Paris has always beckoned American artists, and Paris postwar was no different. Some Americans—formerly soldiers—stayed on in the spirit of Ernest Hemingway. Others went home to find the art world dominated by the New York School and the Abstract Expressionists Willem de Kooning and Jackson Pollock. With the passing of the G.I. Bill, which ensured free studies for veterans, a few young artists braved the journey back over the Atlantic, and brought Abstract Expressionism with them. This exhibition examines America’s influence on France’s art scene during the postwar years—and tells the story of hundreds of artists who found inspiration in the fabled boulevards and cobbled streets of Paris. —E.C.