Art Ludique—literally, recreational art—is the name of a new museum that opened in Paris, in November, with a presentation of Pixar: 25 Years of Animation. The show, which opened at MoMA New York in 2005, is on a world tour that has already made stops in Oakland, Lausanne, London, Tokyo, and Melbourne, and will move on to three venues in Spain in the spring.

The show got under way when MoMA’s Department of Film and Media approached Pixar with this idea, and was organized by curator Steven Higgens and Assistant Curator Ronald S. Magliozzi. Featuring over 500 works of original art on loan for the first time from Pixar Animation Studios, the show includes paintings, concept art, sculptures, and an array of digital installations.

These works reveal the intricate, hands-on processes behind Pixar's computer-generated films—including Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, and numerous shorts. The exhibition also includes a retrospective of Pixar films. Demonstrating the symbiotic relationship between traditional and digital media pioneered by the studio over its twenty-year history, Pixar: 25 Years of Animation is a tribute to the artists whose work has reinvented the genre.

For the presentation at Art Ludique, a few fragile items have been retired, and the content has been updated with new artwork from the more recent movies, like Kevin from Up and Boo from Monsters, Inc. In addition, the museum is creating a mini-theater featuring the beloved film, Ratatouille.

Above: Studies by Tia Kratter of Sullivan, a character from Monsters Inc. © Disney/Pixar.

The Art Ludique website features a video in which Pixar founder and Chief Creative Officer, John Lasseter explains a little about the exhibition and how it is broken into three different categories based on the order he says makes a great animated film. "I believe that in order to make a really great animated film you have to do three things really well. 

Number One: Tell a compelling story that keeps people on the edge of their seat where they can't wait to see what happens next. 
Number Two: Populate that story with really memorable and appealing characters. 
Number Three: Put those characters into that story in a believable world and when you do that the audience will be swept away and truly entertained.

Pixar: 25 Years of Animation continues at Art Ludique, Le Musée through March 2. Information. 34, quai d'Austerlitz, 75 013 Paris. Directions.

Read an interview with Jean-Jacques Launier, Founder and Director of Art Ludique – Le Musée.