Designed for the 1900 World Fair by architect Charles Girault – who also supervised the work on the Grand Palais – the Petit Palais is a classical building of 22,965 sq. ft. (7,000 m²). Together with its big neighbour, it forms a characteristic Belle Epoque ensemble. Its 125-metre long facade has a monumental entrance in the centre, topped by a dome with no glass roof. The interior is structured around a semi-circular garden bordered by a peristyle. The artist Paul Baudoüin, a pupil of Puvis de Chavannes, painted frescoes on the vaults of the garden portico using a decorative technique forgotten since the Renaissance.