The Palais de Tokyo is one of the three permanent buildings resulting from the Universal Exhibition of 1937. The Art Deco masterpiece has housed the Paris Museum of Modern Art since 1961.
The building has never been registered or classified as a historic monument. An association has submitted a request to the regional directorate of cultural affairs (Drac) to have the site protected. The Palace is protected by the local urban planning plan (PLU) of the City of Paris, but this protection does not protect the interior of the walls.