Artazart

Artazart is Paris's premier design bookstore, occupying a bright corner space overlooking Canal Saint-Martin with floor-to-ceiling windows that flood the interior with natural light. You'll find an expertly curated selection of international design magazines, photography monographs, and architecture books that are genuinely hard to source elsewhere in the city. The upstairs gallery rotates exhibitions every six weeks, showcasing emerging artists whose work you can often purchase as affordable prints (typically €30-80).

The space feels more like a design studio than a traditional bookstore, with books displayed on sleek white shelving and sample pages open for browsing. The ground floor focuses on graphic design and contemporary art publications, while upstairs houses photography books and the current exhibition. Staff are knowledgeable without being pushy, and you're encouraged to spend time flipping through books while watching canal boats drift past the windows.

Most travel guides oversell this as a quick stop, but you need at least an hour to properly explore the collection. The photography section upstairs is where you'll find the real treasures, including out-of-print editions and limited releases from Japanese and Scandinavian publishers. Skip the postcards near the entrance (overpriced at €3 each) and focus on the magazine section, which stocks titles you won't find at standard newsstands.