exhibition focuses on the process of depicting the present and reminiscing on the Jewish past in the strip cartoon. It will be shown in Paris from 16 October 2007 to 27 January 2008, then in Amsterdam from 6 March to mid-June 2008. The increasing share of autobiographical and fictional works dealing with personal or collective Jewish memory in the last two decades has prompted historians to consider the characteristics and social meaning of this new production. The exhibition is therefore an historical reflection on reminiscences of Jewish past as well as the construction of Jewish collective memory and self-awareness. The aim is to show how, from the end of the 19th century until the late 20th century, the strip cartoon and essentially graphic novel played a role in the creation of imagery and partially enriched and disseminated visions of the Jewish past. Artworks by over 30 artists, shown in five main sections, will retrace the gradual process of reminiscing on the Jewish past over successive generations. 230 original drawings and printed works by major cartoonists and graphic novelists will be shown. The core of the exhibition will be the artists living and publishing in New York and their influence on European graphic storytelling as far as Jewish Memory is concerned.